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So we have one rainstorm and there’s not a drop of bottled water left in the entire city!
A few days ago we had some bad weather — nothing like a hurricane, an earthquake or a tornado — but strong winds and lots of rain. A large chunk of the city lost power and we were all put on a boil-water advisory. Within hours of the storm hitting, our local grocery stores were drained of their bottled water inventory. And the next morning 400 people were lined up at Cosco and promptly bought out their supply. And we couldn’t even get through on the phone to the bottled water companies — their phone lines were all busy. And that was it. One little rainstorm and you couldn’t even buy your family a bottle of water. It got us thinking. And preparing. You see, for folks like Janice and me (disorganized procrastinators) preparing for an unforseen emergency is a task easily left undone. Every so often the media sends out a warning, and I plan to prepare. I think about what I ought to stock, I intend to research, I plan to purchase supplies, but then I get busy and the warning fades away. And so when this little storm came, and I hardly had anything ready — not even bottles of water — I felt unbelievably foolish. And I knew what I need to do. I needed to Tackle It! So, obviously my first step was to buy up my ration of 5 large water bottles (18 Litre size) at Cosco. And I’ll order 5 or 10 more tomorrow for delivery (from a bottled water company) to my house and Janice’s house. (Now that things have settled down, I’m hoping that I can finally get through on their phone lines.) I then logged on to the site I trust the most for emergency supplies. A few months ago, Janice and I spent hours searching the Net for the best preparedness sites. Now I know I have more to do, but I feel better knowing that I’ve started. So this week Janice and I are going to keep tackling our emergency preparations. We’re going to keep working on stocking up emergency food and critical supplies. Janice and I both desperately need to clean out our basements and organize these emergency supplies… perhaps we’ll show that in a future tackle. So how are you doing with your emergency preparations? Do you have water supplies? What else have you done to ensure you and your family are in the best situation possible if an emergency hits your city? We’d love to hear suggestions from you all? Also, what have you learned from past experiences? Have you been in situations where you were relieved you had supplies and/or have you wished you had certain necessities? |
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Gattina says
No tackles this week ? Mine’s up.
Ramblin Rose says
My tackle it is jsut my bills and important documents nothing exciting…
Q&Q says
Great post! We have emergency water but I need to check it since it’s quite old 🙁
My husband picked up some emergency items yesterday. Maybe he knew what you were going to post 😉
Jenn says
OH that’s going to HAVE to be one of my tackle it’s – it IS one of those things that you put off – I know I have *blush*
Surfingmama says
In Malaysia, unless our pipes are out of water (which is very rare), we are strongly advised to boil our water 🙂
Heather says
Great tackle! I also have a folder (like a trapper-keeper) with all of our important documents (birth certificates, insurance info, mortgage info) inside. In case of an emergency, I know right where to go and I can grab it all quickly.
Barbara H. says
That is a great tackle. Unfortunately, this house is way short of storage space. But it would be good to put away a few things, at least.
I’ve really missed this the last couple of weeks!!
Adventures in Babywearing says
I just got back from the store and you reminded me that I forgot to get bottled water! AH! No storms here, but I wanted to fight the holiday crowd!
dexie says
thanks for the reminder. NC gets a lot of rainstorms this time of year so it’s a god idea to stock up on things like water, batteries, food, etc…
ChupieandJsmama says
Great Tackle! We have 5 cases of water, a generator, a wind up radio and flash light, more flashlights than we know what to do with, a case of MRE’s, extra batteries, and extra gas for the generator. My father in law prepared us (except for the generator-we bought that later) after the black out of 2003. I’m sure we could do more though. My tackle is up and has a Thanksgiving theme:)
Aimee says
Thanks for the heads up about Tackle it Tuesday!
We have a supply of water, and also food. Our church has been advising us to have a years supply for decades. You can use it for more than just natural disasters, like in times of a job loss, or illness when you can’t get the the store. The key is to rotate and keep things fresh. 🙂
Martha says
Great ideas! Is it sad that I really just don’t want to think about being prepared for an emergency? Nah, it’s probably human nature. I remember thinking about this when Katrina hit (not near us- we watched on TV) and wishing I could just nurse my babies forever… in case of emergency, I’d be sure to have what they needed!
MommyOz says
So glad to finally be able to participate. I hope this gives me the kick in the pants to keep going today. Thanks for all the great ideas!!! It also feels great to know that there are others working at the same time.
Chaotic Mom says
HAHAHAHA! I commented and didn’t LINK! Go figure. I thought I had linked, but didn’t see it when I checked back in. Ooops! 😉
Becca says
I just can’t tell you the fun I’m having with Tackle-It Tuesdays! 🙂 It has become infectious in our home. My eleven year old participated this week!
Becca
Ben says
I have posted my first Tackle-It Tuesday. I liked doing it.
Ben in Texas
Chaotic Mom says
Wow, deep thoughts. This may sound silly, but we’re prepared for the Avian Flu, should it ever hit. 😉
I’m up!
Stacey says
Ah, something I have often considered doing, but have not done. Good job girls!
Erna says
We’re not very well prepared. I guess we think of it from time to time and then put it on the backburner.
Maria says
Argh! Too much to do to have a tackle it Tuesday so i think i might rest (sorry to let the side down!)
God bless
Maria in the UK
http://www.inhishands.co.uk
Mrs Lifecruiser says
I’ve never been in an emergency and I hope I never will of course, but you’re doing the right thing there. To be prepared is always a good thing!
Now I need to find out if there are something similar in this country to order emergency stuff from…..
GREAT to point this out and I hope the water situation improves for you 🙂
Karen Wallace says
Susan, this reminds me of all the preparation we all did almost 7 years ago for Y2K… bottled water, freeze-dried food, etc. I pray that you will never need to make use of the emergency supplies you have on hand!
aka R'acquel says
The region i’m living in is currently dealing with bushfires. We seem to be in sync with regards to checking the preparedness of the house in case of an emergency. I’m gonna have to do a check on the issue of water supply here too. Thanks for the links & heads-up with needing to tackle something like this.
Gattina says
I live in an area where it is rather impossible that this could ever happen. Yes we sometimes have some towns and villages under water and houses badly dammaged, but never a lack of water or food. There are the red cross or soldiers coming then by boat and bring water and food to those who are in need. But natural catastrophies I only see in TV.
My tackles of the week are rather romantic compared to yours !
Laura says
Such a great tackle and so very important! Unlike mine that will prove to be useful five minutes into my flight…yikes! Laura