It's been a while since I did a Flood-Proof Friday post. It's a segment of my blog that will always be here but I don't need to write about flooding every Friday - unless I have something important I want to say or express. Back in November I wrote about signing up for the Get Ready Queensland initiative which basically prepares you and your home over a period of fifty two weeks, for any natural disaster event. I thought I would recap what the weekly suggestions are so far:
1. 'Like' the SES Queensland Facebook page
2. Get a first aid kit or make sure the one you have is up to date
3. Make sure you have a battery operated radio and spare batteries
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4. Save 000 in your phone for emergencies
You used to have to ring a different number from your mobile but 000 now works. We had to ring an ambulance for Paul's dad last year and 000 got me straight through. Quicker to dial it than store it though I think?
5. Make sure you have enough water for 3 days
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This is always an issue for us. We put pots and pans out to catch rainwater and use the floodwater to flush our toilets, as well as relying on our bottled supply.
6. Get a gas cooker so you can still boil water and cook if the power goes out
Our gas stove has been the best thing for floods. Imagine a fridge full of food that has to be cooked before it goes off? Paul did rely on a small gas burner one year, and boiled eggs as the chooks laid them.
7. Check electrical items for damage before use (ie. Christmas lights)
An odd thing to put on the list at this stage although I suppose it was emailed at Christmas time.
8. Where would you stay if you had to evacuate your home - have a plan
We have great neighbours who own a camping ground and the helicopter shot in my cover photo was taken from there. We have stayed at their place several times when we had to get out.
9. Save 13 HEALTH (13 43 25 84) in your phone for non-emergency health advice
A great suggestion. I did not even know about this information line. Have you used it for advice before?
10. Ensure you have a working torch and spare batteries
11. Get to know your neighbours, maybe even swap phone numbers
We had thought of getting everyone together but it has not eventuated. It is on my to-do list. When Cathryn from Cobb and Co was arranging for the lady next door to get airlifted from her roof, we discovered the value of knowing who your neighbours are.
12. Make a list of your valuable items and take photos for insurance purposes
13. On hot days check on elderly relatives and neighbours to make sure they are okay.
A great point, but not sure of it's relevance (for this list) anyway. Living out here we don't have close elderly neighbours.
14. Find out where your nearest hospital emergency department is
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There you have it! With fourteen weeks into the fifty-two we have certainly covered a few essentials. I question the order of priorities with a few of them, as there are several things I would have included by now if I were designing the list. For example, a stockpile of food would be more important than making a list of my valuable items...to me anyway :)
What are your thoughts? With bushfires and floods now affecting people where they haven't before, do you have some sort of plan?
