10 easy ways to prepare for the apocalypse and other emergencies
Who’s got your back when the Apocalypse hits? - Luis from My Apocalyptic Thanksgiving
Several weeks ago, my neighbor’s house almost caught on fire. Holly and I were not home. We only noticed the smoke and fire when we were a few blocks away. I thought to myself, “Geez, that’s awfully close to our house.” As soon as we pulled up we saw a homeless camp was ablaze. Holly dialed 911. I rushed inside and herded my brother and the adults with special needs outside. The police and fire department arrived minutes after and quickly extinguished it.
Even worse situations ran through my head -What if we arrived several minutes later? Not at all? Our home would’ve been devastated by the fire. What if we were inside? Would we ever noticed the fire and called emergency services? We could have lost our home and possibly our lives. Shivers ran up my spine. Brush fires are all too common in California. They are why words like "wildfire" exist, since they spread like crazy. Living in the city is little better for fires get started here all the time. To add to California's problems is the dirty little secret of pervasive homeless camps. Thank God we were lucky and prepared. Maybe next time we may not be as lucky...
Here are 10 easy ways to prepare for disaster or Apocalypse:
Food: One week of nonperishable food and water. Easy Peasy. Canned food. Don't limit yourself to fruit cocktail and veggies, but things you can eat for three meals. Remember to check the expiration date twice a year. A more practical choice is dehydrated food that’s used in camping. Remember that dehydrated food is... dehydrated. It requires water.
Water: How much water do you need? Adults roughly drink two liters of water a day. You can always empty the water heater or the back tank of the toilet.
Flashlight and batteries. When the Apocalypse hits, lights will be out. Even the street lights will be inoperable unless the city has emergency generators. But, I wouldn't count on it, since LA still has rolling blackouts in the poorer neighborhoods. I have three flashlights. One right next to my bed. Since I sleep 7 hours of the there’s a 1 out of 4 chances that it’ll happen at night. The other two are scattered around the house.
First Aid Kit. Double check the expiration date of the rubbing alcohol, Neosporin and other medication. Know how to use it. Never let your prescriptions run low in case the roads to your pharmacy are destroyed. Zombies would have a sixth sense for this. Any extra medication would be useful. Or better yet. Take a disaster course from the Red Cross. Learn First Aid while you're at it.
Smoke and Carbon monoxide alarms batteries. Don’t use the cheap leftover batteries from a 99 store. Install the expensive lithium batteries which supposedly last 10 years. Test them twice a year. I do it when daylight savings occurs.
Fire Extinguisher. I have one in my kitchen. Kitchen grease fires are the most common second to electrical fires. One in my garage too.
Print list of phone numbers and addresses. Yes! Print them out. No electricity means no printer, no internet and no phone. I don't even know my wife's phone number.
Weapons. When your neighbors run out of supplies, the unprepared will come knocking on your door. They’ll be HANGRY. Practice swinging baseball bats because they don't require electricity or bullets.
Extra pet food. Yes. Don’t forget about Fido and Fifi.
Keep cold hard cash. No ATM’s. No Paypal, Venmo or checks. If you owned a store would you accept a check?
Don’t be the 99% that didn’t prepare. Be the 1%. Prepare also to defend yourself. I have been in the middle of a Los Angeles riot. Its terrifying. There were no police to protect me. Most stores were closed.
Who's got your back when the Apocalypse goes down? - Luis from My Apocalyptic Thanksgiving.
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