Utah's on fire. There's no other way to say it, it simply is. About 45 miles south of our charming city the fire is encroaching and causing evacuation of city after city. As the Salt Creek fire grows closer and closer:"So far, more than 18,000 acres are burned, and this morning, the blaze is about 15 percent contained. More than 100 homes and structures are still threatened, and several small towns have been evacuated. Officials estimate the cost to fight the fire is nearing one million dollars.
"A specialized, highly-trained federal firefighting crew is now in Utah to help battle the Salt Creek fire. They've set up base camp at Juab High School in Nephi. The area almost looks like a popular vacation spot, with tents, bathrooms and caterers on the scene. It's rib-eye for dinner and a dry place for firefighters to rest their eyes. It's all for the men and women fighting the Salt Creek fire, which continues to burn, near Nephi, threatening homes and power lines." www.ksl.com
Over the last few days, while my mind was occupied with Harry Potter and a myriad of other things, I have been contemplating; What would I take with me if I had to evacuate?
1. 72-Hour kit which would include: Alvin's medication, First-Aid kit, water, toothbrushes, toothepaste, Oil of Olay Regerenist Wet Wipes, Wet Wipes, lotion, moisturizer, portable, food.I can't think of anything else right off the top of my head. But I know that this is a very serious situation. Over the last few months I have been attending, because of a job offer, numerous Emergency Management, Disaster Preparedness and Homeland Security seminars. What I have learned, much to my dismay, is that the citizenry is woefully unprepared.
2. Scriptures, books, games
3. Sleeping Bags and pillows
4. Pictures, wedding albums, etc.
5. I'm packing a suitcase, as soon as I'm done blogging, with clothing for one week.
6. External Hard Drives with all my electronic data and laptop
7. Cases of home canned chili beans, stew, fruit, vegetables, etc.
When a natural disaster such as fire, flood, earthquake, or unnatural disasters such as acts of war occur, a city's only priority is to re-establish the infrastructure. So if you are lying bleeding on the street, an ambulance will race right by you because the citizenry is not the priority. We are on our own. I remember asking someone from Rocky Mountain Power, "What happens to those individuals at home who have life support equipment, dialysis equipment, etc." She said to me, without even pausing, "They die." I learned that the citizenry must plan for up to six weeks without utilities or support.
So, I ask each of you reading this blog to look around at your family, your home and your circumstance . . . are you ready?
Reviewed by Unknown
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Monday, July 23, 2007
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Thanks for this reminder of how important it is to be prepared, Candace -- I'm going to take your advice and pull some things together. We've already got our 72 hour kits in the van (because there wasn't anywhere else to keep them) but I'll put some more stuff out there and make sure we have gas.
ReplyDeleteThe other night the smoke coming in through the swamp cooler was so bad, I had a sore throat all day the next day. That fire is close.
You are very welcome. It's become a scary realization in the last few days, hasn't it? At least they have more fire fighters down there now, I would have thought a 1,000 would be enough, but this fire is seriously out of control.
ReplyDeleteSome years ago, fire threatened my home and we were told to evacuate the house. It was just me and my two younger sisters (parents were out of town). I think it's rather funny that the first things we all ran for were...
ReplyDeleteMe: the playstation (because I borrowed it from a friend that very morning!)
Younger sister: her clothes
Youngest sister: her money
I actually ended up leaving the playstation when we realized that our mother had a ton of stuff on genealogy (with original pics and docs) in the upstairs room and we raced to pack everything into the car.
Still, it was interesting to see how I reacted in an intense situation and it's a good reminder to parents. Don't assume you'll be there! Make sure your kids are prepared for this kind of thing and have practiced what to do because trust me, we don't think clearly when disaster is looming (my sister ran out of the house with no shoes, bawling on the cordless phone to our mother about what was happening and then bawled on the street when the phone died)
Good point Aneeka. I hope many more people read this and see your comment. Thanks for doing so.
ReplyDeleteThanks for this important post. Hope you and your family remain safe.
ReplyDeleteWe heared on the news over here in Holland about the aweful fire.
ReplyDeleteWe will continue to pray for everybody's safety.
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Thanks Marja and HipWriterMama -- we're doing fine here, so far. So many small towns have been evacuated. But we continue to pray that the rains will come and the fire will finally be contained.
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