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Good Stuff to Know
Emergency Preparedness Checklist
from the American Red Cross:
- Water. Have at least 1 gallon per person per day
- Food. Pack non-perishable high-protein items including energy bars, ready to eat soup, peanut butter, etc. Select foods that require no refrigeration, preparation or cooking and little or no water
- Flashlight. include extra batteries
- First Aid Kit. pack a reference guide
- Medications. Don't forget prescriptions and non-prescription
- Battery Operated Radio. include extra batteries
- Tools. Assemble a wrench to turn off gas if necessary, a manual can opener, a screwdriver, hammer, pliers, knife, duct tape, plastic sheeting, and garbage bags and ties (electrical wire/zip ties come in handy too!)
- Clothing. provide a change of clothes for everyone, including sturdy shoes and gloves.
- Personal Items. Remember eyeglasses or contact lenses & solution, copies of important papers (including identification cards, insurance policies, birth certificates, passports, etc.) and comfort items such as toys and books
- Sanitary supplies. toilet paper, towelettes, feminine supplies,
personal hygiene items, bleach, etc.
- Money. HAVE CASH. ATM's and credit cards won't work if power is out
- Contact information. Carry a current list of family phone numbers and email addresses including someone out of the area who may be
easier to reach is local phone lines are out of service or overloaded
- Pet supplies. Include food, water, leash, litter box or plastic bags, any medications and vaccination information
- Map. Consider marking an evacuation route from your local area
Outdoorsmanship
The One Match Fire:
Here's the plan for last chance fire making for when you're down to 1 match! The secret: Attention to Detail long before the match comes out of your pocket.
- Begin with Tinder. Collect 3 times as much as you think you'll need; don't stop looking until you have a double handful. Shred it to a
fiber like consistency. Conifer pitch, pine needles, cedar bark, and dry
bulrushes all make excellent natural tinder. Lots of other common items make for good fire starting material too. Turn your pockets inside out for lint or
candy bar wrappers. Duct tape burns like crazy. Plastic arrow
fletching works too. The more variety you have, the longer the burn.
- Gather twice as much kindling as you think you'll need. Separate it into piles of like-size pieces. Fumble for a pencil-size piece of
one at the wrong moment and your fire will go up in smoke. You should have pieces the diameter of an earth worm, a .22 cartridge, and 20-gauge shell. Use a knife to fuzz up the outer edges of a few sticks for a quicker catch.
- Start small. Use two-thirds of your tinder for starters, save the other third in case you need a second try with the dying embers of your first shot. Arrangement is important: You want to be able to get your match head near the bottom of the pile and also ensure that the slightest breeze pushes emerging flames towards your materials. Blow gently, and feed only the fast burning flames.
check out this interesting web site for more info:
total outdoorsman
Survival
Key things to have in a survival kit:
- All weather fire starter--wind proof matches, lighter, etc.
- Cotton balls soaked in petroleum jelly (great fire starter)
- Tarp, large poncho, or large trash bags for shelter (can double as a signal)
- Food & Water
- Strong lock-blade knife for gathering wood
- Whistle
Main focus is preventing hypothermia--food, water, shelter, and fire are all important elements in this.
What can you do to improve chances of survival:
- Make sure you know how to use your equipment (including your compass & map!)
- Make sure every person in the party has a survival kit and knows how to use it. A single kit for the group isn't enough--there's no
guarantee that you'll be together when is all goes south
- Tell somebody where you're going and when you'll be back. This substantially reduces the time that passes before a search can begin. Survival rates decline after the first day.
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