Preparedness for when

Popperwell · 14 July 2012 at 4:41PM

bossymoo wrote: »

I have been to mr a today and didn't seem to be any low stock issues. Until after I left haha

So it's you is it?

Evie74_2 · 14 July 2012 at 4:55PM

I went to Mr T and A!di yesterday and neither seemed to have any stock issues either - I guess it depends where you are geographically and the size of the store?

Evie xx

Possession · 14 July 2012 at 5:08PM

Evie74 wrote: »

I went to Mr T and A!di yesterday and neither seemed to have any stock issues either - I guess it depends where you are geographically and the size of the store?

Evie xx

and how many OSers live near you.

Evie74_2 · 14 July 2012 at 5:18PM

Possession wrote: »

and how many OSers live near you.

.... Oh that's very true Possession! Clearly there aren't too many in my neck of the woods (although if I remember rightly you had the "torch experience" on the same day as me so I guess you aren't a million miles away!)

Evie xx

thriftwizard · 14 July 2012 at 7:46PM

Can I just say that none of us, anywhere, know what's round the corner? Whilst it's extremely unlikely, there are such things as intracrustal earthquakes which can strike anywhere, including places well away from tectonic plate boundaries, because they come from really, really deep down. Bird flu hasn't gone away; it probably isn't ever going to be a huge threat (I'm a backyard poultrykeeper myself) but the next big epidemic might come from, say, mice, or gnats, or something quite unexpected. There are some big volcanoes out there that are well "overdue" & whilst we in the UK are well away from those, our "just-in-time" transport & delivery networks are very vulnerable to disruption from ash clouds. Weather-related disasters seem to be becoming rather more common than they were, for whatever reason. There are various conflicts going on elsewhere, some of them in places that do have nuclear capabilities. There are unmapped & very ancient mine workings under housing estates in some parts of the UK, and many more have recently been built on flood plains.

Some time ago, the Government handed responsibility for keeping people fed in a national emergency to the supermarkets, who have just 3 days supplies in stock. But it could take more than 3 days for things to return to some semblance of normality after a disaster of any kind; it certainly did after hurricane Katrina.

So although most of the time, for most of us, life just ticks along pretty normally, it's possibly a bit optimistic to assume that it always will for all of us. Some preparedness, just a few sensible precautions and some non-perishable supplies on hand, and an emergency kit/BOB/whatever you want to call it, in case you ever have to leave home in a hurry, strikes me as the least you should do, particularly if you are responsible for other people's wellbeing, like children or elderly relatives.

A quick aside - one of my friends used to live in Beverly Hills, with the San Andreas fault, running very close by, a constant threat. Her biggest dread was that in the event of an earthquake, she'd be crushed under her own emergency supplies of tinned food & bottled water...

Fruball · 14 July 2012 at 7:55PM

princesstippytoes wrote: »

Why are you worried when you are the one recommending that people stockpile? Maybe thousands are reading this thread (and the US survivalist sites which have been linked to) and doing as you are all advising. :rotfl:Or maybe your particular Tesco had a particularly busy day.

I'm not necessarily 'recommending people stockpile' and If I am, then its BECAUSE I am worried.

There will always be people who mock, but those people will be literally eating their words when the SHTF, whatever that means to them - to me it's mostly buying stuff whilst I can afford it and having a few supplies in just in case of emergency.

I don't know if/when my neighbours house has a gas explosion and blows my house apart (in which case my supply will be useless), or there is a power strike/extended power cut.

I do know that IF I had stored a bit of water a few years ago, when my stupid ex beggared up the plumbing, I would have had water for me, my son and 2 babies.

I've been in situations when I have relied on my supplies, and been in situations when I needed them and had none.

When I was stranded in my car, like many others, in snow and was advised by the police to walk home (3 miles) I chose not to because I had food, drinks, full tank of fuel, ciggies and a blanket, hat, gloves and spare scarves etc in my car

So, if others choose not to prep then that is up to them - i learned the hard way and prefer to be prepared.

Popperwell · 14 July 2012 at 8:08PM

Frugal, in the last few minutes I posted a link on the tough thread which shows some of the very reasons we should be afraid and why we are making a store room, it is not because of a natural disaster in this case...but it ties in with what you have said...

Fruball · 14 July 2012 at 8:14PM

Popperwell wrote: »

Frugal, in the last few minutes I posted a link on the tough thread which shows some of the very reasons we should be afraid and why we are making a store room, it is not because of a natural disaster in this case...but it ties in with what you have said...

Please could you put a link here as I cannot find it xxx

Popperwell · 14 July 2012 at 8:22PM

ok its a blog but it tells such a lot, sorry if it worries or upsets...there is a link in the post about part time work, voluntary work and even someone on Twitter worried that could go against him...

http://johnnyvoid.wordpress.com/2012/05/31/the-end-of-the-deserving-poor/

And the story about someone on HB who appeared on Newsnight...and we haven't even talked about the bedroom tax(if you are in social housing or renting privately but have spare rooms...plus a reduction in help with CT if you get that now...

Lets hope we have a home otherwise we may not have anywhere for our store of food either...let alone ourselves...

xx

GreyQueen · 14 July 2012 at 8:36PM

Excellent post, thriftwizard.

My city is built on ancient (think centuries old) mine workings. Nobody knows where most of them are and they're only discovered when they collapse, demolishing whatever home, business or road sits on top of them.

I know people who have had to flee fires. Fires which were extinguished without anything more than partial loss of the home but they were still in emergency accomodation for over a month. Dousing fires puts a lot of water into the home and bu88ers up the electrics and smoke damage is revolting. Did you know uPVC plastic doors and windows melt quite easily? It was a revelation to my pal. And those poor souls who've been severely flooded are sometimes out of their homes for a year.........

Great fun doing an emergency evac in the middle of the night and finding yourself on the street barefoot in your jammies. Think how comforting an emergency bag with some basic toiletries, a pair of knicks and your paperwork would have been.

The pal who was burned out is Ms Paranoid Prepper these days........

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