Preparing for predicted heavy winter storms
The Weather Channel app on my phone tells me we need to be prepared for a massive rainstorm this weekend, perhaps of a size not seen in this area since 1997.
During the ‘97 storm our offices were still downtown on E and 7th streets. The water came into the building, knee deep in some places. We had to really hustle to relocate to higher ground many of the bond volumes that contain our back editions from being drowned.
On Thursday, local insurance broker Sean Garcia posted warnings on his Facebook page about a possible flood. This included handy steps necessary to prepare for an emergency especially when an evacuation is warranted. A family emergency plan that includes a meeting place adjacent to the home should be determined and rehearsed in advanced.
Important family documents such as birth certificates, marriage licenses and automobile registrations should be scanned to a flash-drive.
A to-go bag for each member of the family containing extra clothes, shoes, medications and first aid supplies should be packed and stored for just such an occasion. Preparing for a natural disaster such as an earthquake or flood can help keep the family ready and safe. Flashlights, battery-operated lanterns and a portable radio with a short-wave band can be very useful too.
Garcia also recommends keeping a full tank of gasoline in the family vehicle. I find this advice especially helpful and something that is part of my regular routine. The last thing one needs is to stop and fill the gas tank while trying to make a get away.
Social media, Facebook, Instagram and others have replaced actual social contact for many people, including me. I am delighted to be in contact with childhood friends I have not spoken to in decades. My friend Susan Elliott and I would drag main street in her Volkswagen bug or Chevrolet Corvair when we were in high school. She got married and we lost track of each other. On Facebook, we communicate several times a week. We have a common history, attended Sunday school classes, summer camps, double dates that just stopped after high school.
Young people growing up today are constantly in contact with their peers. Will they stay in touch with classmates and BFFs as they head out on their life plans and educational paths?
Sir Isaac Newton’s third law reads for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. The law of unintended consequences is very evident on the Internet. There is so much information published on the web. How do you pick out the truth from the lies?
Fake news sites broadcast the most outrageous stories and other people quote and attribute the falsehoods as facts.
Did the Russians get Donald Trump elected president of the United States because of a friendship between Vladimir Putin and our soon to be POTUS?
Government insiders with vested interest in the status quo blame computer hackers from the former Soviet Union for sabotaging the Clinton campaign. These same people were so convinced that Trump would be defeated they think it must have been foreign espionage that upset their vision of how the 2016 election should have played out.
Young people are so tied to one another it would seem they should have an easier time staying in touch. Constant exposure on the Internet places people of all ages in jeopardy from unknown predators on the Internet.
Stay dry, slow down and have a great weekend!
