October 26, 2007
With all the fires in Southern California (which is affecting many of my friends and family because we are from Southern California) I was thinking it would be appropriate to discuss what you should have from your house in case you need to leave in a hurry. My brother is an LA City Firefighter, and lets just give him and his co-workers a hand for working so hard to put them out!
First get the largest plastic container you can store and start stuffing. I would gather the important documents we put together a few weeks ago, and place them in a plastic sleeve and put it in the container. Things that I have in our sleeve are our birth certificates, social security cards, titles to our cars, etc. Another thing I would keep in this sleeve is some cash. Just in case the ATM’s of the world are broken. It is just nice to be able to have some cash on hand in case you have to evacuate.
I would pack in some water bottles. As many as you can fit! Just the normal 12 oz. ones. Also lets add some food that has high calories, but compacted. My friend’s husband is in the military and she has Ready to Eat meals. If you have access to these, they are a good choice to include. Granola bars, energy bars, meals that you just need to add water to like cup o’ noodles, or oatmeal are also good choices to include. Go grocery shopping at your local sporting goods store for camping meal equipment.
Place some warm clothing in it like sweaters you typically don’t wear (I know you have ‘em). Get some really warm socks and place them in the container as well. You also want to put a couple of changes of clothes for each member of the family.
Don’t forget a flashlight, and some extra batteries, light sticks, and an am/fm radio would be nice to keep in touch with what is going on in the world.
Medications are important to include so get some extra and store it in the container. You may also want to include some other first aid equipment such as band-aids and antiseptic spray.
Toiletries will be especially nice to have on hand. I would buy those “wipes” for adults. They are more compact then a roll of toilet paper, and will clean you better out in the world. Pack extra toothpaste and toothbrush, and mouthwash. Shampoo, conditioner and body wash will also be nice to have on hand. With all the toiletries, don’t forget some wash cloths and towels.
Toys will definitely be important if you have small children. So grab some toys that they won’t miss and place them in the container.
Lastly make sure that you grab any special family pictures and place them the plastic sleeve. If you have to evacuate because of a fire you will be happy to have your really special pictures with you.
This should at least give you the basics from your house so that if you needed to evacuate you can do so quickly and comfortably.
What I’m Buying or Doing This Week to Prepare
- I’m doing all of the above!
to prepare, I’m going to compile a list of phone numbers, of friends and family who live out of state. If our county were evacuated, and we decided it best to stay with my brother in law in texas, I would not even know his phone number!! If my cell phone died, I wouldn’t have ANYONE’S phone number. Plus you would want to call friends and family to check if they are OK, and let them know you are OK.
Thanks for your kind words on my SuperMomPreneur blog. This is a great post. Please give your brother a big hug for me, and thanks for the great planning ideas. I know the fires have scared the crapola out of my family, and I’ve found that organizing what I would evacuate with has put my mind at ease, if only a little.