Preparedness for when

moneyistooshorttomention

well - lets hope the "communications" would go out pronto - in English. I'd go ballistic if powers-that-be waited around long enough to translate into foreign languages/A.N. Other 2nd language of some part of Britain/etc.

Tell the public straight out in English and then, IF you have time (and money) to - start translating into whatever-other language (ours or foreign).

GreyQueen

Of course emergency comms would go out in English, MTSTM. Don't be daft. And presumably simultanously in Welsh, in your neck of the woods, given the amount of speakers. The danger is that you have some people in a country, at any given time, who don't speak the language. I myself have been allowed to holiday in the Greek islands, and I have only half-a-dozen phrases in that language and hey, not all languages have the same alphabet; I can't read street signs in Greek which makes road maps of limited use.

Gawd help a tourist in London with little more than please/ thankyou in their repetoire if they have to follow complicated instructions about evacuations to community centres etc etc.:(

greenbee

I was in Bulgaria for work and there was an earthquake in the middle of the night. Don't speak the language, so had no clue what to do... nothing on the TV about it in English

ivyleaf

greenbee wrote: »

I was in Bulgaria for work and there was an earthquake in the middle of the night. Don't speak the language, so had no clue what to do... nothing on the TV about it in English

:eek: So what happened? Did you just follow what other people were doing? (Obviously you were okay or we wouldn't be "speaking" to you now )

greenbee

ivyleaf wrote: »

:eek: So what happened? Did you just follow what other people were doing? (Obviously you were okay or we wouldn't be "speaking" to you now )

Looked out of the window, no one was out there. Looked in the corridor. No one was out there. Stayed in bed until it stopped. Didn't sleep much :cool:

My colleague slept through the entire thing...

RAS

GreyQueen wrote: »

It takes several hours for the water to come down the North Sea, there are sensors, it isn't going to be a surprise to TPTB. What you have to consider is their reaction to the news. Would they pre-emptively close inbound commuter traffic to London, to minimize the amount of people in harm's way? Close schools, theatres, sports and concert venues? And run the risk of causing multiple millions of losses, especially if its a false alarm? Would they order an evacuation, and are they prepared to use force if necessary? Will the communications be in the many languages spoken in London, or will you have some residents and tourists unable to understand emergency directives?

All local Councils should have emergency plans to deal with the situation that they check regularly. If I lived in an area at risk I would be inclined to make a FOI request for the document covering flooding.

I do know that in that massive flood in the city I lived in the CEO was newly appointed and when the first threat occurred he was referred to their emergency manual. He did what it said and it was pretty much OK. He did not get to sleep at home for at least two weeks but he was not the only one working overtime.

Karmacat

RAS wrote: »

So you need to know where your base layers are kept (preferably an old set in your BOP).

The quote above was sparked by my mention of my wool allergy, RAS - not sure what a BOP is? Heeellllp ....

ETA - bug out bag? bug out pannier? I'm terrible with subtle humour

Alloneword

jk0 wrote: »

Bl**dy Sainsburys!

Have you seen the box on the right guys? They are axing Sainsbury's Mobile. I've only had the SIM about 6 months, and can just about remember the number.

Yes, I know I can transfer the number elsewhere. What a blooming faff though.

I know a complete pain in the backside, I had them as one of my back up sims, so rang them yesterday and they have cancelled both numbers and will refund the full amount of the cards which is about £30, just another thing to worry about.

mardatha wrote: »

That's unreal - blocks of flats where the top floor is still below flood level?? Is London built in a hole in the ground or something - that sounds mad to me. Or is the Thames rising? That must be very worrying for people there

Without spending tons of money i have done my best to work out the river level is about 75% up my living room wall then i have about another 2-3 feet before it hits loft space, this is the reason i won't bother trying to save anything it's not worth it, just a waste of time IMO, most people round here don't give it a 2nd thought and to be honest i'm happy with it that way, as i say i have been round this area for 30 years and i'm no expert but i have always had an intrest in the river thames and weather in general and never seen some of the high tides as i have seen over last 2 to 3 years, why i have no idea but it's getting more worrying hence my actions i just wish the wife would get her head out of her ar*e and see it could happen, she is of the belif that the barrier will save us for ever

Frugalsod wrote: »

General flood planning will still be good for you

You have more faith then me that is for sure, my council have problems dealing with surface water floods when they happen

Frugalsod wrote: »

though you will definitely need a bug out location to deal with the storm surge. It could be a friend or family out of the area or even a hotel.

Hotel is out of the question funds don't run that far and lets be honest here if the river did flood watch the prices triple overnight, sure insurance may pay for some but not for long and something else to bear in mind is, unless the govt steps in and takes over hotels etc were in the doo doo as we don't have enough housing stock as it is right now let alone 50,000 new people looking for a roof over their head, i see it being more of a case of parks being taken over and army tent going up with beds for people, may sound over the top but it's how i see the givt coping unless your going to move 50,000 people out of London in places like Coventry/Northampton etc, as for family and friends, i'm working on the basis of we (the Mrs & I) are going to be on our own, better to be this way then trust others and get shafted.

Frugalsod wrote: »

I never think of social housing occupants as scum of the earth. Scum rises to the top, so I think our leaders fit that description far better.

Maybe not you but i'm no fool we (social housing) will be the last to be helped, so anything i can do to help ourselves is vital.

Frugalsod wrote: »

Top floor does mean that the flood barriers might not be viable though it might be good for the landlords to install them for minor floods.

No point as i'd be flooded from flat below me coming up, and Housing Assoc would not invest in that i'm 99% certain

Frugalsod wrote: »

Concentrate on tent as shelter is more important than food in initial crisis. Look to get a fly first tent. This means that you can set it up and then keep the inner tent dry, as you will probably have to set it up in the rain.

It might be better to get a slightly more expensive 4 season tent as you never know when it will strike, and you will have some space inside for keeping whatever you have with you. You can at least still go camping with it for fun even if the surge never comes.

Tents has been the biggest learning curve for me on this subject i knew NOTHING before i started looking and given i'm not very practical i have gone for an easy to put up tent and this has left me with 2 options, either the new air tents or the Khyam/Khyan quick erect tents, now from my reading air tents are the easiest to put up but are prone to some issues in stronger winds so i'm looking at the pole system but before i buy that i'm waiting for the 2016 range to come out (camping show is in Feb sometime) and hopefully i can pick up a bargain on a 2015 tent, I need fully sewn in groundsheet room for 4 as both Mrs and i are large and i don't want to be in a shoe box, this tent could well be my home of 12 - 18 months, i see accommodation being the main problem after a flood. As for food not to worried about that as we both have plenty to live off but also being type 2 diabetics we do need to eat at least twice a day to take medication. Given the info i have on predicted flooding food for the whole of London should not be that affected IMO, but i may be wrong i'll wait to see what the flood book has to say on that side of things.

I also plan on doing some touring next year on the bike on my own for 2 reasons, one it's always something i have wanted to do plus it will give me a chance to get my toe in the water and too see if we need anything else

Frugalsod wrote: »

Stoves come in so many forms so if you think a gas stove works best for you then get that. Though alcohol stoves have lots of flexibility in that you can get fuel in more locations.

Not looked into stoves yet but there is one that bikers use alot which can also be run from petrol which is handy as i suspect i'd have some in the tank

GreyQueen

I have very favourable memories of owning a Khy@m Igloo in the early 1990s. Very strong, very easy to pitch, the envy of other campers when them watch you snap down the elbow-umbrella type joints.

I sold it after a few year for only £10 less than I paid, because it wasn't suitable for the kind of vehicle-less camping I do (weight being very much the issue). It stood up to some seriously baaaad wind and rain without a hitch, and you pitch the fly first (and fast) which makes it great when it's already raining because you're under cover and can get the inner tent out of its bag at that point and keep it dry.

I wouldn't hestitate to have one again, if I had wheels.

Frugalsod

RAS wrote: »

All local Councils should have emergency plans to deal with the situation that they check regularly. If I lived in an area at risk I would be inclined to make a FOI request for the document covering flooding.

I do know that in that massive flood in the city I lived in the CEO was newly appointed and when the first threat occurred he was referred to their emergency manual. He did what it said and it was pretty much OK. He did not get to sleep at home for at least two weeks but he was not the only one working overtime.

Most councils have plans for most events but Leicester was exposed as having no plans for a Zombie Apocalypse http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-leicestershire-13713798