4 A
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SATURDAY EDITION
❘ APRIL 9, 2016
Siuslaw News
B Y D AVE R OBINSON
Special to the Siuslaw News
et’s revisit the motto: Get a kit, make
a plan, be informed. I get comments
nearly every day about this column.
Most everyone is positive and say they enjoy
the information. When I ask whether or not
they’re actually doing the stuff, quite often
they admit that they know they should, but
just haven’t gotten started yet.
Both FEMA and the Red Cross recom-
mend having a 72-hour emergency kit. That
is having enough supplies and equipment to
get you through three days without electric-
ity, water or trips to the store. Just for the
record, I think 72 hours is a good start, but
a 14-day kit is even better. Maybe we
should ask the folks back east that survived
Hurricane/Superstorm Sandy if they think
72 hours is enough.
One of the concerns I often hear is, “I’m
just not sure where to begin.” So beginning
today, I will be posting a step-by-step kit-
building plan. At the end of this seven-part
series, if you follow the steps, you will have a
kit that will get you through the first 72 hours
of most disasters. Not only will you have a kit,
but you will have a plan in place that will
increase your family’s chances of survival.
Keep in mind it is my experience that kits
naturally grow because once you begin you
keep finding essentials that you just can’t live
without. So let’s get started.
Kit building: Weeks 1 & 2
1. A battery-powered radio, one with a
NOAA weather channel and extra batteries.
2. Flashlights or battery powered
lanterns, with extra batteries. Avoid using
candles because of the fire hazard.
3. Water to last three days. At least one
gallon per person per day. Start with one
gallon this week.
ting you through the first 72 hours until
basic services may be restored.
2. Don’t be overwhelmed by a huge list
of items. I’ve identified the most important
things. Just buy a few items each week and
you will be prepared for the most likely
emergencies in our area.
3. Commercially bottled water is recom-
mended to ensure safety. Replace before
“use by” date expires.
I suggest you keep your kit in one gener-
al location. That way, when the power is
out, you won’t be running around in the
dark searching for your stuff. Every house-
hold is different and each house has a
“best,” if not ideal spot for your emergency
kit. If you have a container in which to
store your gear, all the better. One friend of
mine uses an old ice chest for certain essen-
tials. But most any good quality “tote” will
suffice.
***
Our winter storms are, hopefully, a
bygone memory for this season. Some of us
experienced power outages, some were
inconvenienced for a day or two due to
flooding and a landslide here and there
caused us some travel frustration a few
times. All things considered, our winter was
pretty mild and we breezed through in fine
style. Even though our winter wasn’t as
harsh as some places across the country, the
need to prepare is still very valid.
“How do I get started building my kit?”
Truly some folks are simply overwhelmed
by the task. “What do I buy? How much do
I need? Where do I store my kit?” are all
questions commonly asked. My recommen-
dation is that you keep building on your
own until you have a minimum of 14 days’
supplies, but this is a great start.
Tips for Week 1:
Week 2 shopping list:
L
Week 1 shopping list:
❘ 541-902-3520 ❘
1. Start with these items that emergency
responders consider the most critical to get-
1. Manual can opener.
2. First aid kit. Should start with gauze
and bandages, tweezers, scissors and
antiseptic ointment. Add some hydrogen
peroxide, alcohol, suture kit, the list is
endless.
3. Airtight bags, storage containers and a
permanent marker. I find that both two gal-
lon and five gallon buckets with lids are
ideal for storage. Use the marker to list the
contents and the date.
4. Extra prescription medications, eye-
glasses and contact lens solutions.
Collaborate with your doctor on this one.
He (or she) will probably be sympathetic
once you explain why you need extras.
Your insurance provider may not be as sym-
pathetic, but you might work with your
pharmacy on this one.
5. Bring home another gallon of water.
6. Non-perishable food. Start with a few
cans of meat, fruits, some peanut butter and
crackers. Try to stick with food that you are
accustomed to eating.
7. Plastic sheeting, tarp and duct tape.
Tips for Week 2:
1. Collect your supplies in one place.
When the lights are out and confusion
reigns, it is just simpler when your kit is
together.
2. Consider having two kits. One at home
and one in your car. Not everyone is at
home when disaster strikes. There is a mul-
titude of kits on the market, but it is still
best to build your own.
3. Rotate your stock of food, water, med-
icines and batteries every six months to
ensure freshness.
______________________
Dave Robinson is the postmaster in
Bandon, Ore., and author of “Disaster Prep
for the Rest of Us.” He may be contacted at
disasterprep.dave@gmail.com. Visit his
website for more disaster preparedness tips,
www.disasterprepdave.blogspot.com.
LETTERS
computer screen and a red light
comes on, if one is unable to clap
their hands together in two seconds
they should not be driving.
Win Jolley
Florence
Living in Oregon
If there are any real native
Oregonians still living in the state,
they will probably take what I am
about to say for granted. For those
of us who hail from elsewhere,
specifically California, doing busi-
ness in this state is easier, by a sub-
stantial order of magnitude.
Over the past eight years we
have dealt with several state and
county agencies. When we owned
our restaurant in Old Town there
was the Oregon Health Authority,
the OLCC, the Department of
Corporations,
the
State
Employment Department and the
list goes on. Now, in Jane’s law
practice she deals on a daily basis
with the Lane County Clerk and
County Court offices as well as var-
ious other county agencies.
In all of this we have found all
of these agencies to be consistent
in their professionalism and their
attitude toward the public. When
you call people they often answer
the phone. And, if not, you leave
a message and they will actually
call you back.
Even more amazing is that in
almost every case, the person you
are talking to will actually know
what they are talking about. If, as
we did, you came from California,
then you can understand how
refreshingly unusual this is.
It seems to me that here is some-
EDITOR @ THESIUSLAWNEWS . COM
Opinion
P.O. Box 10
Florence, OR 97439
DISASTER PREP
RYAN CRONK , EDITOR
Feeling the Bern
thing the State of Oregon ought to
be selling. It might help to offset
those other things the state does to
so successfully discourage business
development.
Jimmie Zinn
Florence
Safe travel
My wife and I are going to
Europe in June, which includes
three days in Paris, a cruise on the
Mosel and Rhine rivers and a per-
sonal guide on the Romantic and
Castle roads of Germany. We have
had a number of friends question-
ing our decision due to the possibil-
ity of a “terrorist” attack.
My response is that we are more
likely to be killed at home by an
elderly driver. Around the country
in the past few years elderly drivers
have killed people in Santa Monica,
Calif., and driven into places of
businesses because “they thought
they were hitting the brake and not
the gas pedal.” Driving in Florence
is an experience much more dan-
gerous than driving on the streets of
San Francisco or Los Angeles.
What we need to do is to have
elderly individuals (like myself)
take yearly driving tests. The test,
like in some states, requires a per-
son to take a written exam or to
answer true or false questions fol-
lowed by a visual exam requiring
one to have the ability to identify
images like a stop sign, do not enter,
one way and speed limit signs.
What should be required is to
have a reaction test. If looking at a
Are you “Feeling the Bern?” If
so, please note that you must be
registered as Democratic by April
26 in order to vote for Bernie
Sanders in the closed Oregon
Primary Election on May 17.
If you are registered to vote and
Unaffiliated, you may vote in the
General Election in November, but
you are not eligible to vote in the
Primary Election to choose your
presidential candidate.
It is easy to change your voting
status from Unaffiliated to the
Democratic Party. You can go
online at oregonvotes.org or to any
Department of Motor Vehicles
(DMV) office and fill out an
Oregon voter card.
This must be done by April 26 in
order to choose Bernie Sanders as
your choice to be the Democratic
nominee for President. If you are
not registered to vote at all, the
same thing applies.
Join
the
revolution
at
#FeelTheBern. Tell all your friends
and register Democratic.
Susan Leclaire
Florence
YESTERDAY’S NEWS
MOMENTS IN TIME
The History Channel
On April 13, 1742, Handel’s “Messiah,”
one of the world’s most beloved musical works,
premieres in Ireland. Although now associated
with Christmas, “Messiah” made its world pre-
miere during the Christian season of Lent.
On April 12, 1861, Confederate Gen.
P.G.T. Beauregard opens fire on Union-held
Fort Sumter in South Carolina, launching more
than 4,000 rounds. Two days later, President
Abraham Lincoln issued a proclamation calling
for 75,000 volunteer soldiers to quell the
Southern “insurrection.”
On April 17, 1882, several copies of
Sheriff Pat Garrett’s wildly inauthentic, fiction-
alized biography, “An Authentic Life of Billy
the Kid,” arrive at the Library of Congress. The
first full, realistic biography of William Bonney
(the Kid’s principle alias) was not published
until 1989.
On April 14, 1818, Noah Webster, a Yale-
educated lawyer with an avid interest in lan-
guage and education, publishes his American
Dictionary of the English Language. The dic-
tionary, which took him more than two decades
to complete, introduced more than 10,000
“Americanisms.”
On April 15, 1912, the ocean liner Titanic
sinks into the North Atlantic about 400 miles
south of Newfoundland. It was later discovered
that the liner Californian had been less than 20
miles away but had failed to hear the Titanic’s
distress signals because its radio operator was
off duty.
On April 16, 1947, a giant explosion
occurs during the loading of ammonium nitrate
fertilizer onto the freighter Grandcamp at a pier
in Texas City, Texas. Nearly 600 people were
killed and thousands injured when the ship was
literally blown to bits. Its 3,000 pound anchor
was found 2 miles away.
On April 11, 1988, actress and singer
Cher collects the Academy Award for Best
Actress for her performance in “Moonstruck.”
Cherilyn Sarkasian first became famous as
the taller, female half of the 1960s singing
duo Sonny and Cher.
(c) 2016 King Features Synd., Inc.
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E DITOR P OLICY
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Postmaster, send address changes to: Siuslaw News, P.O. Box 10, Florence, OR 97439; phone 541-997-3441; fax
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Pres. Barack Obama
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Ave. NW
Washington, D.C. 20500
Comments: 202-456-1111
Switchboard: 202-456-1414
FAX: 202-456-2461
TTY/TDD Comments: 202-456-6213
www.whitehouse.gov
Gov. Kate Brown
160 State Capitol
900 Court St.
Salem, OR 97301-4047
Governor’s Citizens’ Rep.
Message Line 503-378-4582
www.oregon.gov/gov
U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden
221 Dirksen Senate Office Bldg
Washington, DC 20510
202-224-5244
541-431-0229
www.wyden.senate.gov
FAX: 503-986-1080
Email:
Sen.ArnieRoblan@state.or.us
U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley
313 Hart Senate Office Bldg
Washington, DC 20510
202-224-3753/FAX: 202-228-3997
541-465-6750
State Rep. Caddy McKeown
(Dist. 9)
900 Court St. NE
Salem, OR 97301
503-986-1409
Email:
rep.caddymckeown@state.or.us
U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio (4th Dist.)
2134 Rayburn HOB
Washington, DC 20515
202-225-6416/ 800-944-9603
541-269-2609/ 541-465-6732
www.defazio.house.gov
State Sen. Arnie Roblan (Dist. 5)
900 Court St. NE - S-417
Salem, OR 97301
503-986-1705
West Lane County Commissioner
Jay Bozievich
125 E. Eighth St.
Eugene, OR 97401
541-682-4203
FAX: 541-682-4616
Email:
Jay.Bozievich@co.lane.or.us