This has been something I've been thinking about for a while and with the conversation about the Colorado fires I been wondering how prepared am I...You...if there is a disaster? My area could just as easily get burnt out by a forest fire.
Could you manage for 72 hours to....who knows. What about our spouses, do I have enough meds to cover this period. Food, Lights, how do I keep him entertained and not become aggitated. And the list goes on. What if we had to quickly leave.
When I lived on the coast, in all the facilities, we had to be prepared for an earth quake with 72+ hours of supplies. I know I'm not prepared and need to start putting together a emergency kit.
We are prepared for hurricanes. We had a generator put in which can power most of the house. We have storm shutters that are permanent - just have to pull them closed.] We have plenty of meds on hand.
What I need is a plan B - if the storm were to come in as a Cat 4 or 5, we would have to leave home and drive somewhere ...
Much like ms. magic, if you live in Fl and have lived thru a hurricane, you ARE prepared! ( 3 so far for a total of nearly 4 weeks without power) Home prep: Hurricane glass sliders + accordion shutters for protection, condo has generator capable of powering a public area kitchen, ER lighting, AC for several areas+ hot water heater for showers....BUT..Living on a barrier island we are subject to mandatory evacuation orders: Plans A, B, & C are in order. Never let car get below ago 1/2 tank, fresh canned supplies were purchased recently, last years stock of batteries replaced with fresh ones etc. Big bags to bring pillows ( guest bedroom pillows are universally NG LOL. The only aspect prep can't cover is DW's inevitable agitation that will occur if we're forced to evacuate and she' s out of her nest. Ativan on top of the evacuation meds bag as are key documents POA, directives ( all being updated as of last week by an ElderLaw Attorney recommended by JoanG
For detailed information on disaster preparation, log onto the home page - www.thealzheimerspouse.com. Look on the left side where the resources are and scroll down to Disater Preparation. It was written with hurricanes in mind, but the information applies to all natural disasters.
I've considered buying a generator powered by natural gas that would automatically kick in if we lost power. The main reason would to keep the sump pumps running if we were hit by 15 inches of rain, sewer backup and we lost power. We have been hit by the 15 inches of rain and sewer backup but haven't lost power in the past. However, this seems to have been a rare occurrence (I don't live in Florida).
But I did the math. Generator: $8,000+ (have to include installation), plus yearly operating expenses. Most of these generators do not work when power is out because people don't have maintenance done on it and don't test it periodically (same can be said for sump pumps). Plus I don't know how long we will live in this house, don't know if we will end up having to sell it to the county as part of the effort to bring the stream behind it back to life, and calculated that in case of power loss we would probably only lose $500 in food. I'll skip the generator.
But I did increase our insurance for flooding and sewer backup, do have flood insurance with the federal flood program, and did what I could to prevent flooding to the house. I do consider how L would have handled this weekend if we didn't have power (very poorly) but still doesn't justify the expense.
Of course, stuff like this is always a gamble and you just have to figure out your odds and do what makes you comfortable. If L was still working we might have purchased the generator, but money is a bit tight these days.
The small gasoline-powered generators are useful, if you are mechanically inclined and know how to use them! I am not. That is why we got the big one, which runs on propane. It does kick in when we lose power. Yearly operating expenses are low enough, as it does not burn much propane during the weekly test. However, the maintenance (done twice a year) is pricey. It was very expensive to install, as we had a large propane tank buried in our front yard, and the generator put on a cement pad in the back yard, then all the pipes installed to connect them, and the wiring in with the fuse box, etc.
But for us, there was no other choice. DH orchestrated it all - back in the day when he was good at those things. I am glad all is in place.
I should look at our insurance though ... I think I need to check with the federal flood program for some supplemental policy. FEMA redrew maps and put us in a flood zone.
I have a Storm Station made by B&D. It will charge my phone, run a fan, provide light and radio. It ran about $200. Not as good as a generator but it worked for me.
Here is a bit of a write up This product has everything you need for a power outage. I was out of power for a week and the batteries lasted the whole time. When you do lose power everything you need is right there, no more searching through a dark house. The great thing about this is that you get TV stations to listen to so you can hear the local weatherman and know what is going on. It also has a spot to plug in things like cell phone chargers. It made the inconvenience of a power outage much easier.
I recommend getting FEMA flood insurance even if you are not in a flood zone. Every year many houses outside of any flood zone get flooded and insurance doesn't cover any damages. If you are outside a flood zone the insurance is pretty cheap.
If you are paying a mortgage and you find yourself now in a flood zone, your mortgage company will eventually figure it out and require flood insurance.
Flood maps have been revised for the entire US last year. These maps mostly incorporate revisions made to old maps over the years and are much more accurate than the old ones. This doesn't mean that they can't be challenged (usually by developers, takes money and time). The bigger problem is that of incompetent mortgage companies and insurance companies that can't read a map.
My story in a nutshell. New house, way too close to the creek (you learn these things after buying a house). Pay around $400/year in flood insurance. After a few years suddenly get a bill for $2,000. My insurance company actually buys flood insurance from another company and the 2nd company refuses to talk with my company about any of my questions. After wasting months I have to spend $350 on having my property surveyed. Results in a $8,000/yr insurance bill, and I found that the survey company ignored a major revision to the survey maps which moved us to another flood zone, only $4,000/yr. More time goes by and I've written large checks. I am also contemplating various law suits, including against the county for having granted a building permit for a rebuild in flood zone A (which would have been illegal).
The county was very helpful. They explained a lot to me and provided a copy of the new flood map (though unofficial) which showed that my house was not in flood zone A.
I finally ask my mortgage company, why do you suddenly think that my house is in flood zone A (instead of B or C). They say "we will get back to you." A month letter I get a letter saying that my flood insurance is back to $400/year because while a small part of my property is in Zone A, my house isn't. Mortgage company got me refunded all extra that I paid, so we are out only $350 for the survey. However, it was 6 months of heck and I lost many hours of my life.
The maps that I got are now the official maps and can be viewed for free on the Internet.
So I recommend getting flood insurance because in case of a flood, regular insurance will not cover you (I have been surprised by the number of people who doesn't understand this and have never read their insurance policies). Also get insurance for sewer backup and water intrusion (this is an option on your regular home owners insurance and usually very, very cheap). Don't confuse the different types of flood insurance, you want them all.
And FEMA flood insurance does not take effect until 30 days after purchase, so if a hurricane is suddenly bearing down on you, you cannot quickly buy flood insurance to protect yourself against possible flooding from the hurricane.
Of course none of this helps with the fact that your partner with dementia has their routine messed up and has problems coping with loss of power.
A tip I've found helpful.. I fill as many shelves as I cannnin my freezer with partially filled one gal ZipLoc baggies layingbflat. When placed throughout the fridge when you lose power they will keep food cold for several days and they work great in an ice chest. Even ice cream lasted in the freezer for 3days surrounded by smaller baggies - far beyond 2qts of ice cream's normal life span in our home
And you need to keep it plugged in all the time, or it will ruin the battery. The instructions aren't very clear about that. Make sure you try it out BEFORE you need it!
My electrical engineer son told me to run the battery down then plug it back in. I did as he said it is working perfectly. Thank both of you for your concern.
Sounds like three million people are without power on the east coast and it could last a week in some areas. I hope no one here is caught in that.
I've read different numbers but somewhere in the neighborhood of 1900 new temperature records this year so far.
We're sending help. Two guys from Hydro One are going down to the Washington/Virginia area. I mean two hundred guys. We have a treaty with the United States. It's from the war of 1812 and technically we're only required to provide one cubit of flint.