Canthook

Ed Rendell came on TV during the Tonight Show, telling me that I needed to be prepared for emergencies, and he gave me a telephone number to call for the Pennsylvania Emergency Preparedness Guide.

That phone number might be good in the middle of the day. At midnight, in the middle of Leno's show, it's probably not, nor at 5:30 AM when I was watching the show on TiVO. Can you remember to call in the middle of the next day? If you can remember to call, can you remember the number.

Ah, but it's the internet age. I'll just download the guide, right? Except there's a problem. There are a gazillion links to the guide online. It's supposed to be at http://www.health.state.pa.us/pdf/EmergencyPrepGuide/EmergencyPrepGuide-... but that address gives a 404 error.

I eventually did find the file. It was at http://www.aging.state.pa.us/aging/lib/aging/EmergencyPrepGuide-english.pdf It would take a webmaster about 30 seconds to automatically divert requests for the Department of Health URL to the Department of Aging URL, and I'm not talking about a page that tells you to click for the new location; I'm talking about automagically sending you to the new URL without your even noticing that it's happened.

Hope nobody's looking for the guide with an emergency looming. If you want to save the bother, here's the file served from my website, where the policy is to never break links.

It's not the greatest guide ever written. As a rule, most government pamphlets aren't too great (although some Extension Agent handouts about canning and freezing break that rule.) The majority of the book is advice for fools, much on the order of the sticker that came with your iron, telling you not to iron clothes while you are wearing them. Duh.

In the back of the book, though, there's a list of the things you need for surviving an emergency. They forget the "Don't blame me, I voted for the OTHER guy" sticker for your front door, and a suggestion that you put a post-it note on your front door as well, saying, "Jim - I've moved all our valuables, food, medicines, and weapons to Julie's house on the other side of town. Meet you there!", but otherwise, the lists are pretty comprehensive.

Water Store three gallons per person - double that for hot environments or heavy physical activity - in plastic gallon jugs. Replace the water every six months.

Clothing and Bedding. Sturdy shoes or work boots and two pairs of heavy cotton socks. Blankets or sleeping bags in a waterproof bag. Thermal underwear. Sunglasses. Rainwear. Hats and gloves.

Special items For children, formula or baby food, diapers, bottles, powdered milk, meds, games, special toy for comfort, wet wipes, extra clothes (check sizes every 3 months), anti-rash ointment. Emergency contact info in case they get separated from you. For adults, prescriptions, denture needs, contact lens supplies, extra glasses, playing cards, important papers (deed, insurnce policies, passport, etc.) in waterproof pouch, feminine supplies, personal hygiene items, lip balm, recent pix of family members and pets.

Pets Meds and med records, pet first aid kit, extra leash and collar, food, water, and bowls, cat litter and box, copies of licenses, recent pix in case they get lost, name and phone of vet, microchip or tattoo number, toys, treats, bedding, paper towels and cleanup bags. A week's worth of food and water, replaced every six months.

Food At least a 3-day supply of non-perishable food for each person - food that doesn't need refrigeration, cooking or preparation. Food should be compact, lightweight, and should be rotated every six months. Ready-to-eat canned meats, fruits and vegetables, canned soups, bouillion, dried soup, boxed, powdered, or canned milk, sugar cookies, hard candy, sugar, slt, pepper, canned, boxed, or powdered juices, smoked or dried meats like beef jerky, vitamins, and high-energy foods like peanut butter, nuts, trail mix.

Tools and Supplies A toolbox, nylon bag or fanny pack. Mess kit or paper cups, plates, silverware. Battery or crank-operated radio. Fire extinguisher. Flashlight and extra batteries. Paper, pens, pencils. Hand can opener. Multi-purpose knife. Tent. Plastic sheeting. Duct tape. Pliers. Compass. Flares. Needles and thread. Aluminum foil. Waterproof matches. Shutoff wrench for water, gas. Work gloves. Plastic storage containers. Medicine dropper. Cash and change. Dust mask. Toilet paper. Battery-powered fan. Extra keys for house, car. Light sticks. Local and regional maps. Nylon cord. Portable generator. Prepaid phone card. Scissors. Spray paint. Propane camping stove. Pot and pan. Wet wipes. Ziploc bags. Hard hat. Pry bar. Personal hygiene items. Feminine supplies. Disinfectant. Garbage bags and ties. Soap. Chlorine bleach. Small shovel (to dig toilet, etc.) Plastic bucket with tight lid.

First Aid You need a kit for the house, and a kit for each car. You need bandaids in assorted sizes, 2x2s and 3x3s, adhesive tape, rolls of sterile bandages (both 2" and 3"), scissors, tweezers, needle, single-edge razor blade, assorted safety pins, snake bite kit, cold pack, soap, moist towelette, non-breakable thermometer, antiseptic spray, latex gloves, petroleum jelly or surgical lubricant, tongue blades, both tylenol and a pain reliever that is anti-inflammatory, antiacid, laxative, eye wash, rubbing alcohol, hydrogen peroxie, kaopectate, and syrup of ipecac.

Boy, there's a lot on that list that I need. Some of it, I don't really need, but it'd still be a good idea. Did you know that if you get a broken nose, you should cut a tampon in half, and shove each half up a nostil? I've never gone through that indignity, but when I had heavy bleeding in the abdominal area, I've had sanitary napkins taped into place - regular bandages would soak through in no time flat.

And in a jam, adults can eat baby food. I don't recommend feeding it to babies; it's cheaper, it tastes far better, and it's probably more nutritious if you simply toss some of what everyone else is eating into the blender, and grind it up for the baby. On the other hand, we're talking about emergency situations, when you may not have power for the blender (or be able to cook food that you'd feed into the blender.)

And although it's not on the list, keep your cell phone charged at all times. Some emergencies, like Katrina, happen to large groups of people over a broad geographical area. Other emergencies consist of getting stuck in the snow on a back road during a blizzard.

Oh, and that suggestion about the deck of cards? They don't say so in the Emergency Preparedness Guide, but I'm told if you are lost, you can start playing solitaire. It won't be more than 20 minutes before someone shows up, to tell you to put the black 3 on the red 4.

I hope creating an Emergency Preparedness Kit is an enormous waste of time for you. If it's not, I hope you've put more effort into this than simply to make sure you have everything on the list. You need to think about the disasters that might befall yourself and/or your family, because the most important item is that gray matter between your ears. You don't need to be McGyver, but if you've put some thought into emergency preparedness, you'll be better armed, even if you have none of the items on the list.

Other Bloggers On Related Topics:
baby food - Ed Rendell - emergency preparedness - first aid - link rot - survival