How quickly can you get out?

How quickly can you be ready if you are told to evacuate?  12 hours? 2 hours? What if you only had 15 minutes?   
In the last two weeks, we have had strong reminders of how disrupting and destructive natural disasters can be to our lives.  My father-in-law's vacation home in Florida was effected by Tropical Storm Debby when up to 25 inches of rain fell.  In the Northwest, fires in Montana have been threatening many homes across the state.  Helena banned fireworks for the 4th due to fire danger, and the last information I saw was that 3 homes had burned and many others had been evacuated just in Helena alone. Needless to say, Colorado has been hit hard as well.  The fire threat is so high that my mom was concerned about leaving her home to go to Cabo for vacation.  Sure, mom worries a lot, but to not want to go to Cabo...
                        

damage after 6 ft of water
flooded the home

This is what Mike opened the door to.

The neighbors pool

  

Coral Fire on the outskirts of Helena

           In the event of a flood, house fire or wild fire, hurricane, earthquake or tornado would you be able to leave your home and get to safety as quickly as possible?  Do you know where to go?  If your family is separated, would they all know where to meet at?  It's scary to think about, but imagine how terrifying it would be if one of these situations presented itself and you weren't ready?  

One quick and easy step to help you in the right direction is to have a 72 hr kit ready.  There are tons of sites where you can find more information, but here are a couple that I used to make my own...

http://www.ready.gov/sites/default/files/documents/files/checklist_1.pdf 

http://beprepared.com/images/art/72hourchecklist.pdf 

My kit doubles as my emergency bag in case I get stuck out of town.  In the winter I will add shoes suitable for snow, a blanket and extra coat, hat and gloves to keep in my trunk.  This is a habit that most Montanans develop, however simplified, especially if you travel fairly long distances for any reason.  My extra shoes and coats came in handy more than once while I was out and about.  I'll never forget getting a flat tire on the stretch between Three Forks and Townsend. at about 11:30 at night.  Standing on the side of the road in pitch black, and of course my batteries had died in my flashlight, ugh. Listening to the critters move around in the grass was not my idea of a good time.  Coyotes are not my friends, nasty little buggers.  But I digress...

My 72 hr kit I keep in my car.

My bag contains...

• cash, legal documents, social security cards, credit card (kept at home in the fire safe to be grabbed if necessary)
• NC road map
• change of clothes, shoes and socks
• feminine and oral hygiene products
• first aid kit (all contents fit inside the water bottle, you can find DIY lists on line)
• food/drink mix
• baby wipes
• emergency contact info
• medicine
• flash light, extra batteries
• multi-tool, emergency cable saw, pocket knife
• trash bags 
• rubber gloves
• emergency blanket

The only thing I am missing is my water...1 person=1 gallon per day.

Keep in mind any specific needs you have that would cause need for specific tools, clothing, medicines.  For example, my son's bag has extra pull-ups and toys.  Another example is when I was staying at Canyon Ferry Lake with my parents I would keep a screwdriver in my console.  If  I ever were to drive into the lake, a screwdriver could be an invaluable tool to break out the windows as an escape route. Anyone who drives across the dam will notice a cross on the Yacht Basin side that stands as a reminder of how easily it could happen.  

I remember a woman's story about how thankful she was for her 72 hr. kit.  Her husband had had a heart attack and was in ICU for several days.  She had her kit ready with all his medical history, medication list, insurance cards etc. ready to give the hospital.  At the same time she had everything she needed to camp out at the hospital, including coin change for the vending machines and a crossword puzzle book to keep her thoughts focused on something other than her husband's state.  She was also able to immediately call all their family and friends to let them know what was going on so they could get to the hospital more quickly and to also make sure her dog was taken care of at home.  If she hadn't had her kit ready, how much more stressful would her situation have been?  You certainly can't make a bad situation like that better, but there are steps you can take to prevent it from getting worse.  

Natural disasters, or even every day hiccups like my flat tire in the middle of the night, can create disasters in our lives.  We can't make them less horrible, and we certainly can't prevent them.  However, if we take just a small amount of time to prepare (my kit took 20 minutes), recovery from these disasters can be that much easier.