I'm sorry I was unable to post yesterday. We lost Verizon DSL service around lunchtime and it didn't come back up until sometime in the overnight hours. It was an area outage; my dad lives about 10 miles away and his was out too.
FEMA Wants Us To Spring Ahead To Disaster Preparedness
From the FEMA news release:
Daylight Savings Time in the United States starts on the second Sunday in March of each year and the Federal Emergency Management Agency encourages all Americans to use the change to daylight savings time to update emergency preparedness plans. For years, firefighters and safety professionals have asked the public to change smoke alarm batteries throughout their homes, as they move their clocks ahead. According to FEMA Regional Administrator Ken Murphy, the March ritual of making homes safer from fire is also a great opportunity to review disaster preparedness plans and restock disaster kits.
Well, I didn't make it to restocking our BOBs in the cars. We'll switch them over from winter to spring gear probably next weekend. I did, however, give my EDC kit a reboot.
Here's what mine looks like:
First, I always have my Nuk Alert with me.
I have mine because the city where I work has a nuclear power plant on one end, a nuclear accelerator lab in the middle, and a nuclear shipyard at the other end. Looking at the Japan disasters, it really adds a level of safety and peace of mind. With some of the reports saying that radiation could reach the Western U.S., I'd imagine their sales are going through the roof right now.
I lost my old EDC kit when the converted cell phone pouch came off my belt without me knowing it. I've switched to this Sony camera case
. It has a double layer belt loop. It can either be snapped on and off, or also has a sewn loop. Guess which one I use now...Here's what I have in it:
From the top left, going clockwise: three alcohol preps, four Band-Aids, the pouch with a small caribiner to keep the zipper closed, two latex gloves (you might need nitrile if you have a latex sensitivity), about five feet of first aid tape, a 9 LED flashlight, a Bic lighter, Chap Stick with 15 spf, a Wegner Swiss Army Knife (check out our Sponsor of the Week for a great selection of Wegners!), two boot laces (I need to replace this with 550 cord, and a plastic container that gum came in.
The gloves, tape, laces and Chapstick fit in the plastic case, which then goes in the pouch. The knife, flashlight and lighter also fit in the pouch. The Band-Aids and prep pads go in the Velcroed front pocket of the pouch. It's tight, but it all fits.
This goes on my belt every time I leave the house. It works fine with jeans or with my suit at work. I actually have two of these pouches. The second one carries my iPod Touch
, work Blackberry, and personal flip phone.
, work Blackberry, and personal flip phone.Sponsor of the Week
Essential Packs is up as our Sponsor of the Week. These guys have a huge selection of "turn key" emergency kits for you, your home, car, work, school, and even pets. As mentioned before, they also have a variety of Wegner Swiss Army Knives too. Check them out, and please let them know you heard about them through If It Hits The Fan!
Looks like a great EDC. I just changed my B.O.B today over to my warm weather stuff. The time change always has been my change over date. I also went through the house and changed all the smoke alarm batteries yesterday. Great post.
ReplyDeleteInteresting kit. I keep many of the same types of items in the pack that goes on the back of my motorcycle. This pack has replaced my briefcase, even when I'm not on the bike, so I've always got a fair number of useful items for unexpected situations.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, that city you work in (NN?) sounds a whole lot like the city right next to mine (H). I'd be interested to learn what evacuation routes you think will actually be *usable* if we have a problem at Surry, or Jefferson Labs, or the shipyard. Can you imagine yourself and 450,000+ of your close personal friends all trying to use the HRBT or JRB at the same time? Yikes!
Hi Mike, thanks for checking in. I live past Williamsburg, so my plan is to take 60 or 64 as my primary, or if I have to, head up into Gloucester and cut up through West Point to get home the long way. I fully expect I might have to hoof it to get there. I am currently working with VDEM and the NN EOC about some "Plan B" ideas if the penninsula needs to evacuate ahead of a Class 3 or stronger hurricane.
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