In Prepare Yourself, Know the Basics! I touched superficially on different things to prepare to face any potential disaster.
Let's make a small historical list here of really big events to show how much prone to Natural Disaster the Philippines are. This list is just there to demonstrate a point about the potential hazards everyone living in the Philippines as to take into count (fill in the gap, since nearly every year there is some disasters in the Philippines).
- Luzon Quake 1990
- Mount Pinatubo 1991
- Eastern Samar Earthquake 2012
- Bohol Earthquake 2013
- Super-Typhoon Yolanda (Hayian) 2013
In every, I insist, in EVERY cases people were not prepared to face it. Why so? Do you find normal that between a disaster like Mount Pinatubo Eruption in 1991 and Super-Typhoon Yolanda in 2013 people still did not learn to be prepared for those things? After each disaster we witness the same pattern : Starvation & Looting. Do you know that you can prevent that for you and your family?
True, you can't prevent an Earthquake to happen, you can't prevent a Volcano to erupt and you can't prevent a Typhoon to strike. But, in our case, prevention is not about preventing a natural disaster to happen, it is about giving ourselves the mean to survive the disaster, and to go through with as less damage as possible for us and the one we love.
In this post I will make an overview of the three main items to always keep in mind in any potential disasters natural or man-made is these big three items - Shelter, Water, and Food.
SHELTER
SHELTER
It could appear a strange thing that shelter is seen as more important than water. And as far as I know this is the order you will find on any Emergency Survival website. Well, in many ways it make sense.
First the notion of shelter is to be taken in its general sense, more like a protection from outside elements. Those elements could be natural or human. In a state of emergency you need to be shielded from external danger.
- If there was a looting going on you would have to protect your belongings (and all the Survival Food and Water you saved).
- If it was a Drought going on you would have to protect your water supply and have some shadows to keep yourself from the Sun.
But, for sure, in every Emergency situation, you would need to protect the most important for you - your life, and the life of those you care of. So sheltering is extremely important and should be placed first in Emergency Preparation.
WATER
Beside the air you inhale, water is the most essential of all the things we need in life. Pretty simple, without water there is no human life possible on this planet. It is said that three days without water and you are dead. It is an average, but which hold true.
The human body absolutely need water to work. The human body is made up of around 80% water, all the bodily function needs that water to support themselves, and that water balance in our body must be kept for the body to work correctly, if it doesn't the body has to take the water where it is, in itself. And that's the beginning of water depletion in your own body : dehydration.
It is advised to always have at minimum three days of water supply at hand in any situation. But two weeks is generally what survivalist will counsel to have because in the case of a disaster you can not rely on Emergency Services to reach you right away (What happened during Super-Typhoon Hayian/Yolanda is a perfect example of that).
Yet, be careful to take into account each individual you purpose to protect through preparation. The quantity of water which is advised is around 4 liters (1 gallon) per day per person. (and don't forget your pets if you have some). This is a minimum needed to stay in good condition... as far as water goes.
But now, to really keep yourself in good condition you need to add something more to your body than just water, you need food.
FOOD
Although this item is listed as the last one, it remain an important one.
Most of our energy comes from what we eat, be vegetables or meat we need them in our diet.
But in a Disaster situation that food we need so much could not be available for days. Again Typhoon Yolanda is a reminder of the extreme situation people could face. Without food, and out of desperation, people resort to looting and rioting... and even killing.
One of the primal instinct of human beings is to survive, and for that people are ready to go to extreme they would never go to in normal situation. And that's the point, a disaster is, by definition, an abnormal situation, a glitch in the usual way things are going. Being prepared and ready for it is the wisest thing to do.
You should always have some food storage, and preferably things which doesn't spoil easily. This is true for every country, but especially in a hot and wet country like the Philippines. Remember, in case of a disaster chances are that there will be no electricity for a long time, and no electricity means no fridge working. So, in you Emergency Storage avoid things like fresh veggies, fresh fish and meat.
and go for can food and dry food.
Well, here we are. At the end of this post. Those three things mentioned above are what you always have to use as a foundation for your own welfare. You can't go far without food and water, and without a shelter you have no protection at all.
Keep in mind, disaster is not just for your neighbor or some far away land. Nature doesn't know any frontiers or boundaries, an Earthquake, a Typhoon, or any other Natural Hazards will not stop and present its passport before entering the country. It will just go through whether we like it or not.
The question is are you ready for the eventuality? PREPARE YOURSELF !
Mabuhay!
Useful Links
Basic Survival Skills
Awareness and Preparadness Materials
Your Emergency Preparedness Guide
Useful Links
Basic Survival Skills
Awareness and Preparadness Materials
Your Emergency Preparedness Guide
-----------------------------------------
No comments:
Post a Comment