The Station Fire in Angeles Crest has been threatening whole communities this past week, and over the weekend I happened to be at a bachelorette party with alot of people being directly affected...
Determining Your Priorities: The Station Fire
Yes, before we got down to the important business of celebrating, most of the girls were on the phone with parents, boyfriends, cousins and neighbors because their homes were being evacuated. We were in San Diego so there wasn't much anyone could do right there. No, over the phone priorities had to be determined, instructions issued and then houses shut. It made me think about all the stuff I've got that, cliched as it might be, isn't as important as my kitty, my photographs and some key mementos; basically my history.
I'm sure most people would have a similar list of priorities and while I don't need to live like my house is going to burn down tomorrow, it does help put all this stuff into perspective. There a couple of things that I'd done unwittingly that would make evacuation easier:
• All of my important documents are in one box, so I just have to grab it.
• All of my photos are on my computer or on the hard drive I keep next to it.
• My cat will get into her carrier pretty easily
• My photo albums are in a pile in my closet (awaiting a true home) but are easily grabbable.
Anything else I'd want I would just grab as I'm running through, but I could live without most of it.
Here is a complete Home Fire Checklist and How To Evacuate in 15 Minutes or less.
I'm grateful that so far all the people I was with still have homes and everyone is safe. We at Apartment Therapy are thinking of those who are being displaced, threatened or have lost a home and sending them whatever comfort we can.
(Image: Atwater Village
Comments (5)
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One other good tip I heard during a disaster training (I work for a government agency, so it's part of the orientation drill) was to keep recent pictures of your family members and pets in the same place you keep your first aid kit and emergency supplies. This could help you locate your loved ones in case you're in different locations when the fire, earthquake, or tsunami hits.
Keeping all of you in SoCal in my thoughts.
view sarahjade's profile
The most important thing is to just get out if they tell you to. It is just stuff, and even if it can't be replaced, like photos, they are not worth your life.
view sophiesmom's profile
Those are fine plans but since most of us work 9-10 hours a day away from home and spend another few hours daily outside the home at places like the gym, commuting, running errands, visiting friends, dining out, etc., all those preparations won't do a bit of good if something happens during the >50% of the time that we're not on premises. Safety workers simply don't allow anyone back into an evacuation zone to get their box of stuff, the hard-drive and the cat - no matter how conveniently prepared.
Just make sure the insurance is paid and there's a recent & accurate inventory securely stashed someplace outside your home (preferably with supporting photographs) in case you need to make a claim.
view bepsf's profile
My fiance and I keep all of our important documents in a fireproof safe; I also want to keep scanned copies of them on a USB thumb drive on my key ring. My parents, who live 300 miles away and are unlikely to also be hit by anything we are hit by, also have copies of most of them.
All of our photos are "up in the cloud" so to speak. They're all online in our various social networking sites.
The kittens are inclined to run straight to us when they're scared, and they're good in the carrier and in the car. We are also putting together a thorough emergency kit which will include a good supply of food for them, as well as us, and I am asking the vet for some kitty vallium to add to the first aid kit, just in case they freak out.
view deliriumsama's profile
Someone trying to stop me from rescueing my dog had better be prepared to shoot me. I kid you not.
view LBhirise's profile