Be Prepared

My brief but halcyon tenure at the American Red Cross has left me with a deep personal commitment to disaster preparedness. Making the switch from the the fairly predictable weather patterns of the east coast (Come on guys, we knew Hurricane Sandy was coming for like, 2 weeks) to the intense and unpredictable patterns of the great plains is still a challenge for me, over a year later.

Naturally, I defer to the Red Cross on general disaster preparedness techniques. You should not only read these, but act on them.I have a few additional tips of my own.

1. Buy renter's insurance. It's not that expensive - probably between $80 - $150 per year. I bought my first policy from the basement during my first tornado warning here in STL and I haven't looked back.

2. Make a "ready bag". This will vary, depending on where you live, but mine includes a bottle of wine, a candle, matches, a headlamp, batteries, a blanket, clif bars, water bottles, a backpackers first aid kit and a paperback book - right now it's a collection of short stories by Anton Chekhov, but I switch it out from time to time. The most important part (which I learned the hard way) is to keep it somewhere out of the way, but highly accessible. The good news is, you can add a Frisbee for a "ready for action" picnic bag.

3. Make a plan. When disaster strikes, your cell phone probably won't work. Our plan is to meet at Chad's school if anything terrible happens. Big old buildings, proximity to hospitals and food sources and likelihood of access to other services nearby spurred that choice.

4. Prep the house to minimize damage.When I have notice before a big weather system, I generally do the following: close all the blinds to help block debris and flying glass if a window does break. Move valuable objects (like our camera, laptops, jewelry, music equipment etc..) to the bathroom closet - I go in the bathroom closet too, if there isn't time to get to the basement. I also move the car away from potential falling trees if there is time. Finally, I go around unplugging appliances in case of electrical surge and put the cell phone on the charger until it's time to take cover - I want to have as much charge as possible if we lose power.

5. Shoes on, hoods up. I always put on a weather appropriate outfit, including durable, closed toe shoes and socks. No excuses. I recently found out that my Dad does this same thing, only he also wears bright colors "so that they can find me more quickly in the rubble" hahahahaha. Good one, Dad.