Planning - #4 Sanitation

For this trip down the rabbit hole it is time we address one of the least talked about components of emergency planning, sanitation. Remember we are using the same scenario for this post as we have been using for the last few. There has been an earthquake, your home is safe to stay in and now you have to make it a few days till things are normal. Make sure to look up what is the greatest threat in you area and substitute your greatest threat for this planning.

  

Your prior planning has worked out so far, following the plan your entire family has made it home and are safe. Your home is standing and you will be able to shelter inside. You feel good, your family just sat around the dinner table eating, telling the adventure of getting home, laughing together and now it is time to clean up. You gather up the dishes and move to the sink. Without thinking you load the dishwasher as one of the kids yells out the toilet won't flush....................

Let's roll this back for a moment. You followed the guide lines put out by the government, you have one gallon of water per person. You have figured out the water is going to run out faster than you thought it would. It takes a lot of water to accomplish what most of us do in a day and now you need to wash dishes, clean up and figure out what to do for bodily functions!

  

Should there be a emergency the scope of the 'Big One' in California, tornado, tsunami, flood or whatever the major threat in your area is odds are our regular sanitation system is not going to work properly or at all. Imagine the garbage not being picked up once a week. Water not coming out of the tap and the toilets not working. For most of us we have never lived under these sorts of conditions and have no frame of reference to work from. Most of us take these things for granted. Luckily we are going to take a couple of steps to make this situation not so shocking should it ever happen. 

For this post we are not planning on having to deal with this situation for more than a few days. Otherwise we could spend hours talking about how to build a well for safe water, proper methods for disposing of garbage, waste water disposal and long term sanitation. For this we will focus on short term solutions to immediate issues. 

Big box stores are great for getting the things we can use for this issue. Buy bulk of garbage bags, cleaners, paper towels and the very important toilet paper. Just make this a habit even if you do not have a big box store you can do it at the Dollar Store, 99 cent store or other discount stores. Save paper plates, plastic utensils and other paper products from kids parties or other events. We do not need a lot just enough for three or four days. 

The concept we want to work with here is to not add to the already stressful situation we have found ourselves in. There was just a natural disaster, you're stressed out wondering what is next, who made it, what damage has happened and is there more to come? We do not need to add more stress and we definitely do not want to get sick right now! The last thing we need is to become a casualty due to illness, not be able to help those around us and worst yet loss a loved one after the event due to poor sanitation practices. 

  

Most of us have enough cleaning supplies around the house we can go a day or two without having to run to the store and get more. If you do not have any cleaning supplies we need to talk! Fellas, although I am sure you think this is what your 'pad, crib, cave, place' looks like.....

Odds are it looks more like this......

And you need to buy some cleaning supplies. Why? Because when it comes to be the knight in shining armor you need something to shine the armor with!!!!

Among the most important things you can pick up for the "just in case" stash is garbage bags. Buy the ones contractors use. Ones made to hold stuff and not rip. The normal ones you put in your kitchen garbage can can work but we might be putting more than the average garbage in this if we have to. Now is not the time to have a bag leak!!!!

While I was looking for photos I found some for the ladies or some of the fellas! If you're bored during the emergency you might be able to entertain yourself with some of the latest in emergency fashions??????

Or the best one I found

Ok that was funny! Now getting back on track here......... We just had dinner, by utilizing paper plates, plastic forks and plastic cups we can just throw everything away! Dishes are done!! We also just saved water for drinking, washing and other things. Our gallon apiece is going further now.

We want to clean up after eating and now the paper towels and cleaning supplies come in handy. After cleaning we just add the towels to the garbage bag. Now for some of us this might sound weird but separate your garbage. Put uneaten food in one bag and paper or plastic products in another. This way you have a ready source of burnable items if needed. You can even go a step further and separate the plastic from the paper since plastic is really something we do not want to burn to heat ourselves or cook on.

As you go through the emergency you want to rise your level of sanitation as much as you can. Flood waters carry bugs which will make you sick. Cramped quarters allow bugs to spread. Piles of garbage attract rodents and bugs. All of these things can and will make you sick.

Now the gross part......... at some point someone is going to have to go and it won't be something you want to leave in the bowl for a few days! We need to figure out what to do with the 'Poo'. Your going to be glad you have garbage bags for this next part...........

  

Most the time you can use water and flush the toilet by pouring water it to the tank BUT if you need to pick between flushing and drinking, drinking the water is a much better use. So we need to figure out what to do. Although it may smell urine does not need to be flushed every single time you go. This saves water for when you really need to flush. If an area outside, away from everyone, not near a water source can be found, for a limited time most of us are equipped to urinate outside. This is not a long term solution but for a day or two, if done properly, it is fine. In some cases we need to figure out an alternative means.

 

 There are several types of containers you can buy to handle this situation for a limited time. If you can buy some! If not make you're own. A five gallon bucket can be easily turned into a emergency toilet with the addition of a plastic bag. If you have little ones or other who are going to urinate in the bag, shred some paper and place it into the bag to help soak up the liquid. Saw dust will work also.

Now we are going to need to do something with these bags. Remember this is short term answers. utilize a pair of rubber gloves, gloves you only use for this purpose, you do not want to use the same gloves you use when cleaning the kitchen. Close the bag, ties it off and use some duct tape to make sure it is closed. Really good bags ought to be able to last a day or two without issues. Find another container like a garbage can and place the bags inside. Mark the can and secure the lid if you can. Hopefully your city has a plan with what to do with this type of waste after an emergency and it will be worth it to find out. You do not want some city worker telling you they can not remove the waste because you did not follow the guidelines they have.

Remember to have hand sanitizer in the bathroom or wherever you have designated the facilities at. You might not have the water for people to use to wash their hands but you really have to make sure they clean their hands after using the facilities! Also make sure their is air freshner!

This post is getting long, let's wrap it up. Sanitation becomes a major issue is the system fails. In underdeveloped areas the lack of proper sanitation causes illness and death on a regular basis. For those of us in developed areas the sudden loss of the system is something we do not know how to live with and our bodies are not accustomed to dealing with. We need to take a few steps to assist ourselves and prepare.

Buy cleaning equipment and supplies.
Have paper plates, plastic utensils and cups on hand.
Address solid waste issues now by having plastic bags and buckets on hand.

Do not get sick and become a casualty due to poor sanitation...................

As Always,

Stay Safe.        

Planning #3 - How to Cook?

Now that we have sat down and started to think about planning a bit more let's take a trip into the rabbit hole. Grab your government suggested list, coffee and find your favorite place to sit. Think about the situation we have been using for this example, the 'Big One' hits Southern California or whatever the greatest threat to your family is in your area.

Your prior planning has worked out so far and after a few hours of being scared your entire family has made it home and are safe. Why, because everyone already knew the plan was to go home and met there. Your home is standing and you will be able to shelter inside for the duration of this emergency. You look at the stuff you put away for just such an incident and feel good about what you did. Now it is time to make a meal, sit around the dinner table and be thankful everyone is safe. Going to the cupboard you grab a couple cans of chili, some cornbread mix, along with some onions and other vegetables to add to the chili from the fridge.

Taking a can over to the can opener you find yourself confused for a moment or two...... You put the can in the opener correctly? You pushed the handle down correctly? Why won't the can opener work? Of course one of the kids sees you doing this and pops off with "There's no power, duh!" Searching through the drawers you realize you have three wine bottle openers but no manual can opener!!!!!

"MY KINGDOM FOR A CAN OPENER!!"

You can have a pantry full of cans, enough for a year or two but forgetting just one thing can make them almost useless! We relay so much on electricity every day some of us might not have any idea how to function without it. For some of us "older and wiser" folks we remember the way back days...... before the internet....... before cell phones....... but see if you kids can operate a can opener.

Of course you panic looking for some way to open the cans..... until your better half hands you the can opener. Ok, this obstacle has been overcome!!!!

Going to the stove you turn the knob and nothing happens. No clicking, no gas sound, no gas smell? It takes you a moment to realize your home might be alright after the incident but the gas you use to cook comes from somewhere else! Now you have a pot full of chili, with the added parts you put in to make it special and no flame to heat it on.................. "OK NO BIG DEAL!" you tell yourself as you go to fire up your BBQ.

And down the hole we go........... Do you have charcoal? Do you have enough for three meals a day, for at least three days? Maybe you have a hiking stove? Do you have enough fuel to cook for the whole family for three days at the least? Do you have pots and pans you can put on an open flame, you know without the plastic handles which will melt?

You don't have another way to cook?!?!?!?!?!?!? OK........ Maybe you do not BBQ, go camping or do anything where you would have a readily accessible alternative way to cook with no power or gas. You need to find one! Without a safe way to heat up food or boil water if you had to the next few days are going to be long....... Even if you live in an apartment there are small grills you can buy for BBQing.

When you buy one you can get one which runs off of gas like the one in this picture. Just remember gas runs out. If you can find one which you can utilize by burning stuff. Briquets are good and most of these types you can burn wood in if you had to. Besides everyone should have a BBQ! Everyone can have an enjoyable time with friends and a BBQ. You also can get practice using your alternative cook system, always training! Even if you are the only one who knows you are training.

Were good now and your cooking with fire!!! You put the chili on the BBQ and go to figure out how to cook the corn bread.................. The oven doesn't work......... For most of us this means no cornbread to go with the chili. If you have a Dutch Oven and are cooking on briquets your in business!!! Of course now is not the time to try and figure out how to cook cornbread in the Dutch Oven, Prior Planning Prevents Poor Performance. A few weekends spent at the BBQ will pay off now when you "need" to cook.

 Alrighty, we got the BBQ going, chili is cooking and we got the cornbread baking!! What are we going to eat on? We could use our regular plates, silverware and cups BUUUUT we would need to clean all of those after we eat and the dishwasher doesn't work! Not to mention we only have a gallon of water per person per day...... Hopeful we have some paper plates and red cups sitting around from the last time we you had people over for a BBQ or kids party???? This sure will cut down on the amount of water we have to use to clean up after eating.

Speaking of cleaning up....... Do you have any dish soap? Do you only have soap for the dish washer? This is starting to take us down the rabbit hole a bit far so let's back up a bit........

When your planning you obviously can see we need to use some forethought in the planning. Something as simple as heating up a can of chili can go off the rails because of the littlest thing. For now let's not go too far down the rabbit hole when it comes to cooking!!!!

Do you have another way to cook without power? Can you open a can? Can you heat up food? Do you have the pots to cook over an open flame? Have you practiced cooking with your alternative method? Just cover the basics for now and make sure you have the options available to look after your family if the need arises.

As Always,

Stay Safe.    

Planning #2, Cookie Cutters - 2016

Continuing with our plan from Planning #1 (1st post of 2016) we will take a little step down the rabbit hole. Not a big one but just a little one. As a reminder, we are using a plan centered around an earthquake since this is what the internet says is the greatest threat to the area my family lives in. You can quickly do a search and see what the greatest threat to your family is and personalize the plan to your needs. Hopefully we can take a little step down the hole with each of these post and not become overwhelmed as we work toward putting our loved ones and ourselves in a better position when something happens. Remember there are no cookie cutter answers to preparedness.

When we ended the 1st post on this train of thought, we had a bare bones of a plan. If something happens and this is all you had to work with you are ahead of the game. Staying firmly in the grasp of the K.I.S.S. system. here is what we had:

GET HOME
COLLECT FAMILY
STAY OR LEAVE HOME
LEAVE, WHERE DO YOU GO?
STAY, NEED SUPPLIES.

Let's work backwards on this KISS framework. "Why?" because the last part can help in almost every situation you might face. Plus I have always been accused of doing things ass backwards!

Your at home after a major earthquake. Your home is still standing and you will be able to stay there. For those of us in California we are going to say the 'Big One' has struck. If you are in Southern California this means the San Andreas fault has slipped and you had a heck of a ride! If you still have power and water your good to go. Most you will have to deal with is if you need to go to work the next day or not. Odds are most of us will just be at home if the 'Big One' is as bad as they predict because we won't be able to get to work.

For most of us the power is more than likely to be out due to power delivery being disrupted some how. Lack of power can also lead to lack of water if you live in an area which needs water pumps to move water to your house. The amount of fires predicted to happen afterwards could also cause water pressure to drop from all the water in the system being used to fight fires. The 'Big One' could also cause the sewer system to stop working and might even damage the system to the point you are swimming in sewerage. (for those of you in flood areas flood waters overflowing sewage treatment plants is common) We can also be sure the regular flow of deliveries to the grocery store are going to disrupted. Which means you have to go with what you have for maybe a day or two or more.

This is why we start with what we have at home. At some point you could be isolated from outside assistance and have to go it alone for a period of time. This period may be a few hours or a few days. Remember at the end of the day you are responsable for you and your family, no one else is.

What do you need to have on hand at your home or apartment to stay where you are? A quick search of the FEMA website suggest we all have three days worth of supplies to hold us over after a earthquake. This is a good place to start in order to give you an idea of the bare minimum to survive.

Of course the first item on their list and almost every other list is water. "Why?" Because you can not live or function for very long without water. Within three days of no water you will most likely be a ball of flesh lying on the ground waiting for whatever is next. Of course you have had to deal with cramps like you never had before, you might of even had the worst dry heaves and at some point you really lost touch with reality. For each person the exact length of time varies but this three day thing is a good rule of thumb. Having been a heat casualty, twice, I can personally attest not having enough water in you really sucks!!!!

Some of us might be thinking "Well I will just print this list I got from the internet go on down to the store and buy everything on the list. Problem solved!" Here is where we start to go down the rabbit hole..........

FEMA and others tell you One (1) gallon a day per person is all you need to cover the issue of water during an emergency and we go out and buy our gallon of water. Of course the fine print on the list says this water is for drinking, hygiene and more might be needed for cooking. Just for fun take a gallon of water along with you all day. Try to only use the one gallon for all your water needs during the day. You are going to have to make some decisions during the day.

Most of us get up in the morning and make a trip to the bathroom, remember you got one gallon for the whole day........ Guess how much water it is supposed to take to flush a toilet? Yep, one gallon. Damn! You sure are going to be thirsty the rest of the day. Ok, instead we go with the "If it ain't brown do not flush it down" train of thought and we do not flush with the water. After you brush your teeth, wash your face and jump into the shower for a bird bath how much water is left?

Now you need to make some breakfast, hopefully the only thing you use water for is coffee? Of course I personally can not think of anything more important to use the water for than making coffee!!! Got a big old protein drink you need to mix up first thing in the morning? How much water does that take? How many bottles are you going to be making for the little one during the day? Making oatmeal, orange juice from concentrate and coffee for breakfast also made some dishes we might have to take care of later.  

Speaking of workout stuff. How much water are you going to be drinking during the day? Is it hot outside? Is it cold outside, we still need to be hydrated even in the cold? Are you going to be helping pull people out of rubble from the quake, tornado, mudslide, tsunami? Do you need to do more than just sit on the porch waiting for life to go back to normal? If so you are going to be drinking more water!

Does anyone in your home have special needs you need to take into account? Children need a lot of water, especially babies on bottles or babies who needs mom to drink a lot of water to make milk. We have to take the bare minimum the government says we should have of items and use this only as a starting point for our personal planning.

We do not want to just use the COOKIE CUTTER answer provided by the Government or other resources to prepare. These answers are the minimum in a general sense and in no way takes your personal situation into account. You can stay alive on a gallon of water a day but in most cases you are going to do little more than just live. Let's just use these answers as a starting point in our planning.

What we need to do is personalize the plan to our situation and are availability of resources along with space. Given the space you have available figure out how much water, food and other items you can store. Of course you probably do not have enough space to store everything you would like to have on hand during an emergency. What do we do?

Start with just having the bare minimum from one of these list. Have three days worth of supplies on hand to just keep you alive. If you can work the supplies into your normal food supply this is even better! Say you go through a box of cereal once a week. Next time you are at the store buy two, now you have breakfast for the three days. Once you are "UP" by one box of cereal keep it this way. Do not let yourself fall below having one opened box of cereal and one unopened box of cereal.

You go through a roll of toilet paper a week. Next time you are at the store by two rolls. Now you have enough toilet paper for three days. If you have a list which does not say to have extra toilet paper on hand......... find a new list!

Some items on any list are items you just buy one time. A hammer, duct tape or a tarp are items you only have to buy one time and have other uses besides waiting for the world to go crazy to use them.Try never to buy items you can only use for a very specific purpose. Why have a "special" tool you can only use for one purpose when there are plenty of other tools, with multiple uses which will complete the same task?

Taking the suggested amount of water just add one more person. This will give you extra water to work with. Say your family is three people big, add a fourth person. Now you have a built in supply to use for cooking, cleaning and other items while still ensuring each member of your family has a bit more than the minimum to make it through the day. If you have a little one in the house just pick a day and keep track of how much water you use to make bottles or other food for them. Now add that amount to your one day supply.

Do you have furry family members? Did you add their water into your plan? Ok, go back and add them to your plan. The entire time you are planning add the furry ones as another person! Of course their food will be different but you get the idea.

Once you have this amount for three days rotate the water into your regular use. If you get into the habit of never falling below the minimum, like we did with the cereal box, you can easily keep three days worth of water on hand.

Do you have a way to purify water if you have to use questionable sources? Boiling water is something people have to do from time to time when the city water supply is compromised. Having water on hand means you do not have to do this right away. Do you have a water filter to use if you needed to? Do you know alternate water supplies hidden in your home? Do you know where to find water near your home? Do you have the means to purify, carry and store water from a source outside of your home? Do you know how heavy water is, the stream two miles away is going to be to far for you to get water from if you have to carry it everyday.

As you can see we could spend a lot more time just talking about this one item, water. This is what is meant by "Going down the rabbit hole". For most of us we do not have the time to go to far down the hole. We just want to feel better about our situation if something happens. In order to do this we have to put in some effort, not a whole lot, but just enough.

Continuing with our plan we are working with;

Water - need 6 gallons a day at my house most days.
4 family members = 4 gallons
1 extra (phantom member) = 5 gallons
1 extra for the little one who needs bottles = 6 gallons

6 gallons X 3 days = 18 gallons a day

Might as well round this up to 20 gallons a day! Gives us more built in extra, above and beyond what will just keep us alive. Also gives us some to use if someone is at the house who is not normally there and maybe something to help a neighbor out with if they need something.

You can get a list and buy everything the list says you should have and be done with it. Of course when the need comes to use the items you might be left short. Left short at time you really do not want to be caught short! Never think a 'cookie cutter' approach is the answer. the people suggesting these things do not know the details of your life or the needs of your life like you do. Take a moment now to do a little planning. The "you" in the future will like the "you" in the past a lot more!

As Always,

Stay Safe.

     

1st Day of 2016!!! planning #1

Happy New Year's to everyone! Hopefully everyone is looking forward to the new year.

Let's start the year off figuring out what we can do increase our ability to deal with an emergency situation. First we need to figure out what we need to plan for. Let's not plan for the alien invasion, please! A quick look on the internet tells everyone living in Southern California, to include my family, we should plan for an earthquake. Please do a quick search and learn what the #1 Natural Disaster for your area is. We are going to work with an earthquake for this right now.

For an earthquake we all know to drop, find something to get under for protection and hold on for the duration. What do we do after that? First thing we are going to do without thought is to check ourselves and everyone immediately around us. Once we realize we are not in immediate danger our thoughts will automatically flip to thinking about our families. "Are the kids safe? Is my spouse alright? Are my pets alright?" Ok I know for some of us the order is different. Just remember family comes before you worry about your Xbox or 1970 Mustang!! This when your prior planning kicks in.

For this situation we have to personalize our plan. The Better Half and I both commute to work which means we have to decide what to do immediately after an earthquake. Because odds are the quake will happen when we are both away from the house. Which means we need information to decide if we are heading home to take care of the kids or not. Let's say the "Big One" has struck and some of you out there are celebrating because there is a chance California might drift off into the Pacific! For our situation she can just walk away or hopefully drive away from work, she is closer to home and in all likelihood will get home before me. Now is when she would put a 'Get Home' plan into effect but for this let's keep our focus on an Earthquake and Keep It Simple Stupid. We do not want to go too far down the rabbit hole right now, going to far to fast can make planning mentally crushing!

We need to think about these situations when we are not under the pressure of the real situation and give ourselves simple ideas or goals to focus on during a real event. We have survived the earthquake, we have gathered information and we have decided we need to get home. Now we move toward the goal. You get the idea. Now sit down with a pen and paper, see what the internet thinks is the biggest threat is in your area and let's start planning.......... we will wait while you find something to write with and something to write on........ look up the biggest threat to your area......... OK here we go.

Write down the threat:

Earthquake

Is it a bad earthquake?

No, go about your life. Yes, continue.

Do you need to get everyone home? Yes, continue.

Get everyone home

Is everyone home?

Good!

Can you stay home? Is your house standing? Is your home safe?

NO!!!

Where is the nearest place, not affected by the incident you can go to, family, friends or other?

(insert answer)

Can you get there?

Yes! Good, GO!

Your home is fine and you can stay there.

Do you have Water, Food, Flashlights and alternative ways to cook food? 

As you can see this planning can start to go way down the rabbit hole in a hurry!!!

Let's keep this one really simple:

GET HOME
COLLECT FAMILY
STAY OR LEAVE HOME
LEAVE, WHERE DO YOU GO?
STAY, NEED SUPPLIES.

Using the KISS system we will leave this right here. Take a moment and do some planning, make sure to tell your Better Half what you think the plan is. Yes they get some input on the plan! Just take a few minutes to plan roughly what you do when the biggest threat happens. In future posts we will flesh out the plan and slowly walk our way down into the rabbit hole!!!!!

Happy New Year's and As Always,

Stay Safe!