savage money / By Jennifer Savage

Budget Disaster Prep

You’re used to living with little, but in an emergency that’s not enough

(Jan. 21, 2010)  Whenever disaster strikes, talk of preparedness is sure to follow. Were we ready? Did we have what we needed? What should we have done differently? Experts exhort community members to stockpile rations, batteries, extra clothes and medical supplies.

But what about those folks scraping by, the ones struggling to put the regular food on the table? Where does the extra couple hundred dollars for all that canned food, peanut butter and rice cakes come from? If you’re barely making ends meet, an extra massive grocery-buying trip is untenable — but so is facing an earthquake, tsunami or wind-induced power outage without appropriate supplies. As always, the trick is to incorporate the extra expenses in the most painless way possible.

Go to humboldt.edu/shakyground. Click on “Supplies for Seven Days.” This gives you standard non-perishable food ideas. Print it out. Fold it up and tuck the list in your purse or wallet. Each time you hit the grocery store — Grocery Outlet is especially great for this kind of stuff — pick up one of the items listed, two if they’re on sale. Check it off your list. Keep that stuff in a box or tub labeled “Emergency Supplies.” Hope nothing major happens before you’ve accumulated enough food to feed the family post-tsunami. Of course, if you live in a tsunami zone, you may not be able to lug your supplies to high ground. Befriend people who live in higher elevations as backup. If they have room, maybe you can keep a stash in their garage.

Don’t forget your pets! Take a couple scoops out of the new kibble bag each time and let their food supply build up as well.

Along with the food, have an envelope for cash as ATMs may be down and banks closed. Each payday, tuck $5 or $10 into that envelope.

A hand-crankable weather radio is a necessity on the North Coast. Responsive as our local radio stations are, they are not a substitute for your own connection to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration — especially if you’re in a tsunami zone.

When the big New Year’s Eve storm blew out the power back in 2005, I had two cars with near-empty gas tanks and very little cash on hand. I drove into town hoping to find a gas station with not only working pumps, but a way to run a bank card. Three times I motored back and forth, watching the gauge dip lower, wondering if I’d make it back. A better system is not letting the car get below half a tank. I know: Making that tank of gas stretch between paydays can be hard enough. (Another option is keeping a gas can with an emergency supply, but all sorts of other safety issues arise in that case, so only do so with appropriate caution and guidance.) If you have a bike, keep it healthy and ready for action. Adventure’s Edge in Arcata offers regular maintenance workshops.

Humboldt County’s Red Cross chapter (humboldtredcross.org, 443-4521) offers CPR and other first aid classes. If you can’t swing the registration fee, watch for the free community classes they offer on occasion. If possible, have them do a class through a school, employer or organization. Post-disaster, the Red Cross might be able to help you, so keep that number on hand.

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