Preparedness for when

D&DD

My Internet is still playing up :mad: can't get on here with my Laptop so have had to use the blasted iPad as it has safari weird..have lost my lead for my phone so have sent the pics to my son again once he's emailed them back I'll upload them

Black sheep..I have that film :rotfl: nowhere near as bad as cowboys vs zombies

WantToBeSE

In all seriousness, does anyone have any tips for SHTF senarios?
I would like to start stocking up, but am on a very limited budget- any advice?

Also, what would you advise to put in a family first aid kit (thanks for the idea kittie)?

fuddle

definitely a triangle bandage.
gauze
micropor tape
bandage
scissors
antiseptic wipes (incase of no clean water)
plasters

WantToBeSE

Thanks fuddle, i think £land has most of that, so i'll stock up when i nect go. I was thinking of getting some rehydration sashets too.

maryb

born_blonde wrote: »

We have decided to plan escalating scenarios.

First of all what would we do if we got snowed in for a week ( small village rural location so possible. We are going to make a list that covers that.

Then snowed in without power ( electric only village).

Then financial crisis, no access to money, rapid inflation civil unrest.
No petrol stations open.

We think if we cover the simpler problems first we will be well on the way to being equipped for any more serious problems that may or may not occur.

Keep it simple. cheap and effective.

Born Blonde that's EXACTLY my philosophy - prep for foreseeable disruption and you'll find you're well on the way to being able to ride out more serious problems.

Don't know if any of you read the Down To Earth Blog? Rhonda's Australian and as OS as you can get. Her husband had a nasty accident with a chain saw recently and was rushed to hospital (fortunately fine now) and she said on her blog that she realised how unprepared she was

"I was definitely not prepared for an emergency. Oh yes, I had a stockpile and freezer full of food and a backyard capable of feeding us but there were so many things I didn't have. I had a mobile phone, but it was barely charged. I had to quickly phone the kids and I couldn't stay on the line to reassure them. That had to wait until I got home. I didn't have up-to-date phone numbers in the phone memory. I had Jens's old mobile number. The car had almost no petrol in the tank. I had to fill up driving home in the dark after I left Hanno at the hospital. It really taught me a lesson, but a lesson too late to help me through that crisis. I have promised myself to always be better prepared in the future."

Simple things but so helpful when it matters

Sunshine4

I feel the same Ginnyknit,
I lost my job in July with one days notice.
I am now out of work for a while until my arm is operated on when ever that will be.OH is on a pension.
So the storage cupboard helped alot and is still helping
Two years ago when we had all that bad weather, we had no water for 8 days. We had no warning just went to turn the taps on and nothing.
Within the hour no water in any of the supermarkets.
So now I keep lots of water stored and I am starting to buy a few things extra to put in the food storage cupboard.
I dont care what other people think as long as I can take care of my own.

maryb

fuddle wrote: »

definitely a triangle bandage.
gauze
micropor tape
bandage
scissors
antiseptic wipes (incase of no clean water)
plasters

I'd add tweezers, a needle and a disposable lighter to sterilise it. I keep all those in a small tupperware box so they don't get lost so I can deal with splinters easily. I also keep a small magnifying glass in there because my eyesight is not what it was

Also an eye bath.

Antihistamine cream for bites and stings

Don't forget a thermometer.

When DD2 went on her Duke of Edinburgh expedition one girl tripped over her own bootlaces and gave herself a nasty cut on the forehead which bled a lot even though it wasn't that deep. They found that a sanitary pad pressed hard against the cut was the best way to stop the bleeding because it was so absorbent.

GreyQueen

WantToBeSE wrote: »

In all seriousness, does anyone have any tips for SHTF senarios?
I would like to start stocking up, but am on a very limited budget- any advice?

Also, what would you advise to put in a family first aid kit (thanks for the idea kittie)?

Hi hun, don't think I've seen your username before, nice to meet you. Feeling sorry about the changes which will be affecting you among others and hope that the spirng finds you in a better place, financially.

I'm stocked up on basic groceries such as cooking oil, flour, yeast sachets, pasta, tinned fish and tinned pies as well as a small range of tinned veggies which form elements of my recipes such as tomatoes, sweetcorn, mixed beans, kidney beans, baked beans and my fave tomato soup (the cheapy one). Also have tea bags. It's what you and yours eat, in quantities which make sense given the number of mouths, how accessible shops are, how difficult the weather is, what health probs the household has etc etc. There isn't a one-size fits all answer.

Can't really advise of first aid kits as my certifiicate expired a number of years ago. I've scanned thru the Adult Ed offerings here and there is no opportunity to do one there, nor anything which could be described as OS or SHTF appropriate. Mainly conversational language classes and advanced cookery.

If you don't have or aren't able to access a first aid course, it might be an idea to get a guide book for first aid (perhaps borrow some from the library to road-test which one would be a good keeper?). The main thing about first aid is to know what NOT to do to worsen the injury before the wounded person can recieve proper medical treatment.

I've had to make some interesting judgement calls as have been first on the scene at a couple of car-crashes over the years. Used to have a driving job. In one, the car had pulled out in front of another car, been hit at 40 mph, spun off the road and ended bonnet-first in the hedge and caught fire. The car which struck it was in the middle of the A road, upslope with a ruptured fuel tank and the fuel was leaking quickly down the road towards the burning car.

I couldn't get that car's driver to tell me if it was petrol or diesel, poor person was in shock. If that fuel was petrol, it would have ignited when it reached the burning car and probably caused an explosion. If it was diesel, you can drop a lit match into it and it'll just go out.

Without that info, and with only a few seconds to spare, me and the blokes who had stopped had to make a snap judgement; get the driver OUT of the burning car. Normally, moving a casualty would be the last thing you'd do. So we did. Mercifully, she was only bruised and shocked and the paramedics were soon there. Saw afterwards that she was prosecuted for it.

In the other crash, a car shot out of a side road and tried to cross the road I and several others were travelling on, hit the car in front of mine and it flew up and onto the verge. There were 3 people (Mum, Dad, teen son) and the car was stopped, the engine off (the battery was actually thrown out of the engine compartment and was hanging over the wing from it's battery leads - fire officer made disconnecting that his first priority) and I had to stop the shocked teen running around (gave him charge of his Mum in back of car) and then stop the Mr trying to take a walk with an open fracture to check on his Mrs, no thought for himself, at all.

She had a bruised breastbone and shock, teen had shock but otherwise hurt, Mr had broken leg and broken ankle and cut hand. Car was history. A lot of fisrt aid is about managing the event so that it doens't get any worse.

Mum was a St John Ambulance first aider for several years, used to go to events etc. I go into hyper-cool mode in a crisis, which is comforting to know.

born_blonde

First of all I think you have to think about your current situation, what you are dependant on and what and who is dependant on you.
And lists and then more lists, I woke up in the night and added ibuprofen ( 3 packets of 16 for a £1 from Poundland). Then Calpol.
Also water purification tablets as we know the pipes freeze at -4.
Nothing excessive and nothing that will easily go off.

WantToBeSE

Hi Grey Queen,
thanks for the lovely welcome

There is just me and my 2 chilren in the house. We are all fairly healthy, and my main concern woudl be that of my younger son who has asthma.
Thanks for the idea of doing a FA class, i will look at my local adult ed site, i am sure they do courses. I am also looking into a basic car maintenance course, but it all depends on cost.

i will start stocking up by buying 1 or 2 cans/dried foods a week, and hope that i wont need them until my stocks have grown. I live 9 miles from the nearest town, so its important for us to have access to food.