Cottage Grove sentinel., July 13, 2016, Page 8A, Image 7

8A COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL July 13, 2016
Are you ready?
D ISASTER P REPAREDNESS
Five ways to increase home fire safety
An average of seven Ameri-
cans die each week as a result
of house fi res. Most fi res occur
in residential buildings between
the hours of 11 p.m. and 7 a.m.,
when occupants are most likely
to be asleep. Your fi rst line of
defense is fi re preparedness.
Here’s fi ve things you can do
to increase your chance of sur-
vival in a fi re:
· Install smoke alarms on ev-
ery story of your home and out-
side sleeping areas. Be sure to
test them monthly, clean them
every six months and replace
batteries in spring and fall. Hav-
ing working fi re alarms can cut
your chance of dying in a fi re in
half!
· Have a fi re escape plan for
your family and practice it. A
small fi re can spread rapidly -
you may only have minutes or
seconds to escape. When going
over the details of your escape
plan, check windows and doors
to ensure all open easily. Know
your local emergency number
(911). Never stop to gather be-
longings or reenter a home after
safely outside.
· When renovating, consider
using fi re-rated, noncombus-
tible products. Your choice of
insulation, for example, can be
vital. Stone wool insulation, like
that produced by Roxul, resists
temperatures up to approxi-
mately 2,150 F. When directly
exposed to fi re, it will not off-
gas, contribute to toxic smoke
or promote fl ames. Fire-resis-
tant building materials can give
you extra time to escape when
seconds count.
· Purchase a multi-use fi re
ladder for each bedroom in your
home and practice using it. A
fi re ladder may be your only es-
cape option if fl ames block criti-
cal exits.
· Place fi re extinguishers on
every level of your home, espe-
cially in high-risk areas like the
kitchen, near fi replaces and in
the garage. Use only for small,
contained fi res that are not
spreading rapidly. Know how
to operate your extinguisher be-
fore an emergency occurs using
the PASS method: Pull pin, Aim
low, Squeeze lever and Sweep
from side to side. The safest op-
tion is always to evacuate your
home and call for help.
Fire prevention measures are
a serious matter in every home.
Find out how to keep your home
and family safe at nfpa.org or
improve your fi re safety knowl-
edge by visiting the Roxul web-
site.
Jump starting your food supply
Whenever a person thinks
of prepping, the fi rst topic that
usually comes to mind is food.
What to store, how much to
store, how to store, and which
store to go to? There are all
kinds of food packages you
can purchase. You can get a
year’s supply of dehydrated or
freeze-dried fare for $4,000 or
a 72 hour kit for one person at
WalMart for $64.00.
I’m going to give you a list
of items you can buy at your
local grocery store, things that
you would probably have on
hand anyway. The dehydrated
kits you buy generally tout a 25-
year shelf life. So the normal
things you purchase, should be
rotated out every few months
or so. One rule of thumb when
it comes to storing up food is;
buy food that your body is ac-
customed to eating! During
a disaster, your system will be
on overload anyway, and there
is no benefi t to introducing a
whole new menu to your gastric
system in a time of crisis.
Some people lay in back-
packing freeze-dried food to
be eaten when the time comes.
That is all well and good, un-
less you have never tried those
entrees and you experience a re-
volt of sorts when you’re already
stressed out anyway. Store food
to which your body is already
accustomed!
Here’s the beginning of a
shopping list: (The second half
will come next week.)
1. 20 lbs of rice. Rice seems
pretty boring, but it is fi lling,
nutritious and adaptable to a
wide variety of entrees.
2. 20 lbs of pinto beans.
Beans are also a valuable part of
every storage plan. Combined
with rice they fulfi ll a protein
need in your menu.
3. 20 cans of vegetables.
Green beans, peas, corn and
canned tomatoes are a good
start. Buy what you already eat
and enjoy.
4. 20 cans of fruit. Peaches,
pears, pineapple, fruit cocktail,
all to your taste.
5. 20 cans of meat. Chicken,
tuna, shrimp, salmon, vienna
sausages, beef stew and don’t
forget Spam. Those square
cans fi t really well on the shelf
and if it’s fried, you can make
the kids believe it is “camping
bacon.” It worked for my kids
anyway. I even recently found
some canned roast beef.
6. 4 lbs of oats. A warm bowl
of oatmeal can be a welcome
meal any time of day. Topped
with some canned fruit, it makes
a refreshing treat.
7. 2 (or more) large jars of
peanut butter. A good source of
protein and surprisingly fi lling.
Tastes good too!
8. Pick up a supply of pow-
dered drink mix. Tang, Crystal
Light or similar product. Make
sure it’s loaded with vitamin C.
9. 5 lbs of powdered milk.
It’s great protein and is loaded
with other nutrients. It’s fi lling
and can be used on that oatmeal
as well.
10. 5 lbs of salt. Salt is an es-
sential for survival as well as a
food enhancer. Our bodies need
salt to survive.
You don’t need to fi ll this
shopping list all at once. Watch
for sales. Pay attention to the
“buy one, get one” promotions.
Use coupons. One reader told
me she saved several thousand
dollars in just one year by using
coupons. At the same time she
built a substantial pantry for use
in a disaster.
As always, send your com-
ments and questions to disaster-
prep.dave@gmail.com. Previ-
ous columns can be found on
my blog at www.disasterprep-
dave.blogspot.com. Dave Rob-
inson is the Postmaster in Ban-
don, Oregon, and the author of
“Disaster Prep For The Rest Of
Us,” available on Amazon.com,
Barnes and Noble, and other on-
line booksellers.
E
R
O
T
S
E
R
HOURS:
T HURSDAY , F RIDAY & S ATURDAY
Did you know?
The American Red Cross, one
of the most distinguished hu-
manitarian organizations in the
world, traces its history back to
the 19th century. In 1881, former
American Civil War nurse Clara
Barton and her circle of ac-
quaintances founded the Ameri-
can Red Cross in Washington,
D.C. That idea was inspired by
a postwar visit Barton made
to Europe, where she fi rst en-
countered the International Red
Cross. Though many women
did not work outside the home
during Barton’s era, the Massa-
chusetts-born nurse would serve
as the head of the American Red
Cross for 23 years, during which
time she aided the United States
military in the Spanish-Ameri-
can War. Barton also success-
fully campaigned for including
peacetime relief work as part
of the global Red Cross mis-
sion. Today, the American Red
10 AM -4 PM
Cross continues to help millions
of people in need. Among the
organization’s many missions
are helping Americans affected
by natural disasters, support-
ing military personnel and their
families, collecting blood for
processing and distribution, pro-
viding health and safety educa-
tion and training, and providing
international relief.
For Drop-off appointments,
after hours, call the offi ce
We need volunteers for the
ReStore ~ a few hours
each month! Will you help?
Customer Engagement 24/7
Habitat Offi ce and Warehouse
2155 Getty Circle ~ Unit #1
Web Design & Development
in the Cottage Grove Industrial Park
South on Hwy 99 past the High School
Ask us how we can help grow your business.
S
N
O
I
T
A
DON
S
AL WAY !
ME
O
C
L
E
W
Call 541.767.0358
for more information
Email
info@habitatcg.org
Cottage Grove Sentinel
Make sure all the pieces are in place to render you and your family prepared in the event of a natural disaster.
• Listen to radio or television newscasts for the latest weather information, and follow all evacuation directions and suggestions.
• Keep a stock of non-perishable food items as well as bottled water on hand inside your home.
• Keep a 72 Hour Kit on hand inside your home that is easy to get to in the event of a disaster.
For more information and tips on disaster response and preparedness, contact your local emergency services center.
South Lane Fire & Rescue • 233 Harrison Ave, Cottage Grove 541-942-4493 • 55 South 1st Street, Creswell 541-895-2506
Twitter: @southlanefi re
Facebook: southlanecountyfi reandrescue