Week 17: Protect Your Data

This week's task:  Make and implement a plan to back up your data.

Many of us have important stuff stored electronically...especially in the form of digital photos and videos.  Your data could be damaged or lost due to fire, theft, a lost device, hard drive failure, or flood. Is your data backed up?  Are you going to be worrying about grabbing your computer when you should be focusing on getting yourself and your family out of a dangerous situation?

Things to consider:

1. How painful would it be to lose everything on my computer/smartphone/tablet?
2. How much data do you need to back up?
3. How much are you willing to pay for a backup solution?
4. Are you comfortable storing personal data online (i.e. encrypted and password protected, but in a remote location on a company's servers)?
5. Will you consistently take action to back up your data or do you need your backup system to run completely automatically?

If you care about protecting your data, there are two main ways to do it: (1) Back up to an external hard drive or (2) Online backup (i.e. securely back up your files to a company's servers located somewhere other than your house).

External Hard Drive:

Advantages:

• One-time expense: You can get a high-quality 1-terabyte external usb drive for less than $100.  This harddrive  allows wireless backups across your home network.
• You retain physical control of your data...it isn't stored on a company's servers.

Disadvantages of backing up to an external drive:

• If you have a small amount of data to back up (less than 5 gigabytes), you can get online storage for free.
• If you store the hard drive at home, you could lose your backed up data in addition to your computer in the event of fire/theft/flood. 
• If you keep your hard drive stored somewhere offsite, then you have to concoct a complicated plan of bringing it back for regular backups or using a rotating system with two hard drives. Unless you are unusually diligent about this, you will probably go for long periods without backing up your most recent data to the offsite hard drive. 

Online Backup/Cloud-based Storage (storing your data "in the cloud"):

Online (cloud-based) backup services store your data on the company's servers at some undisclosed location in the world.  If your data is backed up with one of these services and your computer explodes tomorrow, you can buy a new computer and download all of your files in a couple easy steps.  To use online storage, you sign up for a service, download some software to your computer, tell it which folders you want to have backed up (or put everything you want backed up into a special folder), and you're done.  After that, anything you add to the designated back-up folders will be automatically backed up.  Note that you can only access your data that is stored online using a login name and password - it is not accessible publicly.

There are a lot of cloud-based services out there.  For the last few years, I've used Dropbox.  If you have less than 2 GB of data, it's free. Otherwise it is $10/month to back up a terabyte of data.  (That's 1000 gigabytes.)  You can access your data from any of your computers or mobile devices, it backs up everything you add automatically, and you can even make your phone/ipad back up the pictures and videos that you take automatically.

Advantages of cloud-based storage:

• Automatically backs up all new files or changes to existing files to an offsite location, safe from fire/flood/physical theft.  
• Many back-up services integrate very well with mobile devices so that you don't have to deal with backing them up separately.  

Disadvantages of cloud-based storage:

• The ongoing monthly charge (if you need to back up more than a small amount of data) will likely be more expensive over time than an external hard drive.
• Your data is stored on remote servers and if you worry about hackers, this might cause you anxiety.  (Note that your data is not publicly available - it can only be accessed by you using a login name and password.  Also, the probability of losing your data to hackers is probably much, much smaller than the probability of losing it some other way because you don't have it backed up.)

Week 16: Staying Warm

This week's assignment:  Make a plan for staying warm when the heat is off.

The likelihood that you will be without heat for an extended period and the seriousness of being in that situation will depend on the type of heating system you have, the types of disasters you face in your area, the severity of your climate, and the health and ages of the people in your household.   Here are a few strategies to consider:

Tough it out: A household in a mild climate with only healthy adults older children may decide not to invest in emergency heating equipment.  Here are a few things that will help you stay a little warmer:

• Make sure everyone has warm clothes and blankets (especially warms hats, socks, and gloves).
• Consider getting a few emergency mylar blankets or bivies (sleeping bags).  If you want something a little more durable consider these blankets or bivies or these hooded blankets that can also be used as a tarp.
• Hand warmers or hot water bottles (if you have a way to boil water) can provide added comfort

Diversify: If you have natural gas heat, get an electric space heater.  If you have electric heat, get a propane heater (make sure you get one that is safe for indoor use, like the Mr. Heater Buddy, which is clean burning, has a low-oxygen sensor and is approved for indoor use).  If you have a wood-burning stove, keep firewood on hand (but be careful after an earthquake because your chimney will almost certainly be damaged).

Invest in a generator: I have no experience with these, so I will just point you to information here,  here, and here and let you and Google take it from there.

Factoid about utility restoration after the 1994 Northridge earthquake:  After the 1994 Northridge earthquake, 2.5 million people lost electricity, but over 90% of customers had power restored within 24 hours.  Over 150,000 people lost natural gas service.  Service was restored to 120,000 customers within 12 days and 9000 customers were still without service after a month.  (Note that 133,000 people turned their gas off as a precaution even though they didn't suspect a gas leak and this delayed service restoration significantly.  PG&E recommends that you only turn off your gas if you smell gas, hear a leak, or see a broken gas line.) 

Have other ideas?  Leave them in the comments.

Emergency Fair Handouts and Information about Upcoming First Aid Class

CPR/First Aid course this Saturday

Our Red Cross Instructor that spoke at the Emergency Fair is offering a CPR and First Aid class for us this Saturday, May 11th, at a discounted price (anyone is welcome to sign up).  Participants will receive certification cards for CPR and First Aid.

From the instructor: 

During this course you will learn skills that will enable you to help a person who becomes suddenly ill or injured.

What Life Saving Skills will I learn?

Adult, Infant and Child CPR - When and how to correctly administer CPR

AED - When and how to use an Automated External Defibrillator

Standard First Aid -When and how to administer First Aid

How do I register?

Click on the following link and follow the instructions. (NOTE: A Paypal account is NOT required. Once you click on the link below, choose "Don't Have A Paypal Account" and a form will appear requesting your credit/debit card info.)

https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=TX5W8Q63LVU4N

Will I receive confirmation of my registration?

After you have register, a confirmation email will be sent back to you.

When will I receive my certification card?

Generally our students receive their cards on the same day as training. In rare instances such as a delay at the processing center, you will receive your certification within 5 business days.

What materials will I receive?

All participants receive:

Participants Manual - large full color manual which contains all of the information covered in class and so much more.

Ready Reference Card - colorful display of techniques and information on a glossy, multi-fold card with step-by-step instructions.

Class Details:

Class: CPR/AED/Standard First Aid class for Adult, Child and Infant
Location: LDS Institute Building, 2368 Le Conte Ave, Berkeley
Date/Time: Saturday, May 11th, 10am-2pm
Cost: $60 (regular price: $110).


Handouts from the Fair:

Plan Ahead:

Family Plan Worksheet
Wallet-Sized Emergency Contact Cards
FEMA Fire Safey Checklist

Get Training:

Local CERT Training Information

Learn to shut off your gas:

Gas Shutoff Procedure

Paracord Bracelet:

Instructions

Berkeley Ward Neighborhood Emergency Groups:

I will send an email to the ward with the neighborhood group handout.

Week 15: Prepare to Shelter in Place

This week's tasks:

1. Learn how to shelter in place
2. Add shelter-in-place supplies to your emergency kit (sufficient plastic sheeting or heavy-duty garbage bags and duct tape to seal off windows, doors, vents, and outlets in your 'shelter-in-place' room plus duct tape for the car.)
3. Download the Red Cross Shelter-in-Place Fact Sheet and put it in your emergency binder for quick reference.

If hazardous materials are released into the air, communities can be ordered to 'shelter in place', which means to take your family and your emergency supplies, including a portable radio, to an interior room of your home (preferably with few or no windows) and seal it off with plastic sheeting and duct tape until the hazardous materials have dissipated enough that people can safely go back outside.   Those of you who are local probably remember the Richmond Refinery Fire last August, which prompted shelter-in-place orders in Richmond and El Cerrito.

How to shelter in place at home:

• Choose an interior room with few or no windows.
• Take your family and emergency supplies into the room (including food and water)
• Close and lock the windows, turn off your heating/air circulation system, and close the fireplace damper.
• Use plastic sheeting or heavy duty garbage bags (plastic wrap commonly used for food is too thin) and duct tape to seal off cracks around the door and window(s) and to cover and seal around air vents and outlets in your shelter-in-place room. Your goal is to keep all outside air from coming in.
• Listen to the radio to find out when it's safe to come out.
• When it's safe to come out, open all the doors and windows to air out the house.

If you are in your car:

• Pull over.
• Close the windows and vents.
• Seal the vents with duct tape.
• Listen to the radio for instructions and information.

How will you know a shelter-in-place order is in effect?  Communities have different ways of notifying their residents, but here are some possibilities:

• "All-Call" telephoning—an automated system for sending recorded messages, sometimes called "reverse 9-1-1."Emergency Alert System (EAS) broadcasts on the radio or television.
• Outdoor warning sirens or horns.
• News media sources—radio, television and cable.
• NOAA Weather Radio alerts.
• Residential route alerting—messages announced to neighborhoods from vehicles equipped with public address systems.

The Red Cross Shelter-in-Place Fact Sheet contains step-by-step instructions about how to shelter in place in your home, work, school or car.  Put a copy in your emergency binder for quick reference if you have to shelter in place.

Week 14: Fire Safety

This week's tasks: Hold a fire drill, test your smoke alarms, and review FEMA's fire safety guidelines.

Make an escape plan and practice a fire drill in your home:

• Click here to learn about making an escape plan.  Remember, every family member should know "two ways out" of every room.  Practice your plan twice a year.

Test your smoke alarms (and change the batteries if needed):

• Smoke alarms should be checked monthly.  In smoke alarms that take non-lithium batteries, the batteries should be replaced yearly.  In smoke alarms powered by a 10-year lithium battery, the battery cannot be replaced so the whole unit should be replaced periodically according to the manufacturers instructions.  Click here to find out more about smoke alarms.

Review FEMA's fire safety guidelines:

Download and review FEMA's Home safety checklist to see how you are doing with fire safety in your home.  The FEMA website also has a lot of other good information about fire safety.  Here are a few highlights and links to get more specific information:

• Earthquakes and Fire Safety - Check out this page to learn how to minimize the risk of fire after an earthquake.  You can download this handout as a quick reference to include in your emergency binder. 
• Fire Safety in Bedrooms: Bedrooms are a common area for fires to start.  Typical culprits: (1) children playing with matches (while hiding in confined spaces like under the bed or in the closet) - children start 35,000 bedroom fires annually, (2) electrical appliances, and (3) smoking.  Click the link to learn more about bedroom fire safety.
• Electrical Fire Safety - Don't overload your circuits.  Don't run cords under rugs.  Click the link to learn more.
• Fire Safety for High Rise Residents - Special tips for staying safe in a high-rise fire.
• Fire Extinguishers: Learn about the different kinds of fire extinguishers, how to use them, and how to know when to use them (versus just evacuating the building as quickly as possible)
• Cooking Fire Safety - Choose the right equipment and use it properly.  I used a fringed dish towel to take something out of the oven once and the fringes touched the heating element and caught on fire.  So don't do that.  Click on the link to learn more. 

Week 13: Assemble an Emergency Kit for your Car and Office

This week's task: Assemble emergency kits for your car and office

Car Emergency Kit

Your car emergency kit should contain supplies to help you if your car breaks down and/or if you end up stranded because of infrastructure damage after a disaster.  Of course, the types of items you will need will depend on where you drive and the weather in your area.   Here is a list to get you started (taken largely from this book):

Basic Emergency Supplies:

Flashlight
Water
Food
Sturdy shoes
Rain poncho
Coat or sweatshirt
Emergency whistle
First Aid kit
Heavy blankets or emergency blankets

Basic Automotive Supplies:

Jumper cables/jumpstart battery booster
Roadside triangle reflectors or flares (Cyalume flares, LED flares)
Small tool kit (screwdrivers, adjustable wrench, pliers)
Spare tire, jack, lug wrench,board
Maps and/or GPS units
ABC or BC fire extinguisher
Spare fuses

Additional supplies:

Work Gloves
Small gas can
Tow strap
Bungee tie-down cords
Fix-a-Flat tire inflator and sealant (quick temporary fix to flat tire)
Tire pump and guage (fill or check a leaky tire)
Cell phone charger

Cold-Weather supplies:

Windshield ice scraper
Bag of coarse sand (to provide traction in mud or snow)
Hand-ratcheted wench (to pull vehicle out of mud or snow)
Folding Shovel (for digging out tires)

I also keep backup child supplies in my car (diapers, sunscreen, food for the kids) both for emergencies and for run-of-the-mill forgetful parent moments.

Office Emergency Kit

I keep water, a flashlight, an emergency whistle and a little food in my office.  In some types of emergencies, you could be stranded in your location for awhile.  If you have to drive over a bridge to get home, you could be stranded for a few days.  

Week 12: Assemble a 72-hour kit, Part 2

This week's tasks:  Add a 3-day supply of food and a change of clothing to your 72-hour kit

Add food to your 72-hour kit:

How much food do you need?  The easiest way to figure that out is to count calories.  An adult needs 2000-2600/day and kids need around 1500-1600 calories/day.  If you are the mother of a nursing baby, click here for more information about keeping backup supplies on hand.  Once you add up your family's total caloric needs for 3 days, you are ready to go shopping - just add up the calories of everything you choose and keep buying more until you get to your total.  Remember that a post-disaster situation will be stressful and being hungry will make it harder to cope.

You have two broad choices for emergency food: (1) Emergency rations designed for long-term storage or (2) Regular, familiar food that has to be rotated regularly.   I have some of both.

Emergency Rations:  There are various options out there.  Here are a couple I'm familiar with.

1. High Calorie bars - These give you a lot of calories/square inch (the package has 3600 calories - inside the foil, they are wrapped in individual 200-calorie units). These particular bars taste like coconut shortbread cookies, but I've also seen lemon-flavored ones. They have a five-year shelf life.  
2. MRE's - These are what military personnel eat in the field.  This site has a large selection.  Keep in mind that the entrees only have 200-300 calories each, so 3 entrees are not a full day of food for an adult.  The 'side' dishes provide the extra calories (mixed nuts, peanut butter, crackers, drink mix, etc).  Shelf life is generally at least five years.

Buy real food I know my family likes:  Look for non-perishable items that have a lot of calories per unit of volume and have a shelf-life of at least six months to a year.  To make rotation easier, I keep my food list in a spreadsheet.  Along with the total calories, I write down the expiration dates so that I can scan the list every six months and replace the things that will expire soon (I wrote about my rotation plan in more detail last week).

Here is my food list for my family of 2 adults, 1 toddler and a baby: Excel spreadsheet, pdf.

Also, remember to include whatever dishes and utensils you will need to eat your food, open cans, etc. If you will need to wash dishes, include dish soap, a large ziploc bag, and dish cloth.

Add clothes to your 72-hour kit:

The Red Cross suggests that your 72-hour kit should include an extra change of clothes, a hat, sturdy shoes, and work gloves.

If you have kids/babies, consider items like blankets, jackets, burp cloths, diapers and wipes, and warm pajamas.  Often, a child doesn't have 'extra' pajamas, jackets, shoes, etc. that fit and can go in an emergency kit where they will rarely (or never) be worn.  I've gotten around this in two ways - for my baby boy, I put his big sister's old things that are too girlish for his regular use in the kit.  For my oldest, I put things in the kit that are a size too big - baggy clothes will work fine in an emergency.   I check the clothes at least once a year when I rotate the food, pull out the stuff she has grown into, and replace it with new stuff that is too big.  Shoes are more of a problem, but flip flops are a good option that are more forgiving if they don't fit right (especially if they are too big rather than too small).  If you have other ideas, put them in the comments.

For Mothers of Nursing Babies

If you have a nursing baby, storing food and water for yourself in an emergency is especially important.  Remember that you need around 500 extra calories per day plus plenty of water.  Also, consider the possibility that you will be unavailable to feed the baby for some period of time after a disaster.  If you are away from the baby during an earthquake, damage to infrastructure could make it difficult or impossible to get home quickly. In a worst-case scenario, you could be killed or badly injured.

Things to Think About:

• Consider keeping bottles and a 3-day supply of formula on hand.  Playtex Nursers with disposable drop-in liners are a good choice so that you can minimize bottle washing if the water supply is disrupted.  (You would still have to wash the nipples.)
• If you have a large supply of frozen milk, your baby can drink that for a day or two.  But if the power goes out, it may not be safe to drink once it has been unfrozen for more than 24 hours (even if you are able to keep it cold).  And since it may be difficult to get medical help post-disaster, following food safety protocols to avoid food-born illness should be a high priority.
• If someone other than yourself sometimes takes the baby places in the car, consider keeping a baby bottle, some bottled water, and a few servings of formula in the car in case they get stranded and can't get back to you.  These single serving formula pouches are ideal for this purpose (there are 16 pouches in a box, so you could divy them up with a friend if you are only using them for emergency supplies).
• If you are frequently away from your baby, consider keeping a hand pump in your bag or car so that you can express milk (for your comfort and to maintain your milk supply) if you can't get back to the baby quickly.

Week 11: Assemble a 72-hour Kit, Part 1

This week's task: Begin to assemble a portable 72-hour kit for your family.

Pretty much everyone in the disaster preparation community agrees that you should put together a portable 3-day supply of food, water, clothing, and other necessities for your family (including pets).  These are often called 72-hour kits or go-bags.

If you don't have one or your disaster supplies are not organized, now is your chance.  If you want to purchase a kit, the Red Cross offers individual and family kits.  Many other companies offer pre-assembled kits as well. Here, for example.

If you want to assemble your own kit, the following list comes from the Red Cross website:

Essential items:

• Water: We talked about water in Week 4. The recommended minimum is a gallon per person per day for 3 days (4x3=12 for a family of 4).  I have 2 gallons in a jug that I could carry on foot and 10 more gallons in 5-gallon mylar bags that I could hoist into the car.
• Food: This is a big one - I will talk specifically about it next week
• Flashlight and radio, plus extra batteries (see Week 2 and Week 9)
• First Aid kit, including any medications you require (see Week 10 for more information)
• Multi-purpose Tool
• Sanitation and Personal Hygiene Items 
• Copies of Personal Documents, Emergency Phone List, and map of the area (see Week 3)
• Cell phone with charger
• Extra Cash
• Emergency Blanket

Suggested items to help meet additional needs:

• Medical supplies (hearing aids with extra batteries, glasses, contact lenses, syringes, cane)
• Baby supplies (bottles, formula, baby food, diapers) 
• Games and activities for children 
• Pet supplies (collar, leash, ID, food, carrier, bowl) 
• Two-way radios 
• Extra set of car keys and house keys 
• Manual can opener
• Whistle 
• N95 or surgical masks 
• Matches 
• Rain gear
• Towels 
• Work gloves 
• Tools/supplies for securing your home 
• Extra clothing, hat and sturdy shoes
• Plastic sheeting (for sheltering in place)
• Duct tape 
• Scissors 
• Household liquid bleach (to purify water)
• Entertainment items 
• Blankets or sleeping bags

Rotating your supplies:  Perishable items need to replaced in your kit periodically.  If you're like me, you probably have a disaster kit you made 15 years ago that hasn't been touched since.  A couple years ago, I finally came up with a system that makes it is easy to rotate my supplies.  It takes a little effort to set up, but it works pretty well:

1. Make a list of everything in your kit and put expiration dates by the perishable items (a spreadsheet works great for this).  Setting this up is a bit of an investment, but will be worth it later.
2. Every six months, look at the spreadsheet to see what is expiring soon and make a shopping list.  (Put a reminder on your calendar and schedule the next rotation every time you do one.)
3. Go shopping, bring the stuff home, lay it on your table, and update the list with the new expiration dates. 
4. Haul out your kit (I have the food packed together in a separate bag to make it easier to swap out), switch the old for the new, and put it back.  

For me, the key to this system is that once you set it up, steps #2 and #3 are really easy, so I'm inclined not to put them off.  By the time I get to the hard step (#4), I'm almost done and it doesn't seem overwhelming. I'm not good at maintaining complicated systems, but this has worked very well for me.  If you want to see my family's list, you can download it as an Excel spreadsheet or pdf (I didn't include a detailed list of food or clothes - I'll put that up next week).

Week 10: First Aid Supplies and Training

This week's tasks: 

1. Put together a portable family first-aid kit to keep with your emergency supplies and a first aid kit for your car(s)  
2. If you don't feel confident in your ability to administer simple first aid, look into taking a CPR/First Aid course.

First Aid Courses: Knowing how to act quickly in an emergency can save lives.  If you haven't had first aid training in the past few years, it's a good idea to refresh your skills.  I took a class recently and many of the recommendations have changed since my last training some years ago.  Basic first aid training also now includes training to use AED's, which save many lives each year.  You can look for classes in basic CPR and First Aid in your area on the Red Cross Website.  Or check with your HR department to see if your employer sponsors on-site courses.  If you're interested in something more comprehensive, REI offers 2-day wilderness medicine courses. Click here for a list of courses in the SF Bay Area.  Also, many communities offer free Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) Training that includes a first-aid component as part of a larger course.  Check your city's website for more information.

First Aid Reference Material:  You can download the Red Cross First Aid Manual here for free (you get a hard copy of this manual when you take their course).  If you have a smart phone, you can download the Red Cross's First Aid App.  But keep in mind that reference material is not a good substitute for proper training when you find yourself in a situation where every second counts.

First Aid Supplies: The Red Cross provides a list of things that should be in your first aid kit here.   The easiest and cheapest solution is to purchase a first aid kit and supplement it with anything from the Red Cross list that it is missing (commercial kits tend to lack decent scissors and tweezers) as well as any special supplies your family needs (e.g. allergy medicine, infant Tylenol, etc.).  Our local Target store, the Red Cross Website, and Amazon.com have a large variety of first aid kits to choose from.  I have these in my car and this in my 72-hour kit (I added a few things to both kits, like more Advil, a bigger tube of antibiotic ointment,  children's pain medicine, etc).

An important note about calling 911 from a cell phone: If you call 911 from a cell phone, your call will be routed to a central dispatcher who will try to figure out how to route you to your local emergency services.  In the SF Bay area, the central dispatcher is the California Highway Patrol in San Jose.  The re-routing process can be slow and local emergency personnel strongly recommend that when using a cell phone to report an emergency, you call the local dispatcher directly, if you can.  Here are the local numbers to put in your cell phone (if you live somewhere else, you should be able to get this information from your city website or local police department):

Albany: 510-525-7300
Berkeley:  510-981-5911
El Cerrito: 510-233-1214

Week 9: Light

This week's task:

1. Put a flashlight or lightstick by each person's bed and in your car(s).   
2. Evaluate whether your family needs additional emergency lighting.

There are many reason the lights could go out.  And an extended outage is possible after a severe storm or earthquake.  In a disaster situation, adequate emergency lighting will help family members carry out the tasks they need to do to cope and take care of each other.

First, put a flashlight or lightstick by each person's bed.  Ideally, put it in a box or tie it to the bed frame so that it won't be flung out of reach during an earthquake.  Next, put a flashlight in your car.

Here are other emergency lighting options to consider (feel free to share a link to your favorite light in the comments):

• LED Lanterns:  LED flashlights and lanterns are bright and have great battery life.  I have this lantern, which runs for 40-90 hours on one set of 3 D batteries and it works great.  It won't light up the room like a 60-watt lightbulb, but you will be able to see what you are doing. Other well-reviewed options:  quad lantern with removable panels, folding lantern, solar rechargeable lantern.  Remember that gas and liquid-fuel lanterns are generally unsafe for indoor use. 
• Flashlights: Lightweight, bright, long-lasting LED flashlights are easy to come by.  They are easy to find in stores and Amazon has a huge selection.  I keep this tiny one  in my purse and it's very bright for its tiny size.  I also have this one, which is very bright and sturdy.  A headlamp like this or this is another good option.  Or this cool thingamajigger, which has flexible magnetic legs that can be attached to lots of different things and can give you lighting from just about any angle.  If you are looking for a hand-crank flashlight, check out these quirky and inexpensive lights at Ikea. (Thanks for the tip, Kendra!)
• Light Sticks: Immediately after an earthquake, you shouldn't use anything that has an electronic switch if you smell gas.  These light sticks are an inexpensive and safe alternative light source. They are fun for kids and will glow all night as a nightlight.  I have one taped to the underside of my kitchen table (our main 'cover' spot if there's an earthquake).
• Power Failure/Emergency Flashlights  These units plug into the wall and sense if the power goes out.  When it does, they automatically light up brightly to provide emergency lighting.  They can also be unplugged and used as a flashlight.  I got this one for Christmas, which works great and also functions as a nightlight.  This one (not a nightlight) and this one (can be used as a nightlight) get good reviews too.

Week 8: Carbon Monoxide Alarms and Exercise

Task: Make sure you have working carbon monoxide alarms installed in your home.  Also, get some exercise. 

As of Jan. 1, 2013, all residential dwelling units (single-family homes and multi-family units) in California are required by law to have properly installed carbon monoxide detectors.   The State of California website describes the dangers of carbon monoxide:

You can't see or smell carbon monoxide, but at high levels it can kill a person in minutes. Carbon monoxide (CO) is produced whenever any fuel such as gas, oil, kerosene, wood, or charcoal is burned. If appliances that burn fuel are maintained and used properly, the amount of CO produced is usually not hazardous. However, if appliances are not working properly or are used incorrectly, dangerous levels of CO can result. Hundreds of people die accidentally every year from CO poisoning caused by malfunctioning or improperly used fuel-burning appliances. Even more die from CO produced by idling cars. Fetuses, infants, elderly people, and people with anemia or with a history of heart or respiratory disease can be especially susceptible. Be safe. Practice the DO's and DON'Ts of carbon monoxide.

Here are tips from the same website about where to install your carbon monoxide detectors:

• Install CO alarms outside each sleeping area and on every level of the home including the basement. The CO alarm can warn you if too much CO is in your home.

• Keep CO alarms clear of dust and debris.

• Ensure CO alarms are plugged all the way into a working outlet, or if battery operated, have working batteries.

If you are renting, your landlord should install the detectors if it hasn't been done already.   And be aware that the mechanisms in these alarms deteriorate over time.  Check the manufacturer's instructions to see when yours should be replaced.

Note that carbon monoxide is odorless and is different from natural gas (made up primarily of methane), which is also odorless, but usually has a strong-smelling compound added to it by the gas company so that you will be able to smell a gas leak.  You won't be able to smell carbon monoxide.  It will just start to make you feel tired and nauseated or give you a headache.  People who die from carbon monoxide poisoning are often asleep when it happens and just never wake up.

Now, let's put this in perspective.  There is disagreement about how many people in the U.S. die from carbon monoxide poisoning each year, but it's somewhere in the neighborhood of 200-500.  In contrast, around 600,000 Americans die every year from heart disease.  So install your carbon monoxide detectors, but then stop worrying about that and start figuring out whether you are eating a healthy diet and getting enough exercise.  Also, read this article from the Harvard Alumni Magazine if you want to be amazed at what scientists are discovering about all the good things exercise does for your body and brain.

February Winner and March Prize

Congratulations to the Schweidel family for winning the February prize, a Blackout Buddy Flashlight!

The March prize is a dual usb car charger.  This thing will charge most smartphones and most tablets that use a 5V charger (including ipads).  It can simultaneously charge two phones or a tablet and a phone.  So when the electricity goes out, you can charge your toys in the car.

Week 7: Learn to Shut Off Your Utilities

This week's task:  Learn how and when to shut off your utilities (electricity, natural gas, water, etc).  Make sure you have the right tools to do so.

After an earthquake (or in other circumstances), you may need to turn off your utilities.  Learn what to do and what tools you will need.

Natural Gas (from PG&E's website):    

Take action if:  You smell gas or hear a blowing or hissing noise.  

What to do:

1. Open a window & leave the building 
2. Turn off the gas at the main value, if possible.  Click here for specific instructions (with illustrations).  The gas valve is hard to turn.  Make sure you have a sturdy wrench with a long enough handle to give you some leverage. 
3. Call the gas company or 911 from a neighbor's phone.

Note: PG&E recommends that you do not turn off the gas after an earthquake unless you believe you have a leak.  If you do turn it off for any reason, you have to wait for it to be turned on by a professional (after the 1994 Northridge earthquake, it took 3 weeks to get everyone's gas turned back on).  

Electricity (from 72hours.org):

Take action if:

• Arcing or burning occurs in electrical devices.
• There is a fire or significant water leak.
• You smell burning insulation.
• The area around switches or plugs is blackened and/ or hot to the touch.
• A complete power loss is accompanied by the smell of burning material.

What to do:   

1. Locate your main electric switch, which is normally in the garage or outdoors. The panel box may have a flip switch or pull handle on a large circuit breaker.  
2. If the power goes out, turn off all electric appliances, and unplug major electric appliances to prevent possible damage when the power is turned back on.

If you see downed power lines, stay away from them to avoid being shocked, injured or killed.  Never touch wires lying on the ground or hanging on poles.  Don't touch an object that is touching a downed power line.   

Water:

Take action after a strong earthquake (to keep out contaminated water from burst lines outside your home - listen to the radio to see if the water supply is okay) or if a leak is starting to cause indoor flooding.

What to do:  Turn off your water at the main valve.  Watch this video from EBMUD to learn how.

If a single appliance is causing flooding (e.g. a toilet) you can shut off the water to that appliance only.   To learn more about how the water system in your house works and how to do basic plumbing repairs, download this EBMUD publication. 

Week 6: Stay Safe During and After an Earthquake

This week's task:   Hold an earthquake drill with your family. 

Earthquakes can shake hard.   Lisa Laycock, the wife of the mission president in Santiago, Chile during the Feb. 27th, 2010 earthquake, which lasted for three minutes, describes that earthquake below.  Santiago was about 200 miles from the quake epicenter:

"As the earthquake became more violent, the mission home groaned and wailed. The power died, so the whole city was black. The windows made a hideous screeching sound, and flying objects banged against swaying walls. The printer/fax machine, books, book ends, and fifty-pound television burst from the entertainment center and crashed to the floor, cabinets emptied, drawers flew open, the refrigerator moved, water sloshed out of the toilets, the floor jolted up and down as we ran across it trying to hold onto the walls to keep from falling down, and the piano toppled over like a small toy.... Finally, it stopped. When the calm came, we had to sit down because our legs were weak and unstable. My legs stayed wobbly all day and night yesterday. Today (Feb. 28) the muscles in my legs hurt like I ran a marathon."

UC San Diego has a very cool earthquake "shake table" that they build houses on and then shake them.  On this page you can watch videos of a bedroom and a kitchen undergoing the same pattern and intensity of shaking that occurred in the 1994 Northridge earthquake (in southern California).  Click on the video thumbnail to play it in your browser (this might also motivate you to secure your furniture if you didn't do it last week).

To prepare to keep safe during all of that shaking, let's do a family earthquake drill!

Steps (most of this information is taken from the FEMA website):

1. Review the DROP, COVER and HOLD procedure:  DROP to the ground; take COVER by getting under a sturdy table or other piece of furniture; and HOLD ON until the shaking stops. If there isn’t a table or desk near you, cover your face and head with your arms and crouch in an inside corner of the building.
2. Review FEMA's additional information about how to stay safe if the shaking starts when you are indoors, outdoors, or in a moving vehicle, or if you find yourself covered with debris when the shaking stops.  Also review what to do and what not to do immediately after the earthquake.  Click here for a pdf or here to go directly to the FEMA earthquake page - click on the 'during' and 'after' tabs to see the relevant information. 
3. Hold the drill!  Ideally, have several drills over the course of a couple days and have different family members in charge of starting the drill so that everyone has a chance to be surprised.
4. Schedule your next earthquake drill six months from now on your calendar (or as a repeating event if you use an e-calendar).

For extra credit, take San Francisco's goofy Quake Quiz to learn what to do if you are on BART or in a high rise building.

Extra stuff for parents of young children: 

• At night, the guidelines urge everyone to stay in their own bed until the shaking stops.  If you know you won't be able to stop yourself from running to your children, make sure the path between your room and theirs is clear of potential hazards. 
• Practice your earthquake drill with your children in all the different rooms of the house.  Where should they drop, cover and hold in each room?  
• If you have very small children who can't take cover by themselves, and who could be in different rooms from each other and from you, think through the different possible scenarios and plan what you will do.  For example, if the shaking starts while you are in the kitchen and the toddler is in her room and the baby is on the floor in the living room, what will you do?  Be extra vigilant about clearing potential hazards that could harm you or them before you get to them.

Week 5: Prepare Your Home for an Earthquake

This week's task: Identify hazards in your home that could pose a danger to your family during an earthquake or that could block your escape routes if quick evacuation were necessary immediately after an earthquake.  Make the necessary changes to eliminate the hazards (or reduce them as much as feasibly possible).

We live in Earthquake country.  Berkeley sits on the Hayward fault, which is expected to produce a major earthquake in the not-too-distant future. The last five major earthquakes on this fault were in 1315, 1470, 1630, 1725, and 1868.  That's an earthquake every 138 years on average. It's been 145 years since the last one.   Click here to see a map of the fault.  Click here to read about the destruction caused by the 1868 earthquake.

The 1868 Hayward earthquake and the 1906 San Francisco earthquake both lasted 45-60 seconds. The 2010 Chile earthquake lasted for 3 minutes.  That's a lot of time for things to fall, fly, and scoot around. The task this week is to identify things that could pose a hazard during or after a quake and take steps to reduce the possible danger.  

Step 1: Walk through your house and note things that could fall or fly across the room and injure someone during an earthquake.  Obviously if you have small children who could be playing out of arm's reach when the shaking starts, you will need to be extra vigilant about securing anything that could harm them.  

Also note things that could fall and block exits or make your escape route dangerous and difficult to navigate quickly if the earthquake causes a fire or gas leak or destabilizes the building.  You don't want to walk through spilled cleaning chemicals or slip and fall in a mess of spilled olive oil and broken glass or have to move heavy things out of the way to get to the door, especially if you are are helping children get out.   It may be difficult to get medical attention for non-life threatening injuries immediately after a major disaster, so preparing to avoid even small injuries could make a big difference in your ability to cope and care for your family.

A small aside about tip-over injuries in general: If you have children, read this to motivate yourself to secure your furniture.  Even short pieces of furniture can be tipped over by a child and suffocate him while he is trapped underneath.  And half of tip-over injuries to children are caused by a TV falling on them.

Step 2: Fix the problems you found in Step 1, keeping in mind that some things may not pose a danger to an adult, but would pose a danger to a child if you have children in your home.

• Secure large furniture & heavy/breakable items.  Hardware and kits for securing various types of furniture are available at hardware stores or online (search for "earthquake straps" on Amazon.com).  Don't store heavy things on high shelves.  Use museum putty to secure breakable decorations.  See this website for more information about securing your stuff.

• Move things that could fall behind a door and block access to a room.

• Move anything (including heavy pictures) that could fall on you in bed.  Move beds that are right next to windows.

• Secure cleaning chemicals.  If they are on a high open shelf, they could fall, break open, and mix (potentially creating deadly gases).  

• Put latches on kitchen cabinets that contain breakable or heavy items that could fall.  Child-safety latches will work.  Or these (which are pricey and not child-proof, but wonderfully easy to operate) are my favorite.

• Remove heavy items from glass-doored cabinets or reinforce the glass doors with plexiglass.

• Secure water heaters to a stud with a strap to prevent tipping.  Secure all gas appliances to prevent a gas line rupture.  

If you own an older home, it may need seimsic retrofitting.  Check with a local contractor for more information or get information online here.

For more information from the Red Cross about what to do before, during and after an earthquake, click here.

January Winner and February Prize

And the winner of the drawing for the January Prize is.....Rinda!  Congratulations!

If you didn't win, never fear, there is another prize on the horizon.  February's prize is the Eton Blackout Buddy Emergency LED Flashlight:

It plugs into the wall and bright LED's light up when the power goes out to provide emergency lighting.  It can also be used as a nightlight or flashlight.

There will be four weekly tasks to do in February (starting with the Week 4 task - Storing Water).  Do them all and you can enter to win this prize four times!  (Contest is open only to past and present members of the Berkeley Ward...sorry everybody else!)

Week 4: Storing Water

This week's task: 

1. Add a 3-day supply of water to your emergency supplies.  (1 gallon per person per day).  If you already have a 3-day supply and have room to store more, increase your supply to 2 weeks worth. 
2. Print out this guide to storing food and water and put it in your emergency binder (it has important information about hidden sources of water in your home, outdoor water sources, and how to purify water in a disaster situation).

Once you have completed the task (or if you already have your water supply), leave a comment to win the February prize (to be announced)!

The Red Cross suggests that every family store at least 3 days-worth of water in containers that are portable enough to put in the car and take with you if you have to evacuate.  They recommend that you store a full 2-week supply at home.

The standard rule of thumb for emergency water is that you should plan for one gallon per person per day.  Want to store water for four people for three days?  4x3=12 gallons of water.   Want to store enough water for a family of four for two weeks?  That's 4x14=56 gallons total.

Water storage ideas:

1. Purchased bottled water.
2. Re-purposed 2-liter plastic soda bottles.  The Red Cross recommends that you sanitize these before using them.  See this guide for details.  They recommend against using plastic milk jugs or juice containers (the milk proteins and sugars cannot be cleaned out thoroughly and the milk jugs will leak over time).  It's the beginning of the month, so you have plenty of time to drink all those 2-liter sodas and still enter to win the February prize!
3. 5-gallon mylar bags.  After you fill the bags, they can be stored in cardboard boxes and stacked, allowing you to store your water somewhat compactly. (Just make sure the box doesn't have staples sticking up out of the bottom that will puncture the bag and cause it to leak - been there, done that.). When you need to use your water, the bag can lie on a table and water is released by squeezing the spout (it's works well).  The full bags are heavy (~40 pounds), but are still portable.  They are also relatively inexpensive.
4. Water Barrels.  Barrels are a good option if you want to move your water storage out of your house to your garage, yard, patio, or deck.  Make sure you purchase a food-grade barrel.  You can get water barrels in  15-, 30-, or 55-gallon sizes.  (If you find these cheaper locally, let me know!)  You'll also need a bung wrench like this to open it and a siphon hose or hand pump to get the water out.  This siphon hose works great. Keep in mind that a 55-gallon barrel of water weights 400 pounds, so you won't be moving it once you fill it up.  

The Red Cross and FEMA say that you do not need to treat stored water with chlorine if it comes from a municipal water supply that already treats its water (EBMUD treats our water).  They suggest that you replace the water every 6 months if you are not using commercially bottled water.

Week 3: Important Documents

This week's task:  Make an Emergency Folder/Binder to add to your emergency supplies (store it where you can grab it quickly if you have to evacuate).  Put the following in your binder:

1. Your emergency contact list
2. The "important documents" described below.  

When you're done, leave a comment to enter to win the January prize (a 10-pack of light sticks)!  Remember, you can still finish the Week 1 and Week 2 tasks and leave comments on those posts to increase your chances of winning the prize.  Comments left before midnight on Jan. 31 will be eligible for the drawing.* 

Emergency Binder:  This will be a place to collect hard copies of information that is likely to be useful after a disaster if you have to evacuate your home and/or if you do not have access to the internet.  I will suggest other things to add to your emergency binder in future posts.  .

Emergency Contact List: Make a list of emergency phone numbers that includes your local emergency services (police, fire, animal control), your local utility companies, your doctors and dentist, your insurance agent, your out-of-state contacts, and anyone else you might need to contact in a hurry.  Keep a copy near your home phone, in your emergency binder, and on your cell phone, if you have one. Here is a spreadsheet to get you started (I've already filled in the local emergency and utility phone numbers for Albany/Berkeley/El Cerrito):  Excel version, Pdf version.

Important Documents:  The Red Cross suggests that you keep a copy of the following personal documents in your disaster kit so that you will have them if you have to evacuate your home:  medication list and pertinent medical information, proof of address (e.g. utility bill addressed to you), bank statement showing your name and account number, deed/lease to home, passports, birth certificates, insurance policies.  

Family Plan: If you created your family plan during  Week 1, add that to the binder too.

*The prize drawing is open to past and present members of the Berkeley Ward.

Week 2: Information and Communication

This week's task:  Add a battery-operated radio to your disaster supplies.

Once you get your emergency radio (or if you already have one), leave a comment on this blog post to enter to win the January prize (a 10-pack of light sticks)!*

After an earthquake or major storm, the power could be out for days.  Infrastructure could be damaged, water quality could be an issue, and large-scale fires could be a danger.  It will be important to stay informed.  Each household should have a battery-operated radio in its disaster supply kit.

Basic Radios:

The Kaito Pocket AM/FM radio and the Sony Pocket AM/FM Radio are inexpensive, battery-operated AM/FM radios that get great reviews (around $10 each).   If you are on a limited budget and you live in California where you don't need to be warned of hurricanes and tornadoes, these work great.

Fancy Emergency Radios:

If you want to invest a little more, three good emergency radios are the Eton FR160b (about $30), the American Red Cross FRX3 (about $60) and the Eton ARCPT300W (about $60).  I got the Eton ARCPT300W for Christmas.  The other two get great reviews on Amazon.  What you get with these radios:

• NOAA weather stations (critical if you live in an area prone to hurricanes or tornadoes, less critical in California, although apparently we are subject to occasional megafloods): The NOAA weather stations continuously broadcast weather information and alerts for your area.
• Severe weather alerts (FRX3 and  ARCPT300W only):  The radio can automatically broadcast emergency weather alerts for your area even when it is not on.
• Multiple power source options: These radios have an internal rechargeable battery that can be charged with a hand crank, a solar panel (FRX3 and FR160b only), or by plugging in to a USB AC adapter (the adapter itself is not included).  The ARCPT300W can also take AAA batteries. 
• Integrated LED flashlight (not super bright, but okay)
• Ability to charge a cell phone from the radio's internal rechargeable battery (I tried to charge an iPhone with the ARCPT300W and it worked pretty poorly, so I don't know how much weight to put on this feature).

The main advantages of the two more expensive models over the less expensive FR160b are the severe weather alert feature, ergonomics (the crank is easier to use), better speaker quality (the sound quality on my ARCPT300W is very good), and the ability of the ARCPT300W to take regular (AAA) batteries.

Other communication/information issues to consider:

• Use your smartphone (if it's still working...)
• Follow the Red Cross on Twitter to get up-to-date information during a disaster
• Get an NOAA weather radio app for your iThing or Android device.
• Download the Red Cross Earthquake app 
• After a disaster, search for a shelter by texting SHELTER + your zip code to 43362 (4FEMA).  For example, if you live in Albany, send a text to 43362 that says SHELTER 94706.
• Sign up to receive automated messages from your community's emergency alert system. Check your city's website for more information.  For the locals:
• City of Berkeley Emergency Notice System
• University of California, Berkeley alert system 
• Landline phones will often still work when the power is out as long as you have a phone that doesn't require electricity (cordless phone systems won't work because the base needs electricity). You can get an inexpensive corded phone here.
• Consider getting your Ham radio license.  Hams can join local clubs that provide communication assistance in emergencies.  

*The prize drawing is open to past and present members of the Berkeley Ward.

Week 1: Make a Family Plan

This week's task:  Create a family disaster plan.

Create a family plan

Where will you meet if you have to evacuate your home after a disaster and some family members aren't home?    Who will pick up your children from school?  How will you let loved ones know you are safe?   If you have special needs, how will you get help?

These are all questions you should answer before a disaster happens by making a Family Emergency Plan.  This Red Cross Family Plan template will work well for most families (or you can create your own):

Red Cross Family Plan PDF Template
Instructions for using the Red Cross PDF template

In addition to the overall plan, each family member should carry an Emergency Contact Card in his/her wallet/bag/backpack.

When you finish making your plan, leave a comment to enter a drawing to win the January Motivational Prize (a 10-pack of lightsticks)!*

Get involved in neighborhood disaster planning

Here are some additional recommendations to consider from the City of Berkeley's Easy Does It website:

CREATE A "SELF-HELP TEAM"  (recommended by the American Red Cross) that includes people in your life that you spend the most time with or around. This network of individuals can include relatives, roommates, neighbors, teachers, co-workers, etc. These should be people you know and trust, because you will exchange information with them about your needs in a disaster. Create a "buddy system" that will know how to help you.

GET INVOLVED IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD, especially in disaster preparedness and crime watch activities, both of which support community organizing to meet a disaster. Work with neighborhood groups planning for the next disaster (e.g. CORE in Oakland or the Block Captain program in Albany). Network! Add your skills to neighborhood disaster response plans.  If you live in Albany, click here to find out if your block has a captain.

Additional information for seniors and people with special needs:

If you have special needs (you use medical equipment that requires electricity, you have difficulty with mobility, etc), you need to do some extra planning.   If you live in the City of Berkeley, you can register with the city's "Easy Does It Voluntary Emergency Services Registry" to let fire and police authorities know that you will need special help in the event of a city-wide disaster, such as an earthquake. To register, download and fill out the form below and send it to Easy Does It Services, 1936 University Ave., Suite 191, Berkeley, CA  94704 or scan it and email it to info@easydoesitservices.org.

City of Berkeley Voluntary Emergency Services Registry Form
Easy Does It Services informational brochure

It is also especially important that you create a "self-help team" (described above).  After an earthquake, downed power lines or other obstacles may make it difficult or impossible for friends and family who live outside your immediate neighborhood to get to you.  Make sure you connect with your neighbors before a disaster happens so that they will know how best to help you.

For more information, the following pamphlets can be downloaded from the Red Cross website:

Disaster Preparedness: For Seniors by Seniors

Preparing for Disaster for People with Disabilities and Other Special Needs

*Only past or present members of the Berkeley Ward are eligible for the prize drawing.  

Get Prepared for Emergencies & Win Fabulous Prizes

Welcome to the Berkeley Ward Emergency Preparedness Blog.

Over the next six months, I'll suggest one thing you can do each week to get more prepared to weather natural disasters and personal crises.  If you already have preparations in place, I hope that walking through a wide variety of topics from week to week will help you review your plans and fill in any missing areas.  If you are just getting started, I hope these small weekly steps will feel doable and allow you to make progress in getting your family ready for the unexpected.  

And if you find all of this so boring that you can hardly stand it, I will try to motivate you with fabulous prizes.  That's right, getting prepared = chances to win fabulous prizes.  How will it work?  If you complete one of the weekly assignments (even if you already had it done and didn't have to do anything more), you should leave a comment under that week's blog post.  At the beginning of each month I will announce the prize.  At the end of each month, I will randomly draw one comment from that month's assignments and award the prize to the commenter (if you do more than one assignment, your name is entered into the drawing more than once).  The catch: You have to be a current or past member of the Berkeley Ward to win the prize.  

January's Prize:  A 10-Pack of 12-hour light sticks.  Fun for you, fun for the kids, great for emergencies!

Ready, Set Go!