Glenn Reynolds rightly points out that disaster preparedness is a mindset, and more technical than merely stockpiling food and water. Here's an overview from the LA Fire Department, focused on earthquakes but a useful overview in general. How good to come through a crisis with self-respect, not making matters worse nor being an undue burden on our neighbors.
We were amused by the general frenzy that Rita caused in Austin -- bottled water supplies decimated! Lines at Wal-Mart at 11 PM! Of course we too bought a few things, so I suppose we were part of the hype, but the most useful part of the whole experience (other than acquiring a stash of batteries in a drawer) was that we talked about what we would grab in an emergency and where we would go.
And after all the excitement pre-Rita, all we ended up with was a staggering heat wave. It was a great relief to all my family who'd been keeping tabs, and a bit of disappointment on this end...
Posted by: MrsDarwin | September 26, 2005 at 03:24 PM
We too had guests in Austin, and not a drop of rain.
The crowd at HEB encouraged us not just to be prepared...but to be prepared to be prepared not to try to get prepared at the time everyone else may be trying to get prepared!
And it's good that Rita gave us a pass. You never know.
Posted by: dilys | September 28, 2005 at 03:37 PM