Based on what you have learned from Katrina (whether from the news, friends, family, or from personal experience) what will you do different in the future in terms of your preparations for your favorite SHTF scenario?
The last time I looked at my own preparations was back before Y2K. With opinions ranging from “it will be the end of civilization as we know it” down to “nothing is going to happen”, I wasn’t sure how much preparation to make. Finally, I checked the FEMA web site and found the best advice of anywhere. They simply said to make those preparations that you should already have made for a hurricane, ice storm, or any other natural disaster. I enrolled in several of their disaster preparedness courses and they sent a book for each course (not just pamphlets). These books covered all sorts of disasters including radiation leaks and toxic chemical spills and what you should do. They included lists of items to have on hand and what to have on hand and packed if you have to evacuate (what we might call a bug out bag). And all of this information was free for the asking. (If you are a registered Profession Engineer like I am, these courses also count for you continuing education requirements, and some of the more advanced course include thing like design and retrofitting structures in flood prone areas.)
One of the most surprising things I learned was how much water you need to have on hand. Most people have a couple of cases of bottled water and think they are fine. In reality, you need to have 2 gallons per day per person. That works out to 28 gallons per person for the recommended two weeks. A case of 24 16-oz bottles is just 3 gallons. So a couple of cases of water bottled water, will only last for a day or two. Years ago I lived on the Gulf Coast, and always thought I was prepared whenever a hurricane was headed our way. I now realize that I never had enough water on hand. It was just luck I didn’t need it. As a result, I have bought two food grade 55 gallon drums which I now use as part of my preparations for my family of four. That works out to a total of 110 gallons, which is only two gallons short of the 2 gallons per day per person needed.
Back before Y2K, I discussed this with my father, and he also bought several water drumsl. They live west of Hattiesburg in south Mississippi. The eye of Katrina went right over them blowing down almost every tree around there house, knocking out power, regular phone service, and the cell phone towers. The pumping station for the water lines didn’t have power, so they also had no running water. Power is not expected back on for 3 weeks. But my parents, and my sister and her family who live next to my parents are all fine. They had to organize the neighbors and use chainsaws, to clear the little county road so that they could get out to the main highway. The main highway was being cleared by the county, so they could drive toward town until they got cell reception and could call me. It took almost two days before I found out that they were all right. The point is that they are fine because of the preparations they made. They have drinking water and food. If they had not been able to clear the road of trees, they would still be trapped. They have a generator to keep the food in the freezers from spoiling. They have a battery operated TV so they can keep up on the news. I could go on but you get the idea. I offered for some of the women and children to come stay with me in Atlanta until they had power again (with the idea that my dad and brother-in-law would stay and look after the farm, feed the animals, etc), but because they are all doing OK, they declined the offer.
One last thought. FEMA has been taking a lot of heat for not having a plan, but I disagree. FEMA has a plan, but it recognizes that it could take up to two weeks to mobilize all of the necessary resources into a disaster area. That is why they want everybody to be prepared to take care of themselves for two weeks. And that is why they offer so much free information about what the preparation for those two weeks should include. I’m sick of hearing people blaming FEMA or the President for people who failed to take responsibility for themselves.
So 55-gallon water drums is my lesson learned. Apart from an extra 1,000 rounds of 223 ammo, what have the rest of you decided to add to your preparations?
The last time I looked at my own preparations was back before Y2K. With opinions ranging from “it will be the end of civilization as we know it” down to “nothing is going to happen”, I wasn’t sure how much preparation to make. Finally, I checked the FEMA web site and found the best advice of anywhere. They simply said to make those preparations that you should already have made for a hurricane, ice storm, or any other natural disaster. I enrolled in several of their disaster preparedness courses and they sent a book for each course (not just pamphlets). These books covered all sorts of disasters including radiation leaks and toxic chemical spills and what you should do. They included lists of items to have on hand and what to have on hand and packed if you have to evacuate (what we might call a bug out bag). And all of this information was free for the asking. (If you are a registered Profession Engineer like I am, these courses also count for you continuing education requirements, and some of the more advanced course include thing like design and retrofitting structures in flood prone areas.)
One of the most surprising things I learned was how much water you need to have on hand. Most people have a couple of cases of bottled water and think they are fine. In reality, you need to have 2 gallons per day per person. That works out to 28 gallons per person for the recommended two weeks. A case of 24 16-oz bottles is just 3 gallons. So a couple of cases of water bottled water, will only last for a day or two. Years ago I lived on the Gulf Coast, and always thought I was prepared whenever a hurricane was headed our way. I now realize that I never had enough water on hand. It was just luck I didn’t need it. As a result, I have bought two food grade 55 gallon drums which I now use as part of my preparations for my family of four. That works out to a total of 110 gallons, which is only two gallons short of the 2 gallons per day per person needed.
Back before Y2K, I discussed this with my father, and he also bought several water drumsl. They live west of Hattiesburg in south Mississippi. The eye of Katrina went right over them blowing down almost every tree around there house, knocking out power, regular phone service, and the cell phone towers. The pumping station for the water lines didn’t have power, so they also had no running water. Power is not expected back on for 3 weeks. But my parents, and my sister and her family who live next to my parents are all fine. They had to organize the neighbors and use chainsaws, to clear the little county road so that they could get out to the main highway. The main highway was being cleared by the county, so they could drive toward town until they got cell reception and could call me. It took almost two days before I found out that they were all right. The point is that they are fine because of the preparations they made. They have drinking water and food. If they had not been able to clear the road of trees, they would still be trapped. They have a generator to keep the food in the freezers from spoiling. They have a battery operated TV so they can keep up on the news. I could go on but you get the idea. I offered for some of the women and children to come stay with me in Atlanta until they had power again (with the idea that my dad and brother-in-law would stay and look after the farm, feed the animals, etc), but because they are all doing OK, they declined the offer.
One last thought. FEMA has been taking a lot of heat for not having a plan, but I disagree. FEMA has a plan, but it recognizes that it could take up to two weeks to mobilize all of the necessary resources into a disaster area. That is why they want everybody to be prepared to take care of themselves for two weeks. And that is why they offer so much free information about what the preparation for those two weeks should include. I’m sick of hearing people blaming FEMA or the President for people who failed to take responsibility for themselves.
So 55-gallon water drums is my lesson learned. Apart from an extra 1,000 rounds of 223 ammo, what have the rest of you decided to add to your preparations?
We've got food, and could store a hundred gallons of water on short notice. We've got my car which should be able to get us a couple of safer places without refueling (700+ miles per 14 gallon tank). 
And so on.