Posted on 10/23/2005 2:50:03 PM PDT by backhoe
The Army survival manual is interesting. I'm up to the part where it talks about letting the maggots clean out the wounds.
I wonder what Paris Hilton or Rosie would have to say about that?
LOL!!!
UPDATE: A reader suggests this book for your blackout-entertainment library. But I say: Why wait until the power fails? . . .
Emergency Preparedness (year's supply of food, 72 hour kit)
190 posted on 09/04/2002 12:52 PM EDT by Utah Girl
(+) THE ART OF THE CACHE (+) [Free Republic]
Bio/Chem Preparations: Overview
Nuclear Survival Preparation: Overview
Florida's Latest News: ANTHRAX FACT SHEET -- From the Centers for Disease Control
Simplified Antibiotic recommendations for prevention of Anthrax/ Biological Warfare bugs
Shelter In Place: Make Your Kits
Very readable article about Bioweapons and Anthrax
Unclassified 10/31: CIA Chemical, Biological, Radiological Incident Handbook
Advice on Chemical/Biological/Nuclear Attacks
Israeli pets to wear gas masks if Iraq attacks
Be advised "Nuclear War Survival Skills" has been updated & revised ( 1999 ) and is the "one" book to get if you get no others...
Survival Supplies and Other Links
TimeBomb2000 is an awesome Forum for sensible individual preparation and overall news gathering: Over a million detailed threads archived (4 locations) describing every practical self-reliant tip possible.
A little Bad Moon A-risin’ bump^
UPDATE: Some additional disaster survival tips here.
Meanwhile, you can find some previous InstaPundit posts on the topic here, here, here, here, and here. And here's a column I wrote on the subject last year. And a huge disaster preparedness list. And here's a guide to emergency preparedness from Consumer Reports.
Also, here's an item from Wired on the topic. One piece of advice: People tend to focus on buying stuff, stockpiling food, etc. That's good -- you won't be able to run down to Wal-Mart when you really need emergency supplies -- but you should also focus on having a plan, and acquiring some skills, for when things go wrong. A full pantry and some radios and flashlights (and guns, and cash, and bottled water) is very important, but it's what we lawyers call a necessary but not sufficient element of disaster planning. More on that here.
UPDATE: A lot of the stuff on the big list above is out of stock. Try this hurricane preparedness list or this emergency survival kit gear list. Plus, some basic disaster survival items. And Col. Douglas Mortimer emails that no home should be without one of these. Well, duh.
Note: September is National Preparedness Month.
#
http://www.christianemergencynetwork.org/images/stories/pdf/cen_checklist.pdf
Recommended 1 Person 72-hour Survival Kit Contents
( Mine was $20+ years ago, now over $70...)...this is a far, far better tool than hatchet or machete'--
The Original WOODMAN'S PAL Machete
The Woodman's Pal machete can perform the tasks of many tools including machetes, axes, bow saws, pruning knives and even chain saws. www.woodmanspal.com/ - 11k - |
I just wanted to send a note telling you how pleased I am with the quality of the Woodsman's Pal. The Woodsman's Pal takes all the work I throw at it. ... www.woodmanspal.com/testimonials.html - 24k - |
Wind resistant trees
|
Native trees, particularly those with wide spreading branches, low centers of gravity, strong deep penetrating root systems, and small leaf size seem to hold up better in tropical storms
especially if they are found growing in mixed groves of trees. Lone growing solitary specimens have less wind resistance than massed trees |
Recommended wind resistant trees |
Properties |
Trees not recommended to resist wind storms |
Reasons |
Foxtail Palm | Wind Resistance | Queen Palm | Blows Over - shallow roots |
Solitaire Palm | Wind Resistance | Schefflera | Brittle Wood |
Cabbage (Sable) Palm | Wind Resistance/Tolerates Flooding | Laurel Oak | Brittle Wood |
Gumbo Limbo | Wind Resistance | Water Oak | Brittle Wood |
Paurotis Palm | Tolerates Flooding | Chinese Elm | Brittle Wood |
Coconut Palm | Wind Resistance (remove coconuts)/Tolerates Flooding | Camphor Tree | Brittle Wood |
Pitch Apple | Wind Resistance/Tolerates Flooding | Golden Rain Tree | Brittle Wood |
Dahoon | Wind Resistance/Tolerates Flooding | Silk Floss Tree | Brittle Wood |
Yaupon Holly | Wind Resistance/Tolerates Flooding | Ear Leaf Acacia | Brittle Wood |
Screw Pine | Wind Resistance/Tolerates Flooding | Tabebuia (yellow or pink) | Brittle Wood/Blows Over - shallow roots |
Paradise Tree | Wind Resistance/Tolerates Flooding | Norfolk Pine | Brittle Wood/Blows Over - shallow roots |
Tibouchina | Wind Resistance/Tolerates Flooding | Eucalyptus | Brittle Wood |
Cassia | Wind Resistance/Tolerates Flooding | Silk Oak | Brittle Wood |
Geiger Tree | Wind Resistance/Tolerates Flooding | Sea Hibiscus | Brittle Wood |
Bottlebrush | Wind Resistance/Tolerates Flooding | Avocado | Brittle Wood |
Mexican Poinciana | Wind Resistance | Chinaberry | Brittle Wood |
Live Oak | If given room for roots to grow, Do not plant in moist soils | Seaside Mahoe | Blows Over - shallow roots |
Sand Oak | Wind Resistance | Banyan/Ficus | Blows Over - shallow roots |
Myrtle and Turkey Oak | Wind Resistance | Australian Pine | Blows Over - shallow roots |
Red Oak | Wind Resistance | Citrus Trees | Damaged by standing water |
Slash and Long Leaf Pine | Wind Resistance/Tolerates Flooding | Royal Poinciana | Brittle Wood |
Bald or Pine Cypress | Wind Resistance/Tolerates Flooding | Shooting Star (Clerodendron) | Brittle Wood/Blows Over - shallow roots |
Red and Silver Maple | Wind Resistance/Tolerates Flooding | Carrotwood | Brittle Wood |
Crepe Myrtle | Wind Resistance/Tolerates Flooding | Chinese Tallow (Popcorn) Tree | Brittle Wood |
Pigeon Plum | Wind Resistance | Washingtonia Palm | Blows Over |
Fiddlewood | Wind Resistance | Mahogany | Brittle Wood |
Ironwood | Wind Resistance | Black Olive | Brittle Wood/Blows Over - shallow roots |
Sea Grape | Wind Resistance/Tolerates Flooding | Live Oak | Blows over if not given adequate room to spread and if planted in moist soils |
Weeping Podocarpus | Wind Resistance | Sand Pine | Poor Wind Resistance |
Winged Elm | Wind Resistance | Sweetgum | Poor Wind Resistance |
Magnolia | Wind Resistance/Tolerates Flooding | Carolina laurelcherry | Poor Wind Resistance |
Tulip Tree | Wind Resistance | Hong Kong Orchid Tree | Poor Wind Resistance/Brittle Wood |
American Holly | Wind Resistance | ||
Sycamore | Wind Resistance/Tolerates Flooding | ||
Buttonwood | Wind Resistance/Tolerates Flooding | ||
Red Cedar | Wind Resistance/Tolerates Flooding | ||
Royal Palm | Wind Resistance/Tolerates Flooding |
Betrock Information Systems - www.hortworld.com - www.betrock.com - www.plantfinder.com
Well, personally I'm a big fan of the mag-lites. I carry both a mini and a full-size 4-cell in the car, and I keep a few of the big ones around the house. They're tough, they give great, adjustable light, and they make a pretty good improvised billy club just in case.
On the other hand, you have to keep the batteries up. As it happens, I was just looking at this zombie-attack preparation guide (what is it with the zombies all the time?) and it features this batteryless flashlight. That looks kind of cool; I don't think it's as good a flashlight as the maglites, but you don't need batteries, which also saves on weight. A lot depends on what you think you'll need it for, and for how long. Or you could always carry this survival tool -- pocket knife, magnesium firestarter, and flashlight all in one. BoingBoing liked it! And if you want versatility, here's a flashlight that uses AA, C, or D batteries, which is pretty versatile. I bought one a while back -- it's not bad, but doesn't seem especially sturdy.
I have to say that my cheap Timex Ironman watch makes a good emergency flashlight, too. It's not terribly bright, but it's enough to find your way around in the dark without bumping into things. I was in the grocery store -- in the meat section, about a half-mile from the windows at the front -- when the power went out a while back. The place was pitch-dark and it took about 20-30 seconds for the emergency lights to come on. As soon as things went black a woman started screaming -- I guess she had claustrophobia issues -- and I pushed the light button on my watch. This calmed her immediately, strangely enough. Then a few people opened up cellphones and it was a brief impromptu light show.
The watch is nice, though, because you've always got it. (As with cameras, guns, and many other things, the one you've got with you is always more important than the one you've left in a drawer at home). It's actually stopped me from buying a more expensive watch, as you can't get the "indiglo" feature on the fancy watches.
MY EARLIER SURVIVAL-KIT POST caused reader Fred Weldon to recommend including toilet paper, which may be in short supply: "After all, if you're gonna eat, you're gonna excrete." Good advice. I do keep a roll in my kits, and also in each car. And Target sells purse- or backpack-convenient mini-rolls, from Charmin. Those also fit nicely in a glove compartment.
Reader Michael Fisher, meanwhile, suggests this kit, and wonders why I didn't mention a gun. Well, I figure most Insta-Readers have their own preferences in that department already.
They probably can't read it, but here's a blackout survival guide. And here are some home generator safety guidelines.
Or you could get one of these, though at this new, higher price (it was 180 bucks when I linked it before) I don't think it's much of a deal. Heck, for that price you can get what looks like a pretty decent little inverter generator, with 1800 watts of clean power.
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