Enhance your kit with these individually wrapped things

Almost done with the 2nd week of 2020 National Preparedness week – so let’s enhance your preparedness kit a little more.

As you know, this week has been dedicated to your prep kits and diving into several avenues of that works and of course ways you can enhance your kit to make you more agile/nimble…give you a better chance.

Want an easy one for today?

Utensils.

In this day of trying to find better ways to be a bit more clean (thanks COVID), we need to be more aware of our hands and the things we touch. Therefore we should act like an advanced society and really use our utensils to max capacity.

Why You Should Let Your Baby Get Messy While Eating

Since all of us are doing our part and eating out a bit more (hopefully more local), take a moment and utilize those plastic utensil sets for your kits. Don’t decline or throw them away, USE THEM!

Most of them come individually wrapped and often are filled with a knife, fork, spoon, napkin, salt, and pepper. In fact, the fancier ones come with a wet-nap of some sort to help clean you up a bit.

(hint wing joints usually send their to-go orders with wet naps.

Now, let’s step up to the big leagues. Check this out from my friends at Mount Prospect Emergency Management (Illinois).

Handy dandy AND reusable. Legit sturdy utensil set that all packs up nicely in a ready to go pouch.

Look closely, you can see Mount Prospect EM subscribes to the Built a Kit – Make a Plan mantra.

Look, however you want to do it, having an extra set(s) of utensils could be a lifesaver for your preparedness kit. (FYI-the Mount Prospect EM utensil set legit lives in my preparedness kit)

Heck, if you use chopsticks, that’s totes fine with me too.

IntereSTING...: Goodbye, Mr. Miyagi

So get those extra utensils in play and enhance your kit!

Reporting live from the Village of Spork…HA!

@rusnivek

The FEMA #PIO on #PirateRadio! Is that real? #FBF

I was asked if Pirate Radio was real….yeppers!


Pirate Radio based in the Florida Keys-Key West has a strong voice that not only hits audiences throughout the keys, but also into southern Florida too. They stream their shows so that any Pirate can listen in…even when yer a landlubber!


I was a regularly contributor to their morning shows with daily Hurricane Irma disaster updates. We also brought other public safety agencies in with us to showcase the unified efforts of countless government agencies involved and how we are all working together in the response/recovery effort.


Additionally, I was invited to be a regular guest on their Friday morning show to talk about the DHS/FEMA response and recovery efforts for the Florida Keys. Not only talking about the Florida Keys, but also the millions of $$ in financial support approved for the State of Florida.


Remember, AM/FM radio stations are a critical source of information in a disaster. After a disaster, cell service might be down, sat tv might be out, and it is highly likely that your neighborhood may not have power. Post-disaster, plan on AM/FM radio being a solid source of information.

Many mahalos to both gracious Pirate Radio hosts – Jack and Kim!

@rusnivek

Need a backup EOC? I bet you can identify this one

For my Emergency Management Pros – have you done your continuity planning yet?

What? You don’t have a backup Emergency Operations Center?!?

Let me help you for free: Sports-type restaurants can easily double as an Emergency Operations Center.

restaurant-eoc

Oh schnikies – he’s right!

Remember on September 11th, FDNY had to move their EOC multiple times because of increased hazards, inaccessibility, and debris?

More planning? Any of the FEMA credentialed Master Continuity Practitioners can help you out…like me.

fema_logo3

Likely this could be a good alternate to any Emergency Operations Center right? Large parking lot, ability to provide food, bathrooms, etc….all the stuff we need.

So yes, if you are short on funding, consider identifying a few neighborhood sports restaurants as backup emergency operations centers in your AOR and mutual aid districts/regions.

@rusnivek