See the two photos? One is the path that Hurricane Irene took — but have a look at Sandy. It doesn’t look good for New Jersey. What can you do? Here are a few suggestions.
As Hurricane Sandy ——->
approaches, the time for all of us to prepare for a worst case scenario is now. But don’t run to the Stop And Shop and take every single bottle of water — take what you will need so that everyone gets a share. Trust me, there are people who need water more than you do. If you are a healthy person, you can get by on a normal amount or you can drink out of your garden hose.
COMPARE SANDY TO IRENE —>
Preparing for the hurricane means making sure you have the necessities in the event of a lengthy power outage.
Although the storm is still 600 miles away it is coming, and now is the time to prepare and it looks like it’s aiming for a landfall in southern, New Jersey.
“We don’t want people thinking during a stressful moment, they might make a mistake that’s not in the best interest of themselves,” says Mildred Scalfani, author or Hurricane Wind and Windy The Historyof Hurricanes in New Jesey.
Sclafani says it’s critical for everyone to have an emergency kit on hand with things like flashlights, extra batteries and a transistor radio. The biggest problem you might have in the metro area is a power outtage — start eating your frozen stuff now — pre-prepare some of the stuff that can be kept cool and then served at room temperature later. I’ll tell you more about food as you read on but another trick is to fill ziplock bags with wtaer and fill your freezer with them — they will freeze and keep your freezer cold if there is an outage and as they melt you can drink them.
The best thing to have are canned stews like Dinty Moore. The taste is not haute cuiine but they will come in handy — gatorade is a great idea to wash it down. Chef Boyaredee makes a whole bunch of great room temp foods that you just pop open and eat — they are foolproof. A few bags of that stuff and you’ll be okay. You will yearn for things that don’t taste awful, but at least you won’t be hungry, right?
Make sure you have enough water for yourself, for drinking, hydration and bathing as well as making sure that your toilets flush, that’s very important but remember the odl addage about saving water — IF IT’S YELLOW LET IT MELLOW, IF IT’S BROWN FLUSH IT DOWN.
While shopping for food, stock up on non-perishable items such as canned goods, pancake mix and even pop tarts. If your backyard grill is working and has a propane tank, you can make anything you want but remember that the frozen burgers in your freezer are going to start to defrost after day 1 so you better use them. I wouldn’t trust them for safety after 36 hours of a power outtage — but if your freezer is packed, it should work as it’s own cooler so use common sense. If something in your freezer is defrosted but is still very cold, it’s probably good to eat too.
It’s also vital for people to know before the storm hits where they can go in the event of an emergency.
Make sure there’s an area of refuge, whether its going to a relative’s house not close to the coastline and making sure people know where they’re going to meet up, if something does happen. Don’t be an idiot and think it’s going to be cool to go to the beach and see the waves — it might look like fun but all it takes is one wave to wipe you out and sweep you away or kill you or break your neck. Don’t be an idiot.
If you have to leave in a hurry, make sure your emergency contact numbers, insurance/medical information and first aid supplies are in a go kit that you’ll be able to find in a rush.
Also, if you have friends or family from the evacuated areas of southern, NJ, you might want to take them in now and have them help you with getting prepared for Sunday. After the hurricane passes, you might want to help them with whatever may have happened to their home — it’s time to love they neighbor.
MAIN THING — Look after the elderly in your neighborhood. If you know old people or sick people who live alone, check on them and perhaps ask them if they would like to stay with you. I know this sounds like a pain in the ass but it’s better than finding out that the little old man down the street died from dehydration when nobody knew he was home alone without water or food for a week.
