You are here

Lets just pretend for a moment.

Willow2010's picture

Lets say that the ebola virus ends up being a pretty big deal here in the US and extreme measures have to be taken...

Are you prepared? What if your state has to go on lock down for 21 days? Would your house be in order? Could you survive at home for at least 21 days without being able to leave and no one could come help you?

Would you have enough food? Water? Medications? Home protection for if it gets really bad? Anything else I am forgetting?

What would you do and how would you do it?

Comments

hereiam's picture

Am now seriously rethinking the emergency food kit I saw on HSN. It looked pretty tasty, too. And reasonably priced.

Ljcapp1's picture

if it was Mountain Home they are pretty good for dehydrated foods. You have to be able to boil water is the only downfall.

hereiam's picture

It was Wise Company. They say it can be made with cold water, obviously not as good as hot but I have a gas stove (and gas water heater) so if just electric is out, I'm good.

Willow2010's picture

The scenario does not even have to be inclusive of an illness. It could be a natural disaster or a man made disaster. Or Zombies! lol. JK

Ljcapp1's picture

I am a prepper so yes...totally prepared. I have kerosene stored, flashlights, lamps and candles, my propane tank is full,I have been canning all summer, my freezer is full, 3 dozen MRE's, I have water on back up plus a well on the property. I raise chickens so if I HAD TO I would have meat, and I have a back up cooking system outside. I always keep lots of vinegar, baking soda and tea tree oil on hand they seem to cure a lot of ailments.

The only thing that would keep me from making it 21 days is if someone got really sick or had a compound fracture.

This is a cool blog - I'd like to hear what others keep on hand for prepping???

Ljcapp1's picture

Actually, I'm more afraid of ISIS than Ebola. So we each have a gun/knives and plenty of ammo too.
I have a back pack in my car with MRE's, a knife, boots, etc. This ISIS thing has had me freaked out.

Willow2010's picture

Yea...us too. I have a "get home" bag in my vehicle. I figure it would take me at least 2 days to walk home from my job if something terrible happened. So I have everything in there to keep me fed, watered, sheltered, clothed, protected and medicated, for 3 days minimum.

Ljcapp1's picture

ME TOO^ and my son and I have a plan for meeting if we ever have a major issue and can't drive to where we need to go.

Everyone should have a plan - where to meet, extras in your car, extras in your house, and my favorite is self-reliance.

I was reading a prepper blog and a lady and her kids not only had a plan but they also had a bag of essentials buried near their schools just in case stuff that you can't take to school. I thought that was a cool idea.

Gwynnafaye's picture

I have one too! My DH calls it my car-go bag. I worked 35 miles from home when he made it for me, but the walk would have been in the country. We estimated it would take 2 days because I would walk to my mother's house first. She lives 1/2 way between our house and my old office. Now, I work 10 miles from home, but I'll have to walk through the city. I might want to think about keeping a weapon on me. Time to get my conceal and carry.

Willow2010's picture

Im not Ricky, but I understand that some fish antibiotics are the exact same as human antibiotics. I have been meaning to buy some on line, but have been procrastinating.

Unfreakingreal's picture

So would we. I feel so ill prepared now after reading some of these replies! Damn!

hereiam's picture

I do have plenty of toilet paper. And several bottles of maple syrup, for some reason.

Willow2010's picture

I am a prepper so yes
++++++++++++++++++++++
Me too me too! lol

Teas83's picture

We might actually be okay. I always go to Costco and come home with too much stuff. My husband makes fun of me for "stocking up" and says that at least we'd be okay if there was some kind of event that required us to stay in our house for an extended period of time.

ksmom14's picture

Costco is the best! ...and the worst...all in one lol

Has some great stuff, then you get to check out and you're like "HOW MUCH?!?!?!"

Teas83's picture

Wouldn't it be awful if the skids were with you at the time of lock down? I couldn't go 21 days stuck in the same building as SD.

Just J's picture

DH has actually just recently started prepping for such an event, and we always joke that it's prep for the Zombie Apocalypse, though we live in CA so more realistically it would be if there was a big earthquake. We do have water, a million ways to start fire, flashlights, batteries, Mylar blankets, tarps, rope, knives, a hatchet and a few guns (DH is a gun enthusiast but they are for home protection as well). The only thing we don't have enough of right at this moment is food, but we're working on that as well, picking up extra cans of things when we do our regular shopping.

ksmom14's picture

I could probably make the stuff I have at home stretch 21 days, but it would be tough! I already have a shopping trip tonight planned...I think I'm going to stock up a little more on water and canned goods. Doesn't hurt!

ksmom14's picture

I have not seen that show! Interesting...

I could use my chickens (only have 4!) for food if needed, and I think my dogs would probably be good to keep as hunters! They've gotten so many damn birds and gophers it's ridiculous, they'd probably help feed us!

ksmom14's picture

Ughh they're such gross looking rodents!

Since they dig tunnels underground my dogs find it necessary to try to dig the whole tunnel up so we have trenches dug ALL over our back yard!

My dogs are expert gopher, lizard, bird, squirrel, and frog hunters Wink

Willow2010's picture

I also have large supplies of toilet paper, toothpaste, cleaners, trash bags.

I used to have a rain catchment system, but took it down to repair it and it has not been put back up yet! We have plenty of drinking water, but would need lots more water for other things if it got real bad.

Ljcapp1's picture

Some preppers fill their bath tub with water for non-potable uses. Not sure how that would help the earthquake folks tho...

AllySkoo's picture

Remember you have water in your hot water tank. No real need to put any in the bathtub. Unless you have tank-less hot water system, of course.

Unfreakingreal's picture

When Sandy hit, we lost power. DH went and got some propane tanks for the grill. We would heat water in a huge pot on the grill and use it to bathe. I have enough candles to light a church. We had some flashlights, batteries. We charged our phones in the car and kept the perishables in coolers filled with ice. After a few days the house was too cold for us to stay there and we had to go to a friends house. One thing I wish we had was a fireplace, we could have stayed home if we had one.

DaizyDuke's picture

one time during a bad winter storm, we lost power for a whole day. I wasn't prepared and had no water in the tub like I should have. So I went outside and filled a big stock pot with snow and melted it on the wood stove. I was telling FIL about it later and he was like WOW how Little House on the Prairie of you! lol

the snow to water ratio is whacked though. A full pot of snow, does not generate much water

BethAnne's picture

For those experienced preppers here, what you recommend as a good way to start prepping on a tight budget?
We don't have a lot of money to spend all at once for a stock pile but could maybe get a little at a time.

I'm worried about the risk of a big earthquake, though my husband thinks that it is unlikely and if it did happen we would be screwed anyway so no need to prepare. I'd like to start to get a few things ready anyway.

What are important basics to get as a start to prepping?

Ljcapp1's picture

what willow said and - you can also by a straw for $20.00 that will filer nasty water to potable.

http://echo-sigma.com/lifestraw-personal-water-filter/?gclid=CJWJ07CpkcE...

Buy candles at the DG, and batteries a few each payday. That's what I have done, just a little bit each payday. Buy beans and rice and canned goods when they are super cheap. If you are prepping for an earthquake I'm not real sure...But I live near the New Madrid fault line so I should be looking into it.

BethAnne's picture

Thanks, that sounds like a good place to start. I've been thinking about what we have around the house and we have quite a few things, I just might need to think about putting them all in an accessible place. I'll get working on it!

Willow2010's picture

Water and how to purify it is the first thing. Buy a case or two here and there and rotate them. Do not store on concrete. There are so many things you can do when short on cash. I just don't have the time right now to list them.

I am actually walking out the door at work and will try to get back here to this blog tomorrow. I could blog about this all day! lol
Pinterest has a ton of sites about prepping on a budget too.

B22S22's picture

You know, I remember something from my childhood I heard my cousin talking about, as he and his wife were Mormon. If you're unfamiliar, one of the requirements are that Mormons stock food/water, I think for something like years??

When you finish using bleach in a jug, don't rinse it out and fill it back up with water. Put the cap back on, and you can even somewhat seal it with duct tape.

The small amount of bleach left over in the jug will purify the water, and will keep it fairly fresh for quite some time.

We have a lot of dried food, lots of water/gatorade/etc. And of course, lots and lots and lots of ammunition for all of our handguns/rifles/shot guns.