You’re sitting quietly at home, watching TV with the family, when something unimaginable happens. The “why” or “what” doesn’t really matter—what does matter is that you only have a few minutes to gather up your family and evacuate your home. It’s uncertain what you will face or when you might be able to return. If
Meals Ready to Eat, or simply MREs, are the main individual self-contained field ration for U.S. military personnel. MREs are primarily intended for use in combat or field conditions where other food facilities may not be available. They have been around for over 30 years, but their roots stretch back to the C-Rations used during
The popularity of the Apple iPhone®, iPod® and iPad cannot be overstated. They are quickly becoming the preferred handheld devices of military and law enforcement as well. The U.S. Department of Defense has officially approved Apple devices running iOS 6 or later to access its secure government networks. Android® devices are also making inroads. DoD
If a disaster occurs while you’re away from your home (and your preparations), what do you do? Do you have a plan and the necessary supplies to help get you back home quickly and safely? Or will you find yourself among the many thousands of panicked, desperate people waiting for someone to come to their
You’re in the process of rotating your food supplies when you notice that the “Best By” date on some of the containers came and went over five months ago! If you’re like most people, your first reaction is probably to throw out any food products that appear to be out of date. After all, who
The pistol is really a weapons system that encompasses the carriage platform that gets the weapon to the fight, the “launcher” (handgun), and the missile that does the work. For best effect, all three have to be tailored to the man, the mission, and the environment. Aside from a few oddball weapons out there, service
When people use the term “evacuation,” they’re usually referring to the temporary but rapid removal of large groups of people from a structure or disaster area as a rescue or precautionary measure. Few of us consider that we may need to do an evacuation or self-rescue from our own home. Even fewer have made any
When it comes to preparedness, I usually encourage folks to focus on the basics—food, water, first aid, medical, sanitation, hygiene, self-defense, security, and of course, knowing when to stay put and when to get out. All these things are important, but when I talk about them, some people only hear the following: Food Water Guns
Hurricanes, tornadoes, wildfires, floods, snowstorms, volcanoes, earthquakes. And those are just some natural hazards—there are also plenty of manmade disasters waiting to ruin a perfectly good day. Truth be told, we can never really know what will come our way or how it will affect us. But given all the dangers and uncertainties in the
Maintain a generous supply of N95/N100 masks, which are readily available and inexpensive. Worn properly, masks help prevent the spread of infection. During the 2009 H1N1 influenza pandemic, N95 masks were almost impossible to find at any price. Few things ramp up the fear factor higher than the threat of bio-chemical terrorism. While few of
