I learned something about myself. I am not prepared for something like this. I can handle the stress and was very good at navigating traffic and finding solutions amongst the chaos, but I didn't have enough done in advance to find ideal solutions. I also learned that I'm ok if my house blows down so long as I and my cats are not in it at the time. That is why I have insurance and I'm happy to pay it. The peace of mind that came from knowing I could get it fixed if something bad happened was very comforting. Here's what I will do to be better prepared for next time: 1. I'm buying two 10-gallon gas cans and storing me some gas. No way I get stranded on a freeway. 2. I'm buying plywood and screws early and pre-cutting and pre-drilling holes. 3. I'm getting a much better cordless drill. 4. I'm going to buy a used mini van. I've been meaning to do this for a while for a variety of reasons - hauling gear to gigs, taking multiple cats to the vet, etc. This would've been the ideal time to have it because I could fit all my cats in air conditioned comfort with food, water and litter for as long a drive as necessary. 5. Speaking of, I'm getting wire kennel-style cat carriers for putting in the back of said van. 6. I'm making a list of places I can board animals and nearby hotels and/or bed and breakfasts in cities throughout this part of the country so I can have a list of options. 7. I'm getting a SMALL (6' or something of that nature) compact covered trailer to pull behind my van or truck - much easier to haul things. 8. I'm organizing all my paper files into an easy-to-store and carry container. 9. I'm buying a better laptop so that all I have to take with me is the laptop and my back-up hard drive and I'll be set for an extended stay away. 10. I'm buying a couple of cases of bottled water and plenty of batteries for storage. 11. I'm buying up to date key maps for all the counties around Houston - my Harris one was invaluable for navigating traffic, but it didn't help when I got to Montgomery County. -- I realized that to live in an area with a threat of hurricanes, you have to be prepared, particularly when you are charged with the care of animals who cannot care for themselves. Did anyone else have this change your mind about being prepared???
Let me add one more: 12. I'm getting a pair of decent short-wave walkie talkies/radios. It would make it much easier to keep up with friends in a caravan when cell phone service is iffy.
I was not prepared at all. 1. need to keep the fridge fully stocked at all time with all the basic necessities and the thigs u talk about [sans the cats] seem like good ideas as well. Rocket River don't have no pets . ..
And that is why evil will always triumph over good; because good is dumb. I'm as prepared as I'll ever be, but I'm a squatter.
That's one of the greatest quotes from one of the greatest movies ever. I see your Schwartz (Spaceballs knowledge in this case) is as big as mine. That's a lot of stuff to do there, Jeff; good for you if you can get all that done.
Too prepared!.... I live off Gessner by Westheimer in an apartment and we went to my aunts house in Bellaire off Gessner. I proceeded to board up every window around the house and get up on the garage to cut tree limbs. I promptly went to sleep at 10 o clock and slept throught the "storm" I was kind of let down.
Was pretty prepared. As soon as we saw on the news Tuesday, we started making a list of essentials and making sure our tanks were topped off. The biggest thing was, we seized the time factor, as far as getting out of town early and getting back early.
concerning the idea of storing gasoline... how long can you store gasoline for? I have no idea if it's bad to use it after it has been sitting for months or not??
If I was lax in preparation after Katrina, I'm definitely not going to be this unprepared after Rita. Those will serve as warnings for me for other future disasters. To add to your list Jeff: 1) I'm buying some 5-gallon collapsible water containers and some real water purification gear. I'll make sure my family has a hydration pack for each person. 2) I'm buying some of those wind-up flashlights and radios. If I ran out of C or D cell batteries (this whole town had none left), I wouldn't be screwed. 3) I'll help my family build hurricane shutters for their house like these. 4) I'll buy a first aid kit and learn how to use it. I like the other ideas listed, but especially the up-to-date maps idea.
You can't store it indefinitely. I don't know how long though. There's an additive you can add to get it useful again though (Stabil?).
I was pretty darn prepared. 1) I have two power stations to provide electricity to small devices for quite a while. (I should test them now just to see just how long I can operate certain items like a griddle, a fan, etc.) 2) I have my own reverse-osmosis water filtration system. While others were fighting to buy drinking water, I was making my own giant supply. 3) I had LOTS of charged up AA batteries. I could improve this by adding some C and D rechargeables. 4) I had two charged up walkie-talkies. 5) I had plenty of non-perishables. 6) I had a portable radio and lots of flashlights that could operate off two AA batteries (I could improve this by getting crank-operated). 7) I had lots of gas - both cars were full and so was my reserve tank. 8) I had a shotgun and plenty of shells ready for any unwanted visitors. Had to borrow this from my father-in-law, though. Need to buy my own (though I'll probably get a pistol). 9) I had plenty of up-to-date maps of the city and state. 10) I had a first aid kit and fire extinguisher readily available. The only think I could have done a lot better, really, was to have 1/2 inch plywood pre-cut and ready to be placed into windows.
Nah, man. Thats all I drink. Its just what you're used to. I was definitely not prepared enough. I live in an apartment, so stocking up on certain things is not feasible. I will, however, be snappier about buying what I need to. The next time a tropical depression (or greater) is set to pass the Florida panhandle, I am taking that as my sign to get prepared.
Most importantly, I hope the city learns from this. It was a good idea to open up both sides of the freeways to outbound traffic, but it should have been done sooner. Also, they should consider how a Gelveston evacuation will affect the Houston evacuation - in this occurance, the Galvestonians clogged up the freeways even before the Houstonians started evacuating. And the gasoline issue was huge. This was an excellent learning experience because very few lives were lost and the city can make better plans.
I feel like I was not prepared at all. We took too long to get the car and house ready to evacuate, and by the time we hit the roads the traffic was a mess and had to turn back home. Then when we got home we lucked out by getting to Costco right before they closed and got our food and water (they had just received a water shipment). We didn't have time to try to figure out how to put plywood on the windows, so we just duct-taped them (which I'm sure was completely useless, but it made us feel better to see all the grey X's I guess), pushed mattresses up against the north-facing windows, and hoped for the best. Then we cut tree limbs and cleared the yard of movable objects. Jeff's list looks good to me - I also like the idea of beginning to prepare after any tropical depression or greater moves past Florida, instead of waiting for a couple of days like we did with Rita. One thing I might add: a GPS device, to supplement the key maps.
I do too, but I try to use our pitcher that has a filter built in. I don't normally take it straight from the tap.
