Climate Action Day 53 – Prepare a Go Bag and a Stay Bin

Actions Around the Home

The Frog will explore The Climate Action Handbook: A Visual Guide to 100 Climate Solutions by Heidi Roop in the first 100 days of 2024

My father and mother lived through the Great Depression and World War II, a long and profound period of uncertainty and fear. Growing up, my father would manifest this experience in subtle ways that could be interpreted as that of a rational survivalist. This included prudent preparations for periods of unrest and destruction, either manmade or from natural disasters. This included preparing what he referred to as bug out gear and wallets. “Bugging out”, as in “leave in a hurry”. Check out the Bug Out episodes of M*A*S*H.

The good news is that in over fifty years in Northern Virginia, the closest we came to a natural disaster requiring bugging out was Hurricane Camille in 1969.

Given the increasing ferocity of weather on a warming planet, being prepared to protect yourself and your family is prudent and advisable. In addition to a Bug Out Bag for a quick evacuation (Heidi refers to it as a Go Bag. Same thing), you should also prepare a Stay Bin as experts suggest you also prepare to survive (i.e. “shelter in place”) without leaving your house for two weeks.

You can find recommendations for each online (but be prepared to sift through survivalist and doomsday prepper marketing as you do so). In essence, visualize your needs and prepare a readily accessible source of supplies for your survival for a short period of time. If you don’t do this, you will put yourself and others in danger as you seek the supplies outside your home or in the middle of an evacuation.

A Bug Out Bag should include important documents like passports and birth certificates, cash (my father included gold coins), phone charges and accessories, snacks (i.e. energy bars), water, medications etc. Also make provisions for your pets if you know you will take them with you. Consider adding spare clothing for everyone, toys for the kids, and diapers, wipes, etc. for infants. [It is a called a Bug Out Bag, but more likely a plastic tub would be more handy in an emergency].

Go down the Reddit Rabbit Hole on Bug Out Bags

A Stay Bin is the same concept if you have to “shelter in place” in your home. Assume you will not have electricity. What’s the plan? You need at least two-week supplies of food, knowing your refrigerators and freezers won’t be running, and a water supply if your utility is disrupted. A water filter/treatment system might come in handy, as well as staple foods like rice, beans, and/or dehydrated meals.

First aid supplies, medicines, battery operated radios, solar powered chargers. The list may be long – envision living in your house for two weeks without any support and make a plan to do it. You might want to have a backup battery source to run your electronics to stay in touch. A multi-fuel (i.e. gasoline and propane) generator or some solar panels with a battery charger or inverter can keep batteries charged and run small appliances, electronics, fans and the like for short periods of time.

The Center for Disease Control on sheltering in place

“There’s no harm in hoping for the best as long as you’re prepared for the worst”

Stephen King

Next Up: Climate Action in 2024 – Day 54: Create a More Energy-Efficient Home

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