#disaster preparedness

[unidentifiablelifeform]

When the Waters Rise: How the City of N’Djamena, Chad, Prepared for Floods and Averted Disaster

​​​PILIER launched a $13 million flood preparedness and response plan in early 2024 to protect N’Djamena during a high-risk rainy season. By

[thatdisasterauthor]

Free evac cards are back!

Guess what's finally back! That's right, free evac cards. I have put them up on my Payhip as a pay-what-you-want product, including free. This will make it much easier for me to manage orders and anyone who wants to make donations to support the creation of these cards. Right now I have about 300 in stock, so lots to go around.

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Evacuations are stressful and frequently sudden. In such situations it is easy to forget things, no matter how much you may have prepared beforehand. These cards are designed to live in your wallet and function as a quick reference guide and list of items to remember during an evacuation based on how much time you have.

I provide these cards for free as often as I can, so if you want to get them for free, you can do that! You get to pick the price, and $0 is a 100% acceptable answer. However, if you do chose to pay even $1, that money will go towards producing more free cards for others, envelopes, and stamps.

To make sure these cards are available to as many people as possible, please try to limit your order to ten cards at a time. If you would like to discuss a larger order for yourself, your business, your non-profit, your emergency department, or anything else, shoot me an email at [email protected] and we can discuss options!

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You can grab them now in my Payhip Store!

[neolithicsheep]

We are getting towards winter in the northern hemisphere so it's time for me to share my number one tip for surviving winter power outages from my time living off grid that isn't "get a wood stove installed".

Get a bed tent. You don't have to permanently install it with your mattress inside it although you will have to do some macgyvering if you don't. It will create a little cocoon that will stay warmer anyway but you can level it up a notch by buying a cheap king size comforter and draping that over it for more insulation. If your power goes out and you need to stay warm, load every pillow, blanket, and living creature that will reasonably fit into it and close the door. You will have a warm and cozy little cocoon to which you can add battery powered lights, a gallon jug of water to keep it from freezing, etc.

Also grab you solar lanterns (LumenAID makes great ones), soft beanie hats, hand warmers, and socks to sleep in, and consider sweaters for your pets for whom they're appropriate.

[zinjanthropusboisei]

Noticed something a little funky in the world around you and want to figure out what's up? Especially if there might be something you ought to be doing about it? Not sure what information sources to trust these days? If you're in the US, federal agencies like NOAA, USGS, EPA and more collect massive amounts of scientific data every day, much of which is publicly available online - if you know where to look.

A PDF version with clickable links is available for free on my itchio page (quakeandquiver); I'll add a direct link in a reblog.

[wat3rm370n]

Radios are a good thing to have. Devices that require cell service are cell phones and are not the same as radios.

I keep seeing commercials for "rapid radios" where they are trying to pitch these "walkie talkie" type devices as radios that can reach across the country. This is misleading nonsense. They are a real product, and they will allow communication across long distances, under the right circumstances, but these are not radios, and the advertising is misleading.

They're essentially cell phones because they require cell towers and LTE service to be working and within range. Back in the early days of cell phones, I knew people with cell phones that provided a type of walkie-talkie service you could use between paired phones on the same plan. I'm sure there are people still using this on cell phones. But it's merely similar to how you use a walkie talkie, the signal itself is sent via the cell phone service.

So that means these devices are not like radios that can work when cell towers are non-functional or not in range. They are NOT independent of a mobile phone network.

Some ads claim there are "no monthly fees" which makes it sound like they're radios that are independently operating like an amateur radio or walkie talkie, where you need no subscription or plan. That's tricky though because they do have an annual fee for service - through their cellular carrier! They will not work without this service.

FRS radio, used via walkie talkies, will work independently of any subscription. You don't need a license to broadcast (talk over it), and if you buy a reputable legal set, even something cheap, they are fixed so that you can't access or transmit in a way that you wouldn't be allowed. Many of us played with these as kids, and some of the children's toy types work just fine, but there are better quality ones that will have a better audio signal and maybe a slightly bigger but still short range. CB radio is similar but the equipment is different and operates at different frequencies.

GMRS radios also have a limited range but are more powerful than FRS. You can have a base station and hook up antennas, but there are also handheld GMRS that work like walkie talkies too, and can communicate with radios on the FRS channels, and also more GMRS frequencies. You need a license to broadcast on GMRS, but it's relatively cheap and you only need one license per household to cover a whole family using different radios. There are rules by the FCC for example using your assigned call sign at 15 minute intervals or at the end of any conversation. There are also rules about using repeaters that allow people to broadcast or hear radio from greater distances. (I hear people 40 miles away on GMRS, using a repeater.)

Some GMRS radios come with a built-in weather radio and even FM radio too. Some can be programmed (on the device or connected to a computer app) to listen in on various frequencies such as emergency service channels like the fire department, just like "police scanners". These too if sold from a reputable source, and compliant with rules, will not allow you to accidentally broadcast on some officially designated channel or a HAM channel and get into trouble. HAM radio licensing no longer requires you pass a morse code test but it does still have tests on radio operations and equipment, and unless you pass these tests and get licensed you can't operate HAM.

CB, FRS, GMRS, and HAM are not cell phones and they are not private. Though texting is an option, encryption is not allowed by the U.S. FCC for these amateur radio bands.

Then there's also LoRa radio which is being used by people now for short-range low-power texting communication that doesn't require cell service. This is an unlicensed frequency that's used for a number of things. There is an open source tech called Meshtastic that's popular.

All of these things are totally different thing than these "radios" being marketed supposedly for "preppers" who want a way to communicate long distance or in a disaster. If you want to communicate when cell phone service is interrupted or not available nearby, these "long distance walkie talkies" are not the solution.

If you want to be able to communicate long distance without cell service, a satellite phone can do that, because they use satellites in orbit. But these also obviously require a service, because they work by satellites that are in orbit being operated by some company. And the service is pretty expensive.

Read up a little on how radios work, and then get the actual radios, from a reputable source, and get the right license if need be, and follow the rules.

And honestly I don't recommend impulse buying anything you see in an ad without looking into it further.

[ivygorgon]

Ivy's Survive the Apocalypse list.

If you're following the news, you're scared. Or you should be. Things are getting worse, not better. And they wont stop with the most marginalized of us; if you're not rich, you're nothing to them except labor.

I've been worried about current events, world news, and continental politics for a while now; at least 1 year. That's when I started packing my Go-Bags. It occurs to me now that my skills as a veteran would be useful for other LGBTQIAS2+, so I've decided to tell you what I deemed necessary in an emergency Bug Out Bag. See below.

(For the love of the Gods, please let this one get tumblr famous!!)

Follow Ivy Gorgon's playlist: Modern Survival Tips and Tricks.

Follow Ivy Gorgon's playlist: US Politics.

Pinned post

🪖 packing

🐓 Person 1 1️⃣ Durable bag (Huge ruck) 2️⃣ Hygiene bag (Tooth brush, soap, etc) 3️⃣ IFAK x2 (combat trauma & first aid, tampons for bullet wounds or deep wounds, Feminine pads for shallow cuts) 1 on person, 1 in ruck 4️⃣ Tactical vest (plate carrier) 5️⃣ Critical doc folder (Birth certificate, SSN, etc) 6️⃣ Cash 7️⃣ Camelbak (store hiking gear inside.) 8️⃣ Foraging pack (napsack, something to hold berries and roots) 9️⃣ Weapon cleaning kit (Oil, brushes, whipes, Q tips, etc) 0️⃣ Gasmask 🎒 Tarp 🎒 Excavation-tool 🎒 hatchet 🎒 multi-tool 🎒 Rope 🎒 Cordage 🎒 Knife 🎒 Whetstone 🎒 Primary weapon (Crossbow) 🎒 Secondary weapon (slingshot) 🎒 Tertiary weapon 🎒 Primary ammo (DIY/Bolts) 🎒 Secondary ammo (bearings) 🎒 Tertiary ammo 🎒 Bear spray or taser 🎒 Flashlight with red filter 🎒 Flashlight batteries 🎒 Hand crank power bank 🎒 Glowsticks 🎒 Knee & arm pads 🎒 Eye black ❄️ Sleeping bag (winter) ❄️ Emergency blanket ❄️ 2 under shirts ❄️ 2 tops ❄️ 2 underpants ❄️ 2 pants ❄️ 2 pair socks ❄️ 2 pair nylon under socks (Put on under socks to reduce blisters) ❄️ 1 poncho ❄️ 1 silky set (Thin inner layer) ❄️ 1 waffle set (Thick inner layer) ❄️ 1 cold weather top ❄️ 1 cold gloves ❄️ 1 cold hat ❄️ 1 gator neck (Scarf) 🔥 Tinder + waterproof bag 🔥 Waterproof matches 🔥 Magnesium striker 🔥 Focusing lens 🔥 Lighter 🔥 Road flares 💦 Water bottle or canteen 💦 Water filter system 💦 Water purification tablets 💦 Camelbak >7️⃣ 🐟 Fishing kit 🐟 Snares 🐟 Rations (2 days) 🐟 Mess kit 🐟 Seeds 🐟 Local foraging guides (ei: field guides) 🧭 Compass 🧭 Maps 🎙️ Radio 🎙️ Radio batteries 🎙️ 2-way radio 🎙️ 2-way radio batteries 🎙️ Notebook 🎙️ Writing implements 🎙️ Signal mirror ⛑️ Prescription drugs (90 day supply) ⛑️ Sewing kit

⚔️ Person 2 1️⃣ Durable bag (Huge ruck) 2️⃣ Hygiene bag 3️⃣ Tactical vest (plate carrier, tampons for bullet wounds or deep wounds) 4️⃣ IFAK (high trauma) 5️⃣ Critical doc folder () 6️⃣ Cash 7️⃣ Camelbak 8️⃣ Foraging pack () 9️⃣ Weapon cleaning kit 0️⃣ Gasmask 🎒 Tarp 🎒 E-tool 🎒 hatchet 🎒 multi-tool 🎒 Rope 🎒 Cordage 🎒 Knife 🎒 Whetstone 🎒 Primary weapon 🎒 Secondary weapon 🎒 Tertiary weapon 🎒 Primary ammo 🎒 Secondary ammo 🎒 Tertiary ammo 🎒 Bear spray or taser 🎒 Flashlight with red filter 🎒 Flashlight batteries 🎒 Hand crank power bank 🎒 Glowsticks 🎒 Knee & arm pads 🎒 Eye black ❄️ Sleeping bag (winter) ❄️ Emergency blanket ❄️ 2 under shirts ❄️ 2 tops ❄️ 2 underpants ❄️ 2 pants ❄️ 2 pair socks 🔥 Tinder + waterproof bag 🔥 Waterproof matches 🔥 Magnesium striker 🔥 Focusing lens 🔥 Lighter 🔥 Road flares 💦 Water bottle or canteen 💦 Water filter system 💦 Water purification tablets 💦 Camelbak >7️⃣ 🐟 Fishing kit 🐟 Snares 🐟 Rations (2 days) 🐟 Mess kit 🐟 Seeds 🐟 Local foraging guides (ei: field guides) 🧭 Compass 🧭 Maps 🎙️ Radio 🎙️ Radio batteries 🎙️ 2-way radio 🎙️ 2-way radio batteries 🎙️ Notebook 🎙️ Writing implements 🎙️ Signal mirror ⛑️ Prescription drugs (90 day supply) ⛑️ Sewing kit

🦸 Child 1️⃣ Durable bag (Medium duffle) 2️⃣ Hygiene bag 3️⃣ Tactical vest (ranger vest) 4️⃣ IFAK (first aid, tampons for bullet wounds or deep wounds) 5️⃣ Critical doc folder () 6️⃣ Cash 7️⃣ Camelbak 8️⃣ Foraging pack 9️⃣ Weapon cleaning kit 0️⃣ Gasmask 🎒 E-tool 🎒 multi-tool 🎒 Rope 🎒 Cordage 🎒 Whetstone 🎒 Flashlight with red filter 🎒 Flashlight batteries 🎒 Hand crank power bank 🎒 Glowsticks 🎒 Knee & arm pads 🎒 Eye black ❄️ Sleeping bag (winter) ❄️ Emergency blanket ❄️ 2 under shirts ❄️ 2 tops ❄️ 2 underpants ❄️ 2 pants ❄️ 2 pair socks 🔥 Tinder + waterproof bag 🔥 Waterproof matches 🔥 Magnesium striker 🔥 Focusing lens 🔥 Lighter 🔥 Road flares 💦 Water bottle or canteen 💦 Water filter system 💦 Water purification tablets 💦 Camelbak >7️⃣ 🐟 Rations (2 days) 🐟 Mess kit 🐟 Seeds 🐟 Local foraging guides (ei: field guides) 🧭 Compass 🧭 Maps 🎙️ Radio 🎙️ Radio batteries 🎙️ 2-way radio 🎙️ 2-way radio batteries 🎙️ Notebook 🎙️ Writing implements 🎙️ Signal mirror ⛑️ Prescription drugs (90 day supply) ⛑️ Sewing kit

👤 Spare adult 1️⃣ Durable bag (Huge duffle) 2️⃣ Hygiene bag 3️⃣ Tactical vest (flick) 4️⃣ IFAK (high trauma, tampons for bullet wounds or deep wounds) 5️⃣ Critical doc folder () 6️⃣ Cash 7️⃣ Assault camelbak 8️⃣ Foraging pack (black napsack) 9️⃣ Weapon cleaning kit 0️⃣ Gasmask 🎒 Extras ❄️ Extras 🔥 Extras 💦 Extras 🐟 Extras 🧭 Compass 🧭 Maps 🎙️ Extras ⛑️ Sewing kit

🐕 Dog 1️⃣ Durable bag (harness + saddle bags) 2️⃣ Hygiene bag (tiny) 3️⃣ Tactical vest + leash 4️⃣ IFAK (small, tampons for bullet wounds or deep wounds) 5️⃣ Critical doc folder () 6️⃣ Cash

😺 Cat 1️⃣ Durable bag (Carrier) 2️⃣ Hygiene bag (tiny) 3️⃣ Tactical vest + leash 4️⃣ IFAK (tiny, tampons for bullet wounds or deep wounds) 5️⃣ Critical doc folder () 6️⃣ Cash

🛻 Vehical + spares 1️⃣ Durable bag (Huge duffle) 2️⃣ Hygiene bag (large) 3️⃣ Tactical vest 4️⃣ IFAK (high trauma, tampons for bullet wounds or deep wounds, feminine pads for shallow cuts.) 5️⃣ Critical doc folder () 6️⃣ Cash 7️⃣ Camlbak + water 8️⃣ Foraging pack 9️⃣ Weapon cleaning kit 0️⃣ Gasmask 🏕️ Waterproof survival tent 🎒 E-tool 🎒 hatchet 🎒 multi-tool 🎒 Rope 🎒 Cordage 🎒 Knife 🎒 Whetstone 🎒 Primary ammo 🎒 Secondary ammo 🎒 Tertiary ammo 🎒 Bear spray or taser 🎒 Flashlight with red filter 🎒 Flashlight batteries 🎒 Hand crank power bank 🎒 Glowsticks 🎒 Knee & arm pads 🎒 Eye black ❄️ Sleeping bag (winter) ❄️ Emergency blanket ❄️ 2 under shirts ❄️ 2 tops ❄️ 2 underpants ❄️ 2 pants ❄️ 2 pair socks 🔥 Tinder + waterproof bag 🔥 Waterproof matches 🔥 Magnesium striker 🔥 Focusing lens 🔥 Lighter 🔥 Road flares 💦 Water bottle or canteen 💦 Water filter system 💦 Water purification tablets 💦 Camelbak >7️⃣ 🐟 Fishing kit 🐟 Snares 🐟 Rations (2 days) 🐟 Mess kit 🐟 Seeds 🐟 Local foraging guides (ei: field guides) 🧭 Compass 🧭 Maps 🎙️ Radio 🎙️ Radio batteries 🎙️ 2-way radio 🎙️ 2-way radio batteries 🎙️ Notebook 🎙️ Writing implements 🎙️ Signal mirror ⛑️ Sewing kit

🃏 1 toy per 1️⃣ Durable bag (Deck of cards, gameboy, etc)

Next, you're going to want something to help lug all your gear. I present to you: The Monowalker!

It's not hard to build one out of pallets and a wheelbarrow wheel. Just use two long 1x1s to run from your hands to the wheel in a triangle, screw some spacers along the way back, and put an axle through the point of the v. If someone wants pictures I can get them. I am opening up my asks for this purpose.

[etraytin]

Emergency Preparedness on a Budget: Part Two (Medicine and Power)

Hey there everybody, time for Part Two of Emergency Preparedness When Money is No! You can find Part 1 (Food and Water) here.

Just a note on Part 1, someone in the comments made the extremely good point that having food is not super-useful if you cannot eat it because you can’t cook it or get into the cans. This is true! My example stash used Chunky Soup and tuna because they can be eaten cold and usually have pop tops, but a can opener is a great addition to the emergency kit. Many preppers will also include a propane camp stove in their food stash, but if you’re on a very tight budget, you can absolutely get by with a few days of cold soup. (A basic propane stove, tank and lighter runs about 30-40 dollars if you are interested in getting one.)

Now on to today’s topics: Medicine and Power

Once you’ve got your 3 days of food and water sorted, you want other important survival stuff in your kit. Being as how we are all here together on Tumblr, the odds are pretty good that you or someone in your house is reliant on at least one kind of medication that must be taken regularly. If that’s the case, you need to have at least 3 days and ideally a week of meds stocked up as well.

“Wait a second,” you might say, “a week of medicine is not going to do me much good if I starve to death after eating my three days of food,” and you would be right, if a bit dramatic. In a disaster situation, however, the food and water supply pipeline is basically the first thing that activates. I was in the Asheville area during Hurricane Helene and though it took about the expected three days for support to really gear up, there was food and water being passed around within about 24 hours despite no gas, no communications and highways blocked in all directions. In almost any situation, you are going to get access to food and water before you get any other kind of relief. Getting your own prescription medicines in the right dose, on the other hand? That’s a lot more dependent on the kind of disaster you’re looking at, so it pays to plan ahead.

If you are in the US and have non-controlled prescription meds, most insurance plans will allow you to refill your meds up to 7 days early. If you can set a reminder on your phone and do that a couple times, you will end up a couple of weeks ahead on your pills without any skipping or rationing. That’s a good place to be even without considering disasters, just because life does insist on happening ALL THE TIME and sometimes it’s hard to get to the pharmacy.

If your medicines are tightly controlled then this is a harder problem. One thing you should definitely NOT do is skip medicines to build up an emergency supply. The whole object of the game here is for you to be healthy and okay even when bad things happen, so it defeats the purpose if you are hurting yourself to try and prepare. Talk to your doctor about what you can do to get emergency supplies of your medicines, or what to do if there is a disaster. Usually they will be sympathetic, and hopefully they can help. If they cannot help you beforehand, they generally have more leeway to help if a disaster is looming and it’s worth trying to call them if the weather report is particularly grim. In a big disaster, especially if you’ve had to leave your home, get yourself to a Red Cross shelter and ask for Disaster Health Services. They can be really helpful in getting those important medications.

For nonprescription meds, it’s helpful to have a small supply of the basics in your medicine cabinet, built up over time. If you go into your Walmart or equivalent when you are not even sick and buy the generic version of all these meds, you’re probably going to save 50%, maybe more, over trying to buy them at the drugstore or gas station when you’re already feeling terrible. They’re just good to have around! Another thing to note is that medicines kept cool and dry will last a lot longer than their best-by dates, so you don’t need to go throwing them away every couple years. Here’s a short list of some of the best meds to have on hand in an emergency:

Painkiller/Fever Reducer: Advil or Tylenol in the US, ibuprofen and paracetamol elsewhere. Good for keeping fever down if anyone gets sick, or for treating sprains, muscle strains or headaches. Be very careful of the dosing since both of these can do bad things in high doses.

Anti-Diarrheal: Immodium or loperamide. It’s easy to accidentally eat something bad in an emergency, and diarrhea can be both a logistical problem (especially if water is off!) and a potentially life-threatening health issue.

Electrolyte Solution: Pedialyte, electrolyte drink, oral rehydration salts. If someone does get diarrhea or if the weather is very hot, hydration becomes a massive issue as well. Someone who is sick or dehydrated enough may throw up plain water, but electrolyte drinks are better tolerated and solve the problem much faster. If you do not have any of these, you can also make your own oral rehydration solution by mixing a three-finger pinch of salt and a one-hand scoop of sugar into about two cups of water.

Antihistamine: Benadryl (diphenhydramine) or Claratin (loratidine) This one’s especially big after hurricanes, tornadoes, or any other storm that really rustles the jimmes on the local vegetation. It can be a little slice of hell to be out clearing all the brush that fell on your house and be surrounded by vast clouds of pollen and the occasional swarm of really unhappy bees.

Antacid: Pepto-Bismol (Bismuth subsalicylate) If you’re already on a proton-pump inhbitor like Prilosec or Zantac, stock those up instead. Otherwise, Pepto-Bismol is a good all-rounder to cover heartburn, upset stomach and nausea, all things that might come from stress and weird food during a disaster.

First Aid: A first aid kit could be a post on its own, but you can get the basics for cheap and keep them in a drawer til you need them. For maximum versatility, get yourself gauze pads and medical tape because you can use them to make whatever size bandaid you need, a few butterfly closures for bigger cuts, a tube of bacitracin zinc for antibiotic cream, a long cloth wrap to brace a sprain or fracture, and a bottle of saline to wash a wound or clean your eyes.

Power:

A lot of the disasters you’re likely to face will involve power outages, whether it be just your neighborhood, half the town, or the ENTIRE TRI-STATE AREA (if you are Dr. Doofenschmirtz.) In our Modern Miracle Age just about everybody has at least one flashlight with them at all times, built into their phones, but that’s only going to get you so far when the lights go out.

Powering your phone is a top priority in a power outage, not so much for the light but because it is your main source of communication and information for as long as the cell towers are working. You will want a power bank for your emergency kit; a little battery pack about the size of a cell phone itself, that holds enough electricity to recharge your phone one or more times before needing charged. A basic power bank can be had for about $15, but they are nearly infinitely scalable both in cost and benefits. You can get them with built-in cords, with solar panels, with flashlights of their own, with capacity to charge multiple phones, etc. Buy whatever one fits your budget and needs, then make sure to keep it charged and keep the appropriate cords with it!

Given that you’ll need your phone for other things, you’re going to want some light sources in your emergency stash as well. The easiest and safest of these are battery-powered flashlights and lanterns. You’ll want a mix of lanterns to light a room, flashlights to carry around, and headlamps for reading and close work. All these come in a huge variety of quality and price, but you don’t need anything expensive, just something that will work. Watch for sales at the beginning and end of camping season. Once you have your lights, buy batteries for all of them but do not store them with the batteries installed! For best storage, put your batteries side by side (not touching end to end because they may discharge over time) in a plastic baggie and rubber band or tape the bag to its light. Put them with your emergency food and you’ll know where they are, even in the dark.

Candles are a power-outage classic because they’re cheap, cheerful and don’t need batteries, but be careful if you use them. Make sure it’s on a clean, hard surface with nothing around it to burn, and that you never leave one unattended or in a room with only kids or sleeping people. A mirror tile or flat mirror is great if you’ve got one because it’s not flammable and will make the light brighter. Make sure your smoke alarm is working! (If you don’t have a smoke detector, call your fire department or local Red Cross and they can get you hooked up with one.) Jar candles are usually the best in terms of burn time and safety, and you can often get them real cheap and barely used at garage sales. After-Christmas sales are also good, if you don’t mind the smell of off-season merriment.

There’s a lot more stuff out there for emergency power, from solar generators to backup power stations to uninterruptible power supplies. Preppers love power almost as much as they love weird food hacks, and that is a _lot._ Unfortunately, once you get past the power bank level, the prices start going up very fast. If you have a few hundred dollars to put into your preparations you can get a portable power station that can not only charge your devices but run small appliances for awhile on AC power. If you use a CPAP machine like me, a power station might mean the difference between being able to sleep soundly or not. If you get one of those, make sure to get one that can charge in several different ways, especially from a running vehicle. They’re really handy in a pinch! Watch very carefully for sales on these stations from companies like Jackery, Bluetti and EcoFlow. They compete closely with one another, and a new model on the market from any of them can trigger price wars. It’s worth doing a little research to get a better deal.

Next time: Temperature Management (Or “Too Hot and Too Cold.”)

[wachinyeya]

The first and most important thing I learned when taking a uni-course on "Natural Disasters" is that there is no such thing as a 'Natural' Disaster. Nature is doing what it will do and there is no REAL control we have over that.

But what we DO have control over is our society--how we build our infrastructure, how we monitor the world around us, how we prepare and warn people of intense natural phenomenon, who and where resources go to and many other aspects of disaster prevention, preparedness and recovery.

Because when the impact of the natural phenomenon is minimal then it is no longer a disaster for our society, it simply is.