Hurricane Season Reminder

The best time to prepare for a hurricane is before it ever happens. With hurricane season officially starting on June 1st and running through November 30th, it’s a good idea to get prepared now. There are a number of precautions you can take beforehand to help you be better prepared to handle the threat of a possible hurricane in your area.

Make sure you are aware of the weather. Listen to your local radio or television frequently and stay informed about changing weather conditions. Then you can take a few simple steps ahead of time to protect and secure your property.

While permanent storm shutters offer better protection for windows, you can board up windows with 5/8 “ marine grade plywood that has been pre-cut to fit your windows so that it will be ready to install if necessary. Remember that tape will not keep windows from breaking.

Secure all outdoor furniture, trash cans or other objects that could become dangerous projectiles in high winds that normally occur during a hurricane. Check your trees for any limbs that could possibly damage your home should they suffer wind damage from a hurricane.

Water sources often become contaminated after a hurricane. Be prepared to have a supply of water for drinking, cooking and sanitary purposes such as cleaning and flushing toilets. Be ready to fill the bathtub or other large containers with water if necessary.

Have a plan ready if you are forced to evacuate. The best time to leave is before an evacuation order is initiated by local authorities. Leaving early is always the better option. If you are unable to evacuate, remember to follow a few safety precautions:

1. Stay inside during the hurricane. Most any type of loose object will become a dangerous projectile in the high winds associated with a hurricane.

2. Stay away from windows and glass doors during a hurricane.

3. Brace all exterior doors securely. Make sure all doors on your garage or storage buildings are also properly secured.

4. Don’t be fooled into thinking the storm is over if there is a lull. It may be only the eye of the hurricane and you could find yourself exposed to the forces of the hurricane as the eye passes.

5. Be prepared to take refuge in a small interior room or closet if necessary.

Don’t wait until a hurricane is knocking at your door to get ready.

Be aware. Be informed. Be prepared.

Riverwalker

Drought Impact Report for Texas

With the increasingly dry weather conditions continuing to affect Texas, it is vital that you keep up to date with the most current drought conditions in Texas. There is a Drought Impact Report for all the counties in Texas available from The National Drought Mitigation Center. It includes information on the effects on agriculture, number of fires, effects on water and energy, effects on the environment as well as social and other effects of the drought currently affecting our state.

You can review the report here:

Drought Impact Report for Texas

Be aware. Be informed. Be prepared.

Riverwalker

Happy Easter Preppers 2011

Hope everyone has a safe and happy Easter holiday.

Be aware. Be informed. Be prepared.

Riverwalker

New Member - 'ribbit' in Austin

A great big Texas welcome goes out to ‘ribbit’ in the Austin area. She’s now the newest member of the Texas Preppers Network and looks forward to sharing ideas and information with everyone. Those of you wishing to contact her directly can email ‘ribbit’ at rez@cedarberry.com.

Welcome to the Texas Preppers Network!

Be aware. Be informed. Be prepared.

Riverwalker

Simple Water Storage Solutions for the Urban Homesteader

The lack of critical resources can create a major problem for you and your family during a crisis. While many people have sufficient food resources, many lack that most vital of resources…water. You’ll need water for hygiene purposes, for cooking and to drink. You will also need a way to filter and purify any water that is used for drinking or cooking.

A good water filtration and purification system is pretty easy to obtain and many are lightweight and portable. The problem arises in how to have sufficient water storage for your family in an urban environment. The trick here is to use a little “stealth” in your prepping.

In a survival situation, those items which can serve a multitude of purposes will often serve you best. It also helps if they don’t draw unwanted attention and are readily available in a crisis. People often don’t think in terms of alternate uses and this can be utilized to your advantage.

Water poses a unique problem in that it is heavy and difficult to store in large quantities for the average urban homesteader. A five gallon jug of water is over forty pounds and can be difficult to carry if you’ve neglected to stay in shape or suffer from a physical impairment that limits your activities. They will also take up a lot of space inside your home. Space you may need for other things. There are a few simple solutions that can be utilized by most anyone to solve these problems. Sometimes you just need to think “outside the box”.

Simple Water Storage Solutions for the Urban Homesteader

1.) Use a small inflatable pool to store additional water outside. The neighbors won’t give it much thought and if needed can furnish your family with a large amount of water in a crisis. Even a small, rigid “kiddie” pool can hold a lot of water for use in a crisis.

2.) Use small water features to store additional water for a variety of purposes during a crisis. A couple of small water fountains on the patio or in your yard can be utilized as a resource to store additional water supplies without being obvious to your neighbors. A small artificial pond could be used to store an even greater quantity of water.

3.) Utilize a rain catchment system to harvest additional water. Even a small 30 gallon garbage container will catch a large amount of rainwater and can be easily hidden from prying eyes by a little “stealth” landscaping.

These are just a few of the ways to increase your water storage in an urban environment. Chances are you can think of many other ways to accomplish your goal of additional water storage for use in a crisis.

Be aware. Be informed. Be prepared.

Riverwalker

The Cost of Preparedness - Avoiding the Pitfalls

While there are certain costs involved with being prepared, it doesn’t have to wreck your budget. Using some plain old “common sense” will help you become better prepared without breaking the bank. It will make things a lot easier for you while giving you the security and peace of mind that comes with being prepared.

One of the first things you should realize is that the average person cannot realistically prepare for every contingency that may occur. Just when you think you’ve got all the bases covered, something will happen that will prove you wrong. This is usually the way life is in the real world.

Avoid some of the simple mistakes that happen quite often when people are trying to become better prepared and more self-reliant. Avoid drastically altering your lifestyle if you aren’t willing to make some serious sacrifices. Being able to live “off-grid” is a wonderful thing but it also has its disadvantages and may require some serious adjustments to your lifestyle. Having ten cases of MRE’s in storage is a good thing. But if you’ve never eaten one, you’d better eat a few first to find out if this type of food storage will work for you. Similarly, stocking up on survival seeds won’t do you very much good if you’ve never planted a garden to find out just how much work planting and being able to maintain a garden involves. That old hunting rifle or that .22 rifle or shotgun you use for varmint hunting or plinking will probably serve most of your basic needs when it comes to firearms.

If your preparedness efforts don’t fit into the normal routine of your daily life, you may wind up with a lot of “stuff” that you may not need or will never use. This can be extremely costly and unnecessary in most cases. Your preparedness efforts will be a lot more effective if they are slowly integrated into your present lifestyle and done so in a manner that allows these efforts to become a part of your regular routine. You’ll eventually become better prepared without destroying the “normal” part of your life if just use a little “common sense”.

Be aware. Be informed. Be prepared.

Riverwalker