54 major wild fires are currently burning in the West, four more have started right now, see where they are:

  I am taking a break from the Hurricanes, I have decided to write this blog about the wildfires in the Western United States. With so much taking place in the way of natural disasters it is very difficult to justify moving away from the Hurricanes, but the wildfires burning are a huge disaster as well. My plan was when I began to write to make a list of the current fires that are burning, with a few details, then reality struck. There are 54 major fires burning today September 11, 2017, too many to comment on all of them. I live 150 miles from the Detwiler fire in Mariposa County just West of Yosemite, our air is filled with smoke. My brother spent last week in Colorado Springs, the smoke from the fires was so bad he had trouble breathing. On his way home (he lives in Minnesota) an hour away from where he was staying was flooded by Hurricane Harvey's rain. Wildfires can and do erupt anywhere, unplanned and unwanted once they start they are capable of consuming thousands of square acres, adding up to square miles. Placing many responders lives in imminent danger and destroying homes and businesses. They burn forest, prairie, swamps, and grasslands. They are most dangerous in what is called the Urban Interface, (link) the areas where the wilds intersect with the suburbs. In the charred path, watersheds take many years to recover leaving the areas prone to flooding and mudslides. Fires break out on the perimeters of fires due to red hot embers taking flight, capable of flying a mile or more, the firefighters can be blindsided by one of these fires. They start by rock-slides, gunfire, hot campfires, vehicle exhaust systems, discarded cigarettes, lightning or arson. They occur mainly during the warm dry summer months, high winds make bone dry grasses burn violently and freely.
  If you are placed on a wild fire watch:
  1) Listen to your radio emergency notices and to stay up to date on the condition and travel of the fire.
  2) Know your evacuation route, this should be in your evacuation plan (link) if you don't have one, you should. Sit down with the family and make one today.
  3) Keep your car ready to go, place a 72 hour supply of food and water in the trunk, either construct your own or purchase one from a retailer. FEMA recommends a 72-hour kit, I suggest a 7-day kit. Keep the gas tank full, digest all of the information you can before making any decisions.
  4) Have clothes in your vehicles, shoes, hats and warm clothing, we don't know how long we may be displaced.
  5) Charge your cell phone and other electronic gear every night in a spot that has easy access. Have a way to charge your equipment after the event begins, there are many products available, some will even jump start your car.
  6) Do not assume someone has called 911 to report a fire, call them and report the fire, all they will do if it has already been reported is tell you it has been reported.
  7) If you are notified to evacuate, move rapidly and leave immediately, make sure to tell someone where you are going.
  8) Have an out of the area contact number, every family member must have it, call the number and report your condition, call again after a few hours.
  It's a bad situation in the west today with all of the fires burning, that is no secret, but as the summer stretches on the threat will lessen. Then big heavy rainfall all winter, encouraging vegetation to grow in leaps and bounds, then drying out in May. The fires begin once more in late May or early June. If we could stop the arsons we would be a step ahead of the curve.

This is accurate as of September 11, 2017. The biggest fires that are burning today, there are many other small ones
caused by embers and other sources. 

Many times I have wished the heavy rains in the Southeast would visit the West for a while during the summer, a quick douse of water  would certainly help out. We generally have winds, with the fires creating winds of their own as well it presents an impossible condition for the firefighters, but they always seem to succeed in containing the fires. This should serve to catch us up with the conditions out West. As I write this we are experiencing heavy rainfall in the Sierra's, hopefully it will put out the fires in Yosemite and West of Sacramento. There have been 15-20 lightning strikes as the rain clouds move in, (just now actually) it is relatively odd for us to have rainfall this time of year however it is not unheard of. We will soon hear of fires being put out and new ones starting from the lightning, it sure is a violent cycle. I watched from my back porch last year a fire starting on Mount Diablo, at a distance of about 20 miles to my west. By the time I called 911, it was July 2016, the fire had tripled in size, no one had called, she asked me where I was, the dispatcher was surprised when I told her. So call if in dought, I've also called about fires on the island across the river from me, they are normally controlled burns, they still thank me for calling, we can't be too careful.

  Hurricanes, Wildfires, Earthquakes and Floods, we are being challenged almost to the maximum this year, we will persevere, and we will come out on the other side intact. We never know when we will be impacted by a Catastrophic event, we can prepare as best we can, as we have learned from the Hurricanes, purchase an emergency kit for each member of the family. Purchase at least 4 cases of water and reserve them for an emergency. 

                        

Four Wild Fires have started in the past 5 minutes from the lightning storm that has just moved in, it's raining hard in San Francisco, we're in for more fires tonight. 

  

Thanks for reading, leave a comment or story.

jacquesandkate  emergencykitsplus.com

Some people's hurricane evacuation plan is not to leave, 6 reasons why people stay home.

  I have a hard time understanding why some people do not evacuate an area that is being threatened

Fill-er-up and get in line, it will be alright soon. 

by a major storm. I am thinking about Hurricane Harvey, Irma and following them Jose. As most of us are seeing unfolding before our eyes is the total destruction of some of the barrier islands on the west side of the state of Florida. Most of the people on the islands could not evacuate, transportation out was difficult to obtain. It's not fair of us to pre-judge those that do decide to stay versus leaving, Let's take a look at some of the reasons according to Cara Cuite a Rutgers psychologist as told to Vox news:
  1)  Disabled people are reluctant to leave, either there is no one to help them or they cannot get out of their homes. Some disabled citizens are more likely to not evacuate because they are secure in their homes as far as medical needs are concerned, they decide to take the chance.
  2) Some people just don't hear the warnings, even though communication amongst us has never been easier with cell phones, TV, and even door to door notifications, still some do not get the message.
  3) Some cannot stand the thought of leaving their pets behind, most evacuation centers don't allow pets, although Congress in 2011 passed the Pets act mandating our disaster preparedness plans include planning for taking care of companion animals. Few states have adopted the law.
  4) Wealthy people as well refuse to leave, some feel they need to stay to guard their homes against vandalism and looting. They feel their homes are substantially built and they will survive.
  5) There are some, this reason makes sense to me, it's the little boy calling wolf. They have been through other storms that did not live up to the predictions of local agencies dealing with disasters. They may have left for earlier storms, upon returning they find no damage at all, except by looters or vandals.

A typical evacuation center, safe and dry. 

  6) Some people cannot leave due to finances, homelessness and other states of poverty. To be fair Florida is transporting people to evacuation centers, would it be a financial disaster to move everyone hundreds of miles then put them up in shelters? That is a decision our elected officials must make.
  All of the reasons cited above make a certain amount of sense, I have asked my self if I would evacuate, I don't know the answer to that. As some of the people on news cast (CNN, and the Weather channel) stated they would wait to see how strong the storm is when it makes land fall. I don't live in a hurricane threatened state so my perspective of a hurricane is most likely skewed by my lack of knowledge, I was in a few and they scared me. Still, my knowledge is limited.
  The mayor of Corpus Christi declared a "voluntary" evacuation, the local elected officials normally have a fairly good idea of what will transpire. Could the decision could be an automatic declaration? I don't think so, we all prefer to be directed or advised by a fellow human rather than an automatically initiated announcement. The decision has to be made by the highest ranking "elected official", they are the ones we voted for to make these types of decisions, they are the ones we want to make them.
  A "mandatory" evacuation declaration results in an increase of 6% higher rates of people leaving, where by a voluntary order results in 4%. (data is from Hurricane Ivan, 2004). I believe we then go back to "we've heard this before", some will never evacuate.
  I stated this morning as I was watching this powerful storm barreling towards Florida, "man I would have been gone the minute it was predicted to landfall as a Catagory 5." I'm not there, but as I said in an earlier blog stating some people decide to evacuate in the middle of the storm, (it happens in every storm) placing themselves and loved ones in peril. Stupidity? No, I don't think so, their decisions were made after examining the information they had available, their plan just simply did not work out, tragically. You see there is a real offset in how these storms are seen, me being in California sees them differently than the people experiencing it. I worked with a man from Florida in California, he was deathly afraid of his first earthquake, he was like I am observing from afar. We had an earthquake, I believe it was about a 4 on the Richter scale, the epicenter hundreds of miles distant. His reaction? "Hey, that was nothing." Earthquakes normally are non-events, we have small ones all the time, he however related them to some that occurred in Chile and Mexico City.
  It was found that people that were not financially secure enough were practicing "proactive measures" to prepare. Active in their communities, they know everyone in their vicinity, and they care about and for one another. Most of these people saw leaving as a selfish move, they had to stay to make sure everyone else is OK, that's humanity for you. All of the volunteers during Harvey did not surprise me one bit, many others feel as I do as well, we are a compassionate species.
  We hear officials telling people to write their social security numbers on their arms with indelible ink, fill out a "next of kin" form, telling people there will be no help available and do not call 911, no one is home. Are they just scare tactics or are they things that must be declared so people know what they are faced with? Would less of a declaration make it a voluntary evacuation? Do people need to be told what the best roads out are and where to go to find help? Tough questions, we saw many answered by the people attempting to control the out of control Oroville Dam evacuation, the debate of how the decision was made is just coming out. To perform research on why or why not people evacuate is almost an impossible task. If I were to be a member of a research poll and was asked how I might respond to a mandatory or voluntary evacuation, I don't know how I would answer that, do you? Predicting what people do during a disaster is impossible, I do know one thing, more people run toward a problem than away from one, not everyone has that trait but a large number do. Evacuations are very difficult to get right, after the event there are always Monday morning quarterbacks, most officials don't think of that while deciding what to do, but it raises its head almost immediately following the directives.
  After the decision to order an evacuation, making it mandatory, if the forecast changes, if the storm weakens, dissipates or heads in another direction the next evacuation order will most likely not go too well. People remember some things and believing they were misled by public officials is right at the top of the list, It's easy to understand that thinking. The New York Times outlined some strategies when communicating to people about hurricanes with one of them being not to compare this disaster with the last one, it gives people a false sense of security, so they stay. Warnings must be as specific as they can possibly be, with a set deadline to leave, hence the warning to write your SS number on your arm.

There is a lot of power in that wind in excess of 100 mph. 

  Evacuations are ultimately how the residents see the danger in the disaster, it all gets rendered down to perception, scare tactics, logically listing the dangers, and the strength of the catastrophe all come into play. A hurricane most often is preceded by warnings a few days in advance making them much different than a tornado or earthquake. Maybe that fact makes people hesitant to leave as well when earthquakes occur we have no idea what's going on, even as it is happening. (It's true, I've been in them just to look up at bewildered faces, finally realizing we're having an earthquake.) I've been in tornadoes, watching the clouds for the tell tale pointed tip of the cyclone dropping out of the clouds, then I headed for cover. My grandfather found his father died in a horse trough after a tornado tore through his home as a child in Minnesota.
  Experience, current information and perception of the event all factor into the decision whether to stay or leave, every one must decide for themselves, I just hope everyone ends up OK. The decision I am having a hard time with is the people who decide to "ride out the storm" in their boats. My experience is from an 80 mile an hour wind that occurred on our island about 5 years ago. There was a 50-foot house boat tied to our dock, they are like bill boards or a rigid huge sail. The wind caught the boat pushing it against the dock breaking the 12" diameter treated wood pylons at the mud line on the bottom of the river. The boat and dock were free to do whatever the wind dictated, there is a wood constructed walking bridge 200 yards down the wind from us. I was able to secure the boat, our home owners insurance covered the damage. (However, they dropped us shortly after that.) A little advice, home owners does not cover damage caused by water, it covers wind damage. When reporting to the insurance company it must be all wind caused, do not mention water at all or it is covered by flood insurance. That's how that works. The people intending to ride the storm out in their boats are placing themselves in a very precarious position, being a boat person I would not do that. A boat is a hollow piece of fiberglass, very light having a large wind resistant area, a wind of 150 miles per hour is more than capable of lifting a large boat out of the water causing whatever happens next after it gets done flying through the air. I truly hope and pray it all works out for them, but then again it is their decision and they may very well know something I don't... A little marine safety can be read about by clicking here.
  Thanks for reading, I'd like to hear your comments, this is a tougher subject than it appears at the surface, one thing we all assume is that after the storm leaves its destructive path, more decisions must be made.
jacquesandkate  emergencykitsplus.com

 

What is the most effective mosquito repellent, Hurricane Harvey has created the perfect mosquito habitat, trouble!

Holy Mackerel! As with most people in the United States for the past 2 weeks, I have been focused on Hurricane Harvey, the disaster. I thought about the suffering of the people first, then everything else is secondary, not to lose the focus on them there are many mitigating circumstances they have to deal with. When I discovered the expected loss of vehicles is over 500,000, half a million gone. Taking into account the new and used car lots, classic cars in garages, I have a tendency to believe there is probably many more. In the whole scheme of things and in light of the terrible suffering happening right now, vehicles can and will be replaced, there were thousands made last month, people cannot be replaced.

This is not a picture of Hurricane Harvey, however I would
think there are similarities.

  I have thought about mosquito's before, I wrote a blog on the pest's, it was how they related to my life and surroundings, . We do not have a problem with them after finding out what the Texans are and will be dealing with in the very near future, like this afternoon. Floods create the perfect world for mosquito's to breed, water everywhere and trapped in pools, tires, ground depressions and all of those destroyed vehicles. Referred to by some people as a flood of "biblical proportions", it truly was, there is another plaque on the horizon and it isn't locusts, it's mosquitoes. Eggs which have been dormant for very long times are now in a perfectly made soup enabling these eggs to hatch. (I can't help but think at this point of what is under the ice shelf's, ancient giant mosquito eggs? Perhaps). The swamps and sloughs in normal weather are a natural mosquito habitat, now with the flood, the habitat has expanded encouraging mosquito breeding. People in Public Health departments throughout Texas are warning people about the sure to come bug infestation, these flood mosquitoes are a different breed, however. The first to appear are incapable of spreading diseases, however, some can still carry Zika, Dengue and West Nile viruses. In the short term the spread of diseases by them is not a worry, however, mosquito's capable of carrying all of the nasty diseases may be on the way.
  West Nile virus has been in Texas since at least 2002, in 2016 there were 370 recorded cases reported. After Hurricane Katrina struck the West Nile virus was not a threat, few cases reported immediately after the storm. One year later West Nile virus reported cases were twice as many as were reported the year prior to the storm. I am sure the Texans are working overtime to eliminate standing water, they are under siege as I am writing this blog.
  What kills mosquitoes in standing water? Management of mosquito's in the first line of defense against the little biting pest, the goal being the eradication of mosquito breeding habitat. It is a noble goal, however, one that proves extremely difficult, mosquito's are capable of laying eggs in one ounce of water, and they survive. Prevention of egg laying is an impossible task, it is much easier to control the larva after they hatch, but we have to be "johnny on the spot" to be effective.

This is from Texas, taken yesterday, September 4, 2017

The mosquito abatement department of the county I live in goes past my house treating mosquito's twice a day. He will ask people if they know of any standing water, most of the time during the week I am the only one around so I talk to him often. They look for habitat everywhere and are permitted to enter most ranches and farms, I don't know how it works in Texas, I do believe it must be similar. Texas is a high mosquito population state in the best of times, now with the flood water, it is off the charts.
   1)  The mosquito larva prefers water less than 2 feet deep, a steep slope entering water than quickly dropping off into deeper water is a deterrent, they don't like deep water.
   2)  Adding air to the pond or stagnant water is an example of a mosquito repellent machine, placing a water or air pump on the bottom of the water and allowed to run all day and night will kill them.
   3)  Remove the food source, they eat vegetation and organic debris (the larva) it also provides shade from the sun and hiding places from predators.
   4)  Mosquito fish work great as well, however, they can not be released in open water, they are an invasive species and are capable of disrupting natural ecosystems.
   5)  In natural environments, which flood water is not, fish, crustaceans, nematodes, bacteria keep the populations under control.
   6)  Predators such as dragonflies and backswimmers are effective mosquito treatment for standing water, it is important no insecticides be introduced to water supporting this natural mosquito repellent.
   7)  Larvicides are much like stomach poison's killing the larva in a few days, they will never fly. Larvicides only kill fly larvae, it will not harm our much desired predatory insects. There are numerous manufacturers and their products differ slightly.
   8)  My favorite is Bats, although they will not eliminate all of the mosquito's, each bat will consume tens of thousands of the pesky little critters every night, encouraging more bats to be born.
  What about natural mosquito repellents? Attractants include,
   1)  Alcohol, yep if you are a drinker, they also are and enjoy a bloody Mary or Bob or they may even land in your wine.
   2)  People with high body temperatures send come hither messages to the belligerent little demons, people that sweat gets bit more often.
   3)  Are you a talker? They are attracted to CO2, Carbon Dioxide, so I guess we can be silent but that won't stop every bite, so keep talking, sometimes swearing helps when it comes to mosquitos.
   4)  Blood type "O", that's me, but I don't get bit very often, in test "O" blood types got bit more often than A, B, and AB. My wife is AB, just the other day I read an article where the author claims all AB blood types are from outer space, I will not comment on that, my wife did when I told her.
  If we don't talk, sweat, breathe, or change blood types we will be alright.
  I ask the question once again, what are some natural mosquito repellents?
  1) Stay indoors during the main feeding times which are dusk and early morning hours, I do remember in my home state when I would step off the road and enter the forest the hounds were released, I got eaten alive by them.

There are not enough words to explain this. This photo is also current from Texas.

  2)  Wear light colored clothing, dark colors attract them, in breezes the pest fly close to the ground comparing your silhouette to the horizon, dark colors stand out.
  3)  As covered earlier in this blog, get rid of standing water.
  4)  Many commercial repellents work, with so many natural attractants some trial and error has to be conducted to ensure it works with your body chemistry, that's the reason some works on certain people and not others. Perform due diligence when searching for repellent.
  The Texans are in for a plague of mosquito's, making life miserable, not to mention the risk of diseases in a year or so. I am sure there will be a number of people standing down wind of bon fires just to find relief. Mosquito's have been around for millions of years, I read about the mosquito's 250 million years ago, during the dinosaur years, the bugs were as big as sparrows and would swarm like honey bees. They swarmed to attack dinosaurs, and they did, driving the giant beast to their deaths by distraction and their desire to escape. That's what I thought of when I mentioned what eggs are under the ice sheets, I hope it's not them. (Read about ancient mosquito's, click here.)
  Thanks for reading, I will continue to pray for the unfortunate victims of Harvey, and the up coming victims of the impending "Irma", the southeastern U.S. has some serious weather. Leave a comment or a story, I am open to all.

jacquesandkate  emergencykitsplus.com
 

What are the natural causes of wildfires, how do wildfires start, are they preventable?

Bless the fire fighters for the "we can beat this" attitude, it takes courage
few of us understand. 

I have just discovered that the wild fire burning today out of control in the Columbia River Gorge was started by 15 year old back packers tossing fire crackers into the canyon.
  Montana is fighting a massive wildfire right now (September 4, 2017) the last I heard it was burning an area of about 8,000 acres. Los Angelo's fighting the largest fire that area has had in written history. British Columbia has just gotten a massive wild fire contained. It has gotten me to thinking about how wild fires start and what are the natural causes of wildfires:
  1) Natural causes of wildfires: Some wild fires do start naturally, generally ignited by intense sunlight, lightning strikes or lava.
  Lightning has two parts, leaders and strokes, the leader comes from the cloud and is sent to the ground, we cannot see the leader. The return is the visible flash, that jagged line of light (actually electricity) created by a series of "strokes" that are responsible for that bright flash we see. Cold and hot lightning, Cold is the return stroke with a very high electrical current lasting a short time. Hot lightning has less voltage, lasting for a long time span, the fires are generally caused by these unusually long lasting strokes or "lightning bolts". The reason the Hot Lightning is a more common cause of wild fires than is Cold Lightning is that the hot has a continuing level of current, the flow of electricity continues over a long period of time creating more heat. Cold lightning is a rapid flash with a loud thunder clap, very short duration incapable of generating enough heat to start a fire. Lightning is one of the most destructive forces on our planet causing more than 5 billion dollars in damages every year in the United States alone, it is also the cause of more deaths than hurricanes.

The big bolt is most likely a "hot" strike, the smaller ones are "cold" strikes,
a hot strike must have hit where the fire is starting in the left center lower. 

There is consistently 100,000 (more or less) lightning strikes on earth every day, the randomness of the occurrences makes scientific study very difficult, and explains why so little is known about the phenomenon. All of our home appliances have circuit breakers that "trip" well below 100 amps. Industrial plants have a circuit breaker controlling the entire plant that will trip at 2 amps, it's called a "man saver", it protects the people working on the electrical system in the control room where the many circuit breakers reside. In contrast, it's not unusual for a lightning bolt to contain 20,000-30,000 amps of current, that is a lot of current and makes it deadly when it goes to ground through a living body. The temperature of lightning is about twice the temperature of the Sun, the lightning is as high as 17,000 degrees Fahrenheit, no wonder it can start a fire in dry brush. Such was the beginning on July 23, 2012, of the "Lava Fire" started in the State of Oregon on rangeland. Burning over 21,000 acres, in the northern "Lake County" on Bureau of Land Management which included a large study area, it burned for over 3 weeks and demanded the attention of 275 personnel, One of the common natural causes of wildfires Lava, however, this one was called the "Lava fire" and not caused by it.
  2)  How do brush fires start? Volcano's start some, in the form of hot lava, red hot rocks and boiling ash being slung all over the country side. March 15, 2011, a fire was started by a lava vent, the Kamoamoa Fissure Eruption which occurred in Hawaii amongst a heavily forested area setting the vegetation on fire, destroying more than 75 acres. There are not a lot of wild fires started by Lava, The same is true of Land slides:
  3) Another natural cause of wild fires is rock slides, in mountainous areas rock slides are common, many occur during heavy periods of rain rendering them mute in so far as being able to create a spark. When the boulders and rocks tumble they strike against each other causing sparks, a lot of sparks are created in one landslide, it only takes one to ignite bone dry vegetation.

Sparking rocks when they hit against one another, is the cause of
many wild fires.

  4)  Spontaneous combustion, compacted organic material, piles of debris or piles of naturally occurring wood shavings from various bugs and animals digging and feeding in a log. I have witnessed many cases of spontaneous combustion, however, everyone was caused by the negligence of people. Which brings us to the biggest cause of wildfires, us, humans:
  5)  Human beings, you and I are the most common causes of wild fires, I feel we all know that. Cigarettes tossed out windows is a common cause, apparently, we think since it's a small ember it's pretty harmless. Camp fires, boy scouts taught us to pour water on a camp fire then stir it, pour more water and stir some more, make sure it is out. Lawn mowers, gasoline powered tools, and vehicles, the hot exhaust pipes and gases take their toll, Catalytic converters in a failure mode begin to get so hot they glow red. When we pull off the road when a Catalytic converter is failing will surely cause a fire, then the vehicle is involved as well. Sparks from a wood burning stove cause some wild fires, home fires are sometimes one of the causes of forest fires. Controlled burns will sometimes go rogue, set as back fires or burning of brush and debris fires sometimes go wildly out of control.
  6)  Forest fire causes and effects: Volcano's, rock slides, lightning and spontaneous combustion amount to 45% of the causes of wild fires. People cause the remaining 55%, it sounds about right to me. One of the fires around where I live was recently started by a guy shooting a 22 rifle at cans, he did it all the time with no problem, it only took one round and one second to start a fire. I was inside a friends garage when a spontaneous combustion fire started just outside on the side of the garage. The guy that lived there had at one time placed a pan of used motor oil next to the garage for a few minutes. The few minutes grew into a much longer term, the container leaked and the oil spread out on the ground and surrounding weeds. It was a hot summer day, the sun was directly over head, the fence and garage block any breeze, suddenly the oil soaked weeds ignited. By the time we got around the corner the fire was huge, we did manage to put it out with garden hoses, a lesson was learned. A good example of a human caused wild fire, via spontaneous combustion.
  I am sitting here writing this blog in a shroud of smoke, we don't know which fire is hanging in our air, we suspect the fire in Yosemite, however, there are several burning in Northern California right now. We have an "off shore" breeze which can blow smoke in from anywhere east of us, I don't think the fire in L.A. is part of our problem. Wild fires release huge amounts of ash, cinders, sulfur dioxide, carbon dioxide which all add to smog which can be deadly to some people with health issues. There are 60,000-80,000 wild fires each year in the United States alone, world wide there are many more, no country, state or city is immune.

It's beautiful and fragile at the same time. 

  There are some "good" effects of wild fires, clearing heavily wooded areas that have decades of organic material's built up burn up easily. Leaving in their wake is bare ground, covered in ash and partly burned organic material all of which will degrade into the soil adding nutrients. Natural Nitrogen is one of the most useful and is in the highest concentration, the organic material will mulch into the soil as well. However one of the side effects is some vegetation needs heat to begin the germination of their seeds. The Giant Sequoia Redwood trees are the most recognized as being one of them. When I back packed I frequented an area that had burned, it was a heavily forested area just North of the Sequoia National Forest, in that space between that park and Yosemite. I hiked through the area every year for about 10 years, the area took a long time to start a recovery. The grass came first, then the little saplings started to grow, I never did see a full grown tree, even after 10 years, it did good things to Terra firma, but nothing for aesthetics. I do wonder how many people die from the after effects of wild fires, famine, dehydration, and respiratory issues being a few. The effects of fire go deeply, the emotional scars often last a life time, there are many stories of rescues gone wrong.
  Fire is a friend, a foe, a threat and a weapon, one of the most basic of catastrophic entities and the most ancient is still one of the most feared, respected and used. Fire is used to heat our homes, cook our meals, and used in processing plants, on the other hand, it is used for arson, torture and military weaponry. A fire must be one of the biggest contradictions we have ever been faced with, it always raises it's head up. Sometimes it appears where we think we are safe, Hurricane Harvey, four feet of water everywhere when a chemical plant ignites, then the news focuses on a burning house, everything was soaking wet but fires still started.
  We are in the midst of Wild Fire Season now in the western United States, I expect to see some starting in the Diablo range to the west of us, at the same time praying for early rain, and no rain in Texas. Talk about contradictory events, but you know as well as I that we are all in this together and we will make it through the other side, together.
  Thanks for reading, leave a comment and tell me what you think.
jacquesandkate emergencykitsplus.com

There are many ways to purify water, in the midst of a disaster purification of water is a challenge.

  I have always been water centered, it sounds a little strange but I have always drank a lot of water every day. I wake up in the morning then shortly after I drink a pint of water, I can feel the effects immediately. My wife started me on drinking a warm pint of water with lemon in it, it was also good. I do take water for granted, to an extent, we live in a unique place, we do not have potable water to our house. All of our water for drinking is mostly bottled, we do have a small reverse osmosis system on our kitchen sink, it puts out 1 gallon an hour, not nearly enough for cooking. We have a whole house filter and an electronic water softener, we are able to use the raw water for cooking and coffee as well as hygienic purposes, non-potable water to the sinks. It's fine, we have adapted and we have learned to live with it, with 15 gallons of water for the water cooler plus two or three cases of pints we do have good water on hand all of the time. My attention turns to the disaster in Texas, it is indeed a water disaster in so many ways, what if we run out of water? How many ways is there to purify water? More importantly, how can I purify water in an emergency?

This is a typical under sink Reverse Osmosis System, fairly in expensive, most electric generating plants and
processing plants use RO systems. 

  A major catastrophic event is able to occur any place in the world at any time, only 1/3 of us will be prepared for it. The area I live in could very easily have been impacted by a failure of the Oroville dam, even though it is over 100 miles upstream from us, there is a lot of water behind the tallest dam in the U.S. We live a very earthquake prone area, however, there again earthquakes happen in every country and every state in the United States, one of the most powerful occurred in New Madrid Missouri in the early 1800,s. One of the biggest faults runs directly under New York City, no spot is immune. Blizzards, hurricanes, tornado's, wild fires, tsunami's plus man made disasters, none of us should rest under the umbrella of false security, lack of water will kill each of us. Most of the stock of everything we need to survive a catastrophic event is stripped off the shelves of every grocery store within 100 miles of the affected area, it is best to be stocked up well in advance. We don't do that, being human we always wait until that last drop of water drips out of the last plastic bottle, the question is then asked: "how do we get more water?" We are then in the market for an emergency water filtration system, or other ways to purify water, unfortunately, in the grips of a disaster it is too late to assemble equipment for water treatment, so what then? For people living in a large city, dependence on responders is paramount rescue centers provide food, water and shelter, non-profits and government agencies set them up. The same can be said for medium size cities and suburbs, water is always the second item people search for, loved ones are the first. If we are fortunate enough to live in a more rural area with access to a flowing river, creek, lake or pond water treatment will work.

We will wait in line for water when it is scarce, be certain you have some way
to strain and boil water in your disaster kits.

 Purification of water when a supply is readily available is fairly straight forward, what kind of water purification system will work in this case? Boiling, let's go through it:
  Boiling river or pond water is effective in killing pathogens, bacteria, viruses, and protozoa. Begin by cleaning up the water, strain the big inclusion out of it by straining through an item like a paint strainer or cheese cloth at least doubled up. After it has been "de-chunked" let it sit until the water clears up, the smaller particles will settle to the bottom of the container. Bring the water to a full boil, let it boil for at least one full minute, longer won't hurt a thing, in fact above 5,000 feet elevation boil it for a minimum of three minutes. To me that sounds short, I prefer to let it boil for a full 5 minutes, I got sick once from drinking contaminated water once I had boiled, I don't think it was long enough. It is the true Montezuma's revenge, and it ain't a nice experience. Let the boiled water cool naturally, pour it into containers that can be sealed, I still add a cap full of unscented bleach to the water for insurance. To improve the taste of the water a small amount of salt, say a "pinch", may be added per quart or liter, pouring between containers adds air and will also improve the taste. I once lived in a town where the water tasted like sulfur, we kept a pitcher of water in the refrigerator, that will also improve the taste.
  If boiling is not possible, then after straining and cleaning the water to a desirable opacity household bleach will successfully work for water treatment. Using a clean dropper, there may be one in your emergency kit and using regular unscented bleach add 2 drops per quart (liter) of water. Add 6 drops in a gallon, 12 in 2 gallons, 1/4 teaspoon in 4 gallons and 1/2 teaspoon in 8 gallons. The Romans used oil of oregano, it's a very good disinfectant, it's also extremely expensive. (No one recommends using it to disinfect water, it's just an interesting note.)

Yes it is, the real quote, I did flub it in the blog. 

  I have discussed water purification in a predictable environment, unlike what the people in Texas are facing, that is an entirely different situation. It is important however to stress the importance of drinking water, we do take it for granted, most of us have no idea how badly we need it until it is no longer available. Mark Twain said, "water is for fighting over." It sure can be, we live water wars in the West, in an emergency, it can occur rapidly. All it takes for our supply of water to be interrupted is for a power outage to occur, they occur during almost every catastrophic event, a flood compounds the problem. Water containers can be purchased from most hardware stores, if we buy them now and fill them with potable water now we will be far ahead of the sure to come disaster event. Hmm, sounds like a good Christmas present for the kid's families.
Thanks for reading, leave a comment or a suggestion.
jacquesandkate  emergencykitsplus.com
 

Flood water clean up, and water borne diseases why not drink flood water? Find out why here.

  The news feed is so intense during Hurricane Harvey, today is September 2, 2017, just over a week since the beginning of this terrible catastrophic event. I don't know about you but I am always astonished, although I shouldn't be, at the role fires play in almost every natural disaster. Four feet of flood water and there is a video of a house on fire, wow, amazing. As I was listening to one of the major news reports, I've found the weather channel is a good one to watch, a representative at a hospital made a statement that of course started the gears in my brain to start turning. The lady's statement, I realize there is a lot of distress involved, she said to the effect, "We expected the electricity to be out, but the water, who would expect that we would lose our water supply?" This is not a direct quote, it's a part of what I can recall, I'm not passing judgment on her at all, I will use it to explain why it was lost and why it cannot be reclaimed for consumption. Flood facts.

This is a FEMA poster, they really do a good job in disasters
when it's all taken into perspective, they are housing ten's of
thousands of displaced people right now, it's a huge undertaking.

  1)  What's in the flood water? E. Coli, Salmonella, Shigella, the virus Hepatitis A as well as paratyphoid and tetanus. These diseases caused by floods are just the tip of the iceberg, as the temperatures rise, mold forms and the water warms up a toxic pool of water borne diseases is created. The symptoms of the illnesses are the most miserable diarrhea, abdominal cramps, high fever and muscle cramps.  Tetanus is caused when contaminated water enters the body through a cut or other opening in the skin, Lock Jaw is also one of the diseases caused by floods. The good news is that in developed country's (USA) after a flooding disaster diseases such as cholera or typhoid are rare. Most diseases that occur after the event were present prior to the natural disaster, however, that does not translate into environmental pollution not being an issue after a flood.
  The viruses and diseases present in the flood water can be eliminated through boiling for at least 1/2 hour, following water purification procedures as outlined here. There is more in the water than bugs, don't drink the water yet, if ever.
  2)  Why won't boiling alone make the flood water safe? Lead may be one of the less dangerous compounds in flood water, think of the chemicals each of us use at our homes. Weed killer, fertilizers, pesticides, oils, fuels and all sorts or glues, paints and sealers, just in our homes. Think of all of the cleaning supplies in each home, and possible asbestos. Farms, parks, golf courses and industrial plants all use an amazing assortment of chemicals, paints and special manufacturing compounds. Some we know what their active ingredients are, others we don't really know, especially while they are being manufactured which may include more chemicals that dissipate during the manufacturing process but remain intact in flood water. Arsenic is very common in water supplies, it was used at one time (it's my understanding the practice has stopped) in pressure treated wood. The wood is treated in some states as a "toxic" material and can not be placed in regular garbage or sent to a dump. Arsenic is very difficult to remove from water, in fact, some facilities adhere to the "dilution is the solution" to this particular contaminate. More on flood water purification.
 

Every town has at least one Water Treatment Plant, ours is just
across the river from my house.

How can we be sure the water is pure if we don't know what is in it? It's impossible to know what's in flood water without extensive testing, even after testing there is a number of unknowns. It is impossible to remove all of the contaminants from the water making flood water cleanup all the more difficult. To compound the problem, the land from Houston to the Sea is on a slope of 1 foot down for each mile forward, flat. That slope is so flat it's a wonder how the water can flow as far as it has to go, causing another issue to occur. Ground water pollution.
  3)  Ground water pollution, the longer water lays on the surface the more time it has to percolate into the water table. As it penetrates the soil I have a tendency to think the sand and organic material Purify's it. That is true to a point, at issue is some of the chemicals are not shed in the sand, instead they are carried through to the reservoir below it, blame gravity.
       Well water, raw flood water will contaminate any well, the water should not be used until after extensive testing is performed, that well must be treated as if it is toxic because it is. Boil well water and treat it with unscented bleach prior to using it for hygienic purposes. DDT, dioxins (agent orange) and some polymers can not be filtered out of the water, there is no way to know without testing if any of these compounds are in the water. After a flood the U.S. Department of Health sets up a system to track disease outbreaks, making response rapid.
        We are able to make water appear clean, crystal clear, that does not mean it is potable, it merely means nothing is floating in it. Boiling removes some disease bacteria and virus's, purification tablets take out some more, neither will remove chemicals. Reverse Osmosis removes more compounds and "bugs", but not all, Dioxins and Arsenic plus others remain. How to purify water, click here.
  4)  Ground water cleanup is impossible, the only way to even partially clean up the water table is when it is piped to the community, either in the processing plant or in the case of a private well the use of a "whole house filter". At the facility there is normally huge "settling ponds", pools holding water to enable the solid to sink to the bottom, skimming off the clearer water on top. After the heavy solids are removed the typical plant sends the water to a series of screens and filters, filtering the water down to 10 microns, very small. That removes all of the "stuff" that earned the Mississippi the nickname "Old Muddy", the water is clear, but not clean, yet. After the filtering, it is tested for contaminants and all of the time, every time in normal conditions the water is safe to drink. Yes some municipalities add chemicals and additives which are deemed "safe" for consumption, we mostly assume our water supply is indeed "safe". Now the water is in our homes and we are Happy, we are fortunate in our country to have reliable, clean and efficient water systems. Then disaster strikes, the bad of the bad, a flood.

It's nice to see a diagram of the water table and how it works, there are two
layers of clay in the Central Valley, depending on where it is one is at about
8 feet the second below it at about 15-20.  It's referred to as "hard pan".

  5)The reason our water gets interrupted is: Due to the holding ponds having to be at ground level, I imagine somewhere there is one built above the flood plain while supplying it water, but most are prone to be affected by flooding. Four feet of water was the average level the water achieved during Hurricane Harvey, over an area larger than the state of New Jersey, on a flood plain which is basically flat. The contaminated flood water will penetrate every square inch of the processing plant rendering it completely contaminated, ending processing. The flood water is toxic and has just caused huge damage to the plant. All of the electric motors, control boxes, circuit breakers, control panels everything that was submerged must be replaced. All of the processing piping must be cleaned out, inside, filters, vessels, and tanks must be cleaned or replaced. All of the supply piping to the community must be flushed out with clean water after the plant is back in operation, the flood water contamination includes the infrastructure. Just to get the plant "up and running" is a major undertaking, 24 hour days are not uncommon for the workers, that is just the beginning in many ways. The community has limited water in the beginning while the processing plant continues to deal with the effects of the flood, it will continue for most likely a year at least.
  "We didn't think we'd lose our water supply." Flooding is an equal opportunity disaster, it affects everything in its path, our water comes from below us, as long as gravity dominates we are at its mercy. I guess we could say then the problem isn't the flood its gravity. Click flood info is here
  I am extremely distressed over this tragedy, the human suffering that we are witnessing is saddening, to say the least. Some have been in water up to their hips for over 7 days, I can only imagine the foot and skin problems they are enduring. The wild critters in their homes, the snakes, snapping turtles and alligators are just a few. The kids, pets, grandparents, mothers and dads, it is so tragically sad I have no more words.
Thanks for reading, I'd like to hear your comments.
jacquesandkate  emergencykitsplus.com

Doomsday bunkers emergency food supply's and escaping the city, will we all survive?

  I have read many blogs and forums that people write on self-reliance and being prepared for an emergency event. Some, not all by any means, are deeply ingrained in the theory that when the inevitable collapse of our society takes place it will inspire people to attack one another. Attack one another why, well because I have what "they" want, supposedly they want my water, food and supplies and "they" are all bent and sent to get it any way they are able. My idea of what will happen does not exist in that reality, I have too much faith in the human race, there is something about catastrophes that brings out the best in most people. I believe as with most things in life that 1% of any organization causes 99% of the problems, so are the people blogging about being under siege in a dream world or is it most likely to occur.

Entry to a "bunker", almost looks like an old style sod house. 

  Some people have well-equipped cabins or get away's in some area far away in the middle of nowhere. Some are located in such a remote area, a map may read: follow the main highway for 100 miles, take an exit that is a dirt road, drive down it for another 100 miles then on to a logging road down a cow path, up a tree, and into a knothole. No one is going to find some of these places, but these guys are dedicated and true believers that a complete collapse is inevitable. Maybe it is, I don't think so but we are all entitled to our own beliefs. For a group of people to hunt these very secluded bunkers, it would take a lot of dedication and they will have to be very desperate, not to mention they would have to have some idea of where they are going. I think the families in the

It may be like this after we run out of gasoline.

bunkers will be OK, no one will attack them. Another issue is if a family holes up alone their chances of survival are bleak, especially if there is trouble. Human beings security is in groups, a band of 25 individuals is an optimal number for a settlement, it would be 12 adults and 13 kids. All farmers, all with separate skills. The most important task these groups would have will be to provide food for the first winter. In Montana when the homestead act first was enacted most of the homesteaders did not make it through the first winter, due to a lack of food. In order to raise enough to survive, it will take people that know how to grow crops. A lot of crops, for each person 1/4 acre of potatoes per person will have to be grown to make it through 6 months, then plant again. People with the know how to raise root crops, beets, turnips, sweet potatoes, and onions will be needed. They will have to know crop rotation, natural plowing methods to reduce erosion, watering amounts, and perhaps most importantly crop rotation. There will not be enough room in a city to grow enough food to feed a family so one of these bunkers would be the way to go as far as food is concerned and if the people know how to grow it. I may be naive but I don't recall ever hearing a historical account of how invaders took over a working farm in the middle of the growing season, just to have the crop fail because the intruders had no idea of what they were in for. Without a successful crop, everyone would starve over the winter, The bunker will have to be a working farm with real farmers, not soldiers.
  I live close to a major city, 50 miles from San Francisco on a delta island, we have a daughter in the city. Ours is an isolated place, people have a hard time believing California isn't just all Hollywood, we aren't and most people in Northern California mostly like Southern California for the best beaches. We live in the middle of nowhere, at the end of the road, and we are as self-reliant as we are able to be. To continue the above situation where our society collapses, where I live will present a much different reality, one of which I believe many share. As it continues some people believe the city will empty out and we will be engulfed with thousands of people, well maybe not. Of course, I have other ideas on that, I really don't believe anyone will be going anywhere. I'm staying home, we are prepared and we can supply a few more people for a very limited time, water and a dried bread crust maybe but it's something. If there is a collapse, let's imagine what may take place, this is a

Hello!? OK, yes, I should be there in about 3 days, don't worry I'm alright. 

different kind of city, (did I have to mention that even?) Some people in the city will want to get out of Dodge, remember 1% at least will make an attempt. That's about 86,481 packing up and taking off, the population of San Francisco is 864,816 as of 2015. We now have a large number of people on three freeways, highway 101 north (Golden Gate Bridge), highway 580 over the Bay Bridge and 101 south to San Jose through South San Francisco. Have you ever driven these roads in the best of times? They are at certain times of the day a parking lot. Now the escape, major earthquake 86,000 people jump in their cars and immediately get jammed up, it takes two cars to completely jam up either bridge. The Bay Bridge is a double-decker so lane crossing is impossible, the Golden Gate could open 4 lanes out, however, what would the emergency responders do, how would they get into town? Road rage, accidents, and breakdowns would most likely stop everyone after the first 2,000-3,000 cars get through signaling the exit is over, then we have thousands of people on the freeway walking to.......Oakland? Where in the world would these people be heading to in the first place? The silver lining in all of this is that one thing the bay area is good at is responding to disasters, there have been plenty of them here as well. I think very few people will make it out of town, maybe the ferry's would run but again where in the heck would people go? They are much much better off gathering supplies to survive for at least six months, it would be every bit as intense as the bunker survivors but in a very different way, a very crowded different way.
  Meanwhile, on our little island with all of our eccentric people and animals, none of us are going anywhere, we would be more concerned with who's coming to dinner. The houses on the dead-end road I live on, (on an island all roads are dead ends, they all end at the water.) the houses are on one side of the road, small homesteads and ranches occupy the center. We lose our utilities all of the time, fallen trees, high winds and the like take their toll, in a major earthquake it would not be much different. I don't think any residents here would even think of leaving, we have one two-lane bridge out, but we can get far away in boats. We know all of our neighbors, most are here only on weekends of the seven houses in a row next to me, two have people during the week. The chances of a major

Islands flood too.

event happening with everyone here is remote. We will go on with life, changing very little, as long as we have supplies. Some way to purify water, dehydrated food, and lighting, basic stuff, holed up in the house. Again 1/3 of us are prepared, 1/3 are "kind of" prepared and the remaining 1/3 have no interest and figure they will get by somehow. (Some of my grandsons come to mind, of course, they think I'm nuts.) OK so now we are faced with an event that looks like it may last a while, what will us on the island do? I see us banding together and creating some sort of a barter system, one advantage is we mostly all know each other. Between the family gardens, the ranchers and the small farmers would probably form 25 member groups as mentioned above, would we make it through? Food and farming are in the forefront again, the goal would be to make it through the first winter. I wonder if people would work if there was plenty of food, or wait until the food was gone then decide to plant a garden. Farmers are the answer I wouldn't want to risk it without farmers, ranchers, and people willing to work at it.
  Most emergency situations last for about 3 days, I am more comfortable with a 7 day supply of emergency food, water, and shelter. I do not have one years supply of food on hand, we do have a week's worth, however, that's fairly easy to do. After starting a supply I have found it to start to enter my lifestyle and it kind of takes a life on of its own. By adding to the supplies slowly, from several different stores and suppliers we can keep the cost under control. By far preparation is the best route to take, purchase a pre-assembled kit or construct your own, you can buy a kit and as most people do add to it. More importantly is to have a pre-established emergency plan, in as complete of detail as possible. Be certain to have a contact number out of the area for the family members to call and check in with on a regular basis.
  I suspect we will never be totally on our own for a very long length of time, a week most likely a month less likely but still very much a likely hood, longer than a month we will be in the middle of a major disaster, that's where our long-term planning comes in. A very good paper on disaster planning.
  Just a few thoughts on survival, there is a lot of information and opinions about this scenario, all very much speculation. It boils down to how much we trust our government to provide basic food supplies, water, and safety, the closer we live to a city the more important those services will become. The people in the bunker, 100% dependent on themselves, the people in the city, 100% dependent on outside resources and the people in the semi-rural 50% dependent on the government and 50% dependence on themselves.
  It makes sense to me, every event is different, a flood different than a fire or an earthquake, we will be faced with a lot of unknowns. Thanks for reading, maybe I got you to thinking about this a little bit, it just may become a lifestyle change for you.

jacquesandkate  emergencykitsplus.com