# Lessons Learned from Superstorm Sandy



## WoadWarrior

All: While it's fresh in our minds... I thought this would be a good time for us to compile our notes on what we observed from Sandy (which actually counts as a SHTF situation for millions of people). I'd like to discuss the issues that we observed and what we have or could do to overcome said issues... 

I'd love everyone's input. Then, I will consolidate your inputs back into the original post so we have a consolidated summary that could help each of us evaluate our own preparedness. It would also be a good thread to direct new folks to. So... I'll start. Please feel free to both add and critique my (and everyone else's) suggestions. I'd rather have reality face me than someone being too polite to speak up. 

***Major Issue: Loss of commercial electrical grid
- Mitigation: Personal Generators, Solar Power Systems, Wind Generation Systems (also applies as mitigation to all sub issues)
- Per Shotlady: Use gas stabilizer for long term storage of gas
- Per Watercanlady: Consider an automatic generator option (vs manual start). 
- Per Watercanlady: Use of a wood burner pump for power
- Per Watercanlady: Propane cook stove (with extra propane)

Sub-Issues: (mitigation assume Major Issue Mitigation not applicable)
- Loss of light at night
- Creates unsafe living/travel conditions; increases risk of criminal activity; darkness brings "fear", etc.
- Mitigation: Flashlights and spare batteries (1 per person); Lanterns (with appropriate fuel source); Candles. 
- Per Shotlady: Try Christmas lights instead of larger bulbs if using an alternate electrical source (to save power drain and fuel)
- Per Shotlady: Be aware of possible gas leaks when using open flames.

- Loss of refrigerated/frozen food
- Loss of day to day and long term food source
- Mitigation: Hold a massive BBQ

- Loss of commercial water sources - water pumps in major cities use electric pumps
- Inability to consume daily requirement, inability to bathe, wash cloths, cook certain food items; can't flush toilets (sanitation issue)
- Mitigation: Store water on location; Drain water from hot water heater; Use water purification devices on available non-potable water (toilet tank, pools, etc) 

- Loss of fuel - gas stations run on electricity. 
- Long lines at remaining stations. Vehicles ran out of gas while waiting for gas. People had to walk and carry 2-5 gallon containers. Gas is approx 8 lbs per gallon.
- Mitigation: Store gasoline at residence (per shotlady.... use a gas stabilizer on stored gas)

- Loss of Heating ability
- Millions of people without means of keeping warm
- Mitigation: Propane-based heaters; wood for fireplace; thermal clothing; wool blankets 

- Loss of Medical Facilities
- Major Hospitals lost functionality and turned to generators; several lost generators
- Mitigation: Extensive home first aid kits; "animal" medicines as backup 

- Loss of traffic system
- Extensive confusion at intersections resulting in mass traffic jams; Some bridges changed to HOV lanes (3 people per vehicle)
 - Mitigation: Pre-stock all required items and don't travel unless medical emergency or collecting family members (which ideally would already be at your house)

- Loss of Communications
- Local, Long distance and cell phones useless
- Mitigation: CB's; Walkie talkies; Ham radios; Must pre-establish comm plans (like what channels to use, when to expect transmission, encrypted terminology so eavesdroppers don't show up 
if you discuss remaining assets or location)
- Per shotlady: Consider a smaller solar powered charger for running and recharging comm units.

- Increase in crime (looting, robbery, etc)
- Mitigation: Travel in groups; Don't leave assets unprotected; own firearms; don't travel in unlit or dimly lit areas without light; stay low-key and don't advertise personal assets or power sources

- Strangers in need: many non-preppers showing up begging for help (some medical, some food and water, some need place to sleep, some just [email protected] bums who are waiting for the govt)
- Mitigation: Help them from your limited stores; Store extra in case this happens; turn them away; Don't let them know you are there and prepared so they don't show up

***Major Issue: Massive Flooding
- Mitigation: Study local flood plain maps before renting/purchasing and select residence based on safety, not view

Sub-Issues: (mitigation assume Major Issue Mitigation not applicable)

- Risk of drowning
- Mitigation: Learn to swim; purchase inflatable or actual canoe, kayak, boat, etc.

- Contaminated commercial water supply, contaminated rivers, lakes, ponds, etc
- Mitigation: Store water on location; Use water purification devices on contaminated water

- Inability to travel (roads and bridges washed out or vehicles under water)
- Mitigation: Inflatable or actual canoes, kayaks, boats, etc. 

- Waves/water saturation knocked housed off structural supports (created broken gas lines; made houses unlivable)
- Mitigation: Establish per-determined bug out location (somewhere close and accessible considering loss of roads) 

***Major Issue: Blizzard Conditions (combinations of strong winds, freezing cold, heavy snow/ice, downed trees and power lines)
- Mitigation: See individual issues below

Sub-Issues: 

- Loss of Heat/Insufficient heat (see above)

- Closed/dangerous Roads (can't get to stores, hospitals, family and friends, etc)
- Mitigation:

- ????

OK... enough from me.... I'm ready for any critiques and suggestions.


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## Watercanlady

Well we lost our power 2 nights in a row. We have an automatic generator and it came on within 1 minute. We felt very safe and secure both nights here. We did talk about alternative ways to power our outdoor wood burner pump so that the generator would not have to run all the time. We will be working on that. We have propane cook stove so no problem there. Pump ran off generator. We are far better off in this storm than many.


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## jmh033089

One of the only good things about Chicago don't have to worry about this issue.


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## shotlady

great write up!
stored gasoline needs stabilizer.
becareful with candle light as a gas line could be broken and blow you up.
cb radios are super for listening, try not to broadcast as your location could be discovered, same as ham radio you can own them but need the secret handshake to operate, but to listen in as to check points, impassible areas or danger is super. hand heald are 50 bux do get the solar charger for 30 dollars. silence will win the next phase.

being on the dl with your generator is huge, use xmas lights instead of house lights, uses less gas, energy and attracts less attention.
it serves you well to not appear too comfortable. you can be comfortable, just dont appear to be too comfortable.


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## WoadWarrior

Shotlady: Good calls on the gas vs candle issue and the Christmas lights drawing less power. I've never tested it... but I'd always assumed a generator uses the same amount of gas to run whether you are drawing power off of it or it's just sitting there running with nothing attached. I'll need to research how generators work. It might me worthwhile to start a new thread on ways to save gas when using a generator.

Oh... I though of another issue with no power = no water. Toilets.  When we store water... some plan a bit extra to account for washing bodies and cloths, but I was thinking we should find a way to capture any grey water to use to flush toilets instead of letting it go down a drain or into the ground.


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## shotlady

this is a quote from a note rob sent to us as worried friends. hes in upstate new york. with a bride and three kids:

The 3000watt Honda is silently powering 2 refrigerators,2 cell chargers, a lap top for the kids to watch videos on, the battery for the excursion and about 10 strings of led Christmas lights strung about the house providing better than candle light.....all that on less than a gallon since about noon....


thinking about grey water, you can use a campers shower , mine is 2.5 gallons, you can figure a catchment to reuse for flushes of waste.
I always thought that about generators too. but they have variable output.


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## WoadWarrior

Generator.... Silent???? I definitely need to upgrade. Mine is about 15 years old and literally screams at the neighbors "Here I am... Here I am.... roar roar... Here I am!!!" 

I'll bet his newer generator is also more fuel efficient.

But the question is: What size generator is the most logical for a household? In another thread... I'm trying to figure out how to hook a generator to a house vs. running it stand alone. And... that may determine the size.

And... should I have a smaller one in a vehicle or trailer BOB?


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## WVprepper

Led christmas lights are a good idea..We only lost power for two hours so our oil lamps did pretty good. It showed us we needed extra batteries and such other things. We had plenty of water though around 400 gallons spred thoughout the house. We need to help her parents out some though. His oxygen concentrator was useless. We put him on tanks, but of course the regulator broke. We did have a spare so we avoided that problem. I was planning on rotating my generator between our 4 fridges and freezers.


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## WoadWarrior

WVprepper... wouldn't the generator support the O2 concentrator? Here's one I'm not positive on. How long can a freezer or fridge maintain a safe temperature (unopened) before you need to run it on a generator? And... how long do you need to run it to make it could enough so the pattern remains consistent. I've always believed 4 hours a day was sufficient. My assumption is that you open it once a day, grab what you need, then immediately close it and run the gennie for 4 hours. Then repeat the next day. Anyone have an experience with this? Just trying to figure out how to manage my fuel consumption.


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## shotlady

thats a good question. stealth these days is always a good idea. silent generators i think would be a very good investment. i know my friend has tinted his windows where they can see out, but you cant see in lights on or not as not to elude there is power there. hes all about concealment. he just built his home. so he got in on all the goodies and the spray on insulation. i wonder why he didnt go solar for power . makes me wonder about solar if there isnt sun for a while? hmmmmmnnnnn


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## WVprepper

Oh, I did not realize that at the time. The first thing they did was get the tanks out. Of course we could use it for the concentrator, and then the freezers. The tanks could be used in between time. I would think running the freezers once a day for 4 hours would be sufficiant to keep things. I did however turn all the temps down to get them colder before the power went out..


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## AquaHull

All in all a very good thread


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## nadja

WoadWarrior said:


> Generator.... Silent???? I definitely need to upgrade. Mine is about 15 years old and literally screams at the neighbors "Here I am... Here I am.... roar roar... Here I am!!!"
> 
> I'll bet his newer generator is also more fuel efficient.
> 
> But the question is: What size generator is the most logical for a household? In another thread... I'm trying to figure out how to hook a generator to a house vs. running it stand alone. And... that may determine the size.
> 
> And... should I have a smaller one in a vehicle or trailer BOB?


Woad Warrior, the size of gennie you need to run your entire house depends mostly on what you will be runnng. If you want to run your 220 range, your going to be out of luck unless you get up into the really large ones , about 15k and if you can "do" with just the refer and a few lights etc, then one of the 2k inverter / generators like honda or yamaha will be perfect. They are really quiet, thrifty and very dependable. Pure sine wave power also.


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## nadja

WoadWarrior said:


> WVprepper... wouldn't the generator support the O2 concentrator? Here's one I'm not positive on. How long can a freezer or fridge maintain a safe temperature (unopened) before you need to run it on a generator? And... how long do you need to run it to make it could enough so the pattern remains consistent. I've always believed 4 hours a day was sufficient. My assumption is that you open it once a day, grab what you need, then immediately close it and run the gennie for 4 hours. Then repeat the next day. Anyone have an experience with this? Just trying to figure out how to manage my fuel consumption.


Since I live totally off the grid on solar and wind, I feel I can answer this for you. We have our refer and freezer on timers. They go off about 5 pm and on again about 6 am. My chest freezer , everything stays frozen, my refer, everything stays relitively cold, as long as we don't open and close a lot. You can also suplement the refer by freezing 1 gal water jugs during the day in putting them in the top of the refer at night. Cold goes down,. Does that help ?


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## nadja

Woad Warrior. Now, as for hooking up your gennie to your house. IF you connect it to your house due to a power outage and the power comes back on while your running your gennie, you will most likely back feed your current into the lines. NOT Good. Not only could you kill someone down the line while they are working, but can also create a big toaster , your house. That picture is real by the way. Something to give a lot of thought to. You can run an extension cord to the appliance you wish, but the only other way to connect to whole house is with a transfer switch. It also must be approved and inspected before installing and use. Take no chances, or should I say, can I have your food as you won't be needing it any longer ?


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## scramble4a5

I like the idea of a generator. I will look in to that. I agree with Shotlady. Keep a low profile. Help those you can. And keep a fully loaded 9mm handy...::rambo::


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## shotlady

a loaded 9 is good several loaded nines is better. lol a coupla 556 and 40's and 22's!!!!! "mommy has a potty mouth" is just starting to have fun!


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## preppermama

shotlady said:


> great write up!
> stored gasoline needs stabilizer.


Thank you for posting this! So many people think gas has an indefinite shelf life. That's not true. It will last you about 3 months without stabilizer.

This is why post-Apocalyptic shows drive me crazy. You see people siphoning gas a year after the event. In reality, that gas would be fairly useless.


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## shotlady

i learned this the hard way with my sport bikes and dirt bikes when it was off season or after a surgery.
i had to keep getting my damn carbs cleaned. and the fuel systems redone times that times 8 and two cars and thats quite a bill! i also had a problem with my z4 as it sat for about 6 months and no broblems with my trail blazer sitting for so long.


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## preppermama

nadja said:


> Woad Warrior. Now, as for hooking up your gennie to your house. IF you connect it to your house due to a power outage and the power comes back on while your running your gennie, you will most likely back feed your current into the lines. NOT Good. Not only could you kill someone down the line while they are working, but can also create a big toaster , your house. ?


We have our gennie hard wired to our panel; however, my husband is a licensed electrician and has been for a very long time. He has all the testing equipment and checks it regularly, especially during outages (He is also trained in doing photovoltaic work in case anyone is curious).

It is true that your line could potentially feed back down the line and kill someone; however, only if your main breaker is still in the on position or your main breaker has somehow failed. I guess it could backfeed out to the pole if someone has a second electrical panel hooked up in their house and they failed to shut off the main breaker on both panels.

If your main breaker is in good working order and placed in the OFF position, then nothing coming through your lines will feed back into the pole. It's always a good idea to have a electrical multimeter on hand to make sure there's no electricity leaching out past the main breaker. I definitely wouldn't recommend the average Joe just going in and doing it (especially if you're someone who might be forgetful about SHUTTING OFF THE MAIN BREAKER).

There are also those who backfeed using their dryer outlet. Not something I would recommend or do myself, but it has been done. I posted a youtube video of a guy doing it over in the Hurricane Sandy thread.

Electricity is something that fascinates me, but it's also something that freaks me out because of how dangerous it is. Always air on the side of caution if you don't know what you're doing.


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## preppermama

Another idea for people if they know a storm is coming in and loss of power is imminent: Prep your foods ahead of time and put together a camping cooler full of ice and the stuff you open the fridge for most frequently (drinks, sandwich stuff, etc). Make it a point to only open the fridge or freezer once a day to restock the camping cooler.

I also always fill my bathtub up with water when I know a power outage is imminent...perfect place to store extra water.


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## WoadWarrior

Good conversations all. Anyone have any additional input regarding Sandy? I've been reading about long term gasoline outages, long term electricity outages, sanitation issues, looting, crooks dressing up like legitimate workers (i.e. Con Ed) and conning their way into houses. The complaints are getting more violent... and guns are starting to make an appearance.


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## preppermama

We live in a lakefront home and our property is downward sloping toward the water. During hurricanes and heavy showers we are always dealing with potential flooding and excess rainwater not draining properly into the culverts. The night of this storm I found myself in the predicament of trying to re-route excess rainwater into the culverts to avoid flooding. 

It got me thinking that sandbags are a great item to prep. Not only can you use them during flooding, but you can also fashion a water filter using the sand (when combined with charcoal too). I'm sure there are lots of potential uses for sandbags. 

Crafting three dozen sandbags is now at the top of my prep list.


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## WoadWarrior

Good call preppermama. But... do you pre-fill them... or just store bags and sand and fill them when needed? And.... that suggests a shovel for filling them. I guess the shovel could aid in diverting water as well.


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## preppermama

I am planning to prefill mine and just stack 'em in the garage.


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## shotlady

i just saw a story about a 2 & 4 yr old that died in sandy. the mother wrecked her suv on monday evening and grabbed her two kids and went and knocked on the dor at a house asking for help. the guy said no, beat it... and then she tried to break his door in with a flower pot. yikes. then a wave came and washed the kids away.

the media is there trying to make the home owner a villan for turning them away. i dont know.
Bad parenting on her part, why wait for the full force to come in to flee with kids that age??? well and she herself had better be glad the guy wasnt armed and scared.betcha she wishing she was picked off too. i couldnt imagine losing my boys. i just cant wrap my head a round this shit. there was a weeks notice. he said he couldnt see very well and thought it was a man.

man

its super unfortunate. but i have to say at a parent, bugging out before hand is her responsibility.


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## preppermama

shotlady said:


> Bad parenting on her part, why wait for the full force to come in to flee with kids that age??? well and she herself had better be glad the guy wasnt armed and scared.betcha she wishing she was picked off too. i couldnt imagine losing my boys. i just cant wrap my head a round this shit. there was a weeks notice. he said he couldnt see very well and thought it was a man. its super unfortunate. but i have to say at a parent, bugging out before hand is her responsibility.


150% agree, but who knows what her situation was in the 24 hours before the storm. Maybe she was stuck at some horrid menial wage job trying to put food on the table for them. If I were her, I'd rather die than go on without my kids and would probably jump in after them whether that was the right thing to do or not. Life just wouldn't be worth living anymore without my kids. Not all women share that feeling though.

Honestly, I would have left town two days before the storm hit with all my valuables, pets, and little ones packed up. Why spend your time in a FEMA shelter when you can book a hotel outside the storm's projected path and enjoy yourself for a few days?


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## shotlady

i couldnt imagine, mamma. i live because they do. id hook if i had to to get my kids safe.
this is where you have to beware the mothers. hell i have a hard time with this story. what if it was me? could i turn them away?not sure i could.


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## AquaHull

preppermama said:


> Another idea for people if they know a storm is coming in and loss of power is imminent: Prep your foods ahead of time and put together a camping cooler full of ice and the stuff you open the fridge for most frequently (drinks, sandwich stuff, etc). Make it a point to only open the fridge or freezer once a day to restock the camping cooler.
> 
> I also always fill my bathtub up with water when I know a power outage is imminent...perfect place to store extra water.


Our washer is next to the closet(head/toilet), we fill that up with cold water the first sign of a storm. It gives us some flush water, before having to fire up Genny for the well.


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## shotlady

aqua what a super idea to fill the washer. wow what a check list.
and some one mentioned getting water from water heaters. yall are so super!


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## dontlookatme

If you have a cooler and ice, the ice melts and what do you do with the cold water? Re-use it. For what? Idk, flush toilets, cool other things down, plants, cool people down during hot weathers....


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## WoadWarrior

Just a thought to stir the pot a bit. There was another article about a man who evacuated for Irene... but when he came home he found out his house had been looted... but there was no damage from the storm. So this time... he stayed home to protect his "stuff". End result... he is missing, his kids are dead, and his wife is in critical condition in the hospital. I don't know for sure since the article didn't say... but I imagine his "stuff" was destroyed. Like anyone else... I love my "stuff" but would gladly toss it to looters on the way out if it kept my kids and wife alive. I can always get more stuff. 

Besides... a crook would break into my house and get pissed off thinking he accidentally broke into a library instead. We don't have the big screen TVs... and paintings... and jewelry. They wouldn't know what to take.  And... my important stuff goes with me when I bug out.


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## preppermama

WoadWarrior said:


> Just a thought to stir the pot a bit. There was another article about a man who evacuated for Irene... but when he came home he found out his house had been looted... but there was no damage from the storm. So this time... he stayed home to protect his "stuff". End result... he is missing, his kids are dead, and his wife is in critical condition in the hospital. I don't know for sure since the article didn't say... but I imagine his "stuff" was destroyed. Like anyone else... I love my "stuff" but would gladly toss it to looters on the way out if it kept my kids and wife alive. I can always get more stuff.
> 
> Besides... a crook would break into my house and get pissed off thinking he accidentally broke into a library instead. We don't have the big screen TVs... and paintings... and jewelry. They wouldn't know what to take.  And... my important stuff goes with me when I bug out.


I totally agree with you. It's just stuff. Honestly, I would have packed my vehicles up two days before the storm and headed for the hills. I wouldn't have left anything behind that couldn't be replaced.


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## shotlady

i have any peril insurance on every thing. i dont place much emotional value to mu stuff. even my bug out stuff is insured. people's lives are far more valuable.

thats just too damned bad.


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## Medelwr

It's unfortunate, but very true that so many people would rather defend their fleeting items than be assured their safety. I know that when we watch our news here in BC, we see a lot of coverage about people who refused the evacuation order. It's hard to find empathy for people demanding help from the government when they wouldn't have this issue if they had prepared or left. When you live on the east coast you should prepare for disasters that can affect you in your area.

I think this disaster is horrible but shows what can happen if you leave it up to chance and don't take your fate into your hands. I hope everyone affected comes out ok.


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## shotlady

im with you and sit here confused with myself as i have no feelings of worry or sorry for some people. i cant say it enough that they had a weeks notice.
id love a weeks notice before shit goes down.


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## preppermama

I think it's unbelievable we have the deaths we do in these storms, given the capabilities of modern weather reporting. Can you imagine how it was before we had the ability to predict weather?


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## Medelwr

Before modern day weather casting I bet it was more of the "There are some crazy-deadly winds. Don't go outside. Find a cave or cold cellar and don't leave." Also, before our modern day weather reporting, I bet there more people who were prepared for extended periods of time when food, fuel and water were unavailable.

One weeks notice would be a God send. Hell, even a days notice can do you a lot of good! Just imagine what you could do with that much time even if you wanted to Bug In.


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## WoadWarrior

My real concern is for the kids, the elderly, and the physically/mentally impaired. I read an article about a 71 year old man living on $661 a month. He didn't have TV and had no idea the storm was even coming. Those people would get my help. The ignorant masses need to fend for themselves. And the scum that is taking advantage and stealing from those already hurt by Sandy need to have the life slowly choked out of them. Not Shot... not killed quickly... no... I think feeling their flesh squeeze between your fingers as you slowly choke the life out of them would bring the most satisfaction. OK.... breathe... breathe... there... all better now.


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## Medelwr

I've always had little patience for those who take advantage of situations like that. IF they are caught in the act then just shoot the buggers and get rid of the scum. I feel sorry for the innocents as you say WW, I wish that people could just have a good heart and actually look after their fellow man. Imagine what the world would be like if we could afford to put others always ahead of ourselves.


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## lizjimbo

What did I learn from Sandy...do not under any circumstances ever move to New York...not even on a bet!


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## dsdmmat

Garden/ landscaping Solar lights are great for seeing inside the house at night. Set them out during the day and bring them in at dark and you don't need to use battery powered lights or generator fuel for seeing around the house.


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## windsearcher

Haven't read every single post, but, for me this reinforces my need to bug-out. We live in a low-lying area in FL that is subject to storm surge. (Hasn't happened in 20+ years, but that doesn't mean anything). Yes... I know.. I know.. bad choice and we're going to fix that when we can..... ANYWAY.......

What it tells me is that any prepping I do needs to be something I can easily transport when we bug out. Even more importantly, get out WELL before the storm comes in. (I learned this a long time ago). Having to sit through a storm in your car on the highway in traffic that doesn't move really sucks.

Lastly.... doesn't matter if the bug out location is a friend, family or whatever..... there needs to be a second location that you can get to in a SHTF like this. (Or Katrina, Andrew, etc). And, then in the event of mass disaster, stay there longer term. Even if the gov't was perfect in their response, the homes would still be gone, there still wouldn't be power, and there would still be a huge amount of devastation. Get out and away. 

The only time I can see that you can't / shouldn't evacuate from something like this is in a tornado when they spin up in minutes.

My .02


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## survival

Bump: Some parts of New York is entering 3rd week without power. Sad.


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## kyletx1911a1

shotlady said:


> great write up!
> stored gasoline needs stabilizer.
> becareful with candle light as a gas line could be broken and blow you up.
> cb radios are super for listening, try not to broadcast as your location could be discovered, same as ham radio you can own them but need the secret handshake to operate, but to listen in as to check points, impassible areas or danger is super. hand heald are 50 bux do get the solar charger for 30 dollars. silence will win the next phase.
> 
> being on the dl with your generator is huge, use xmas lights instead of house lights, uses less gas, energy and attracts less attention.
> it serves you well to not appear too comfortable. you can be comfortable, just dont appear to be too comfortable.


i drive a propane truck also any propane gen that you buy now should by law come with a auto shutoff on case a line breaks,
the regulator should detect this. its called a pressure valve once pressure rises for a period of time it should cease
you can test this hook it up then take the line off the reg while running and see if it does this, if not get it serviced


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## D"artagnan

sounds like most have water for washing and flushing 
not much for drinking 
as far as starting the generator for water 
i run mine ten munites every month to be sure everything is ok 
and water is clear
D"


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## D"artagnan

oops i just remembered 2 more 
make your own dry ice 
and put a skirt inside bottom 1/2 of fridg to keep cold air in
fridge is side by side


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## rickkyw1720pf

RE: Generators
Always try to purchase a inverter generator. A regular generator uses an alternator which requires that the engine run at a constant speed to make the 60 cycle wave usually 3600 rpm. So they are basically running at the same speed no matter what the load using more gas than needed when not at full load also making them louder. An inverter generator uses a DC generator and then an inverter to change it into the 60 cycle AC voltage so the engine can run much slower and very the engine speed to match the load not only making them more fuel efficient, quieter, better sine wave for computers, and engine will last longer because of the lower speed.


I didn't get to all the post so I am not sure if this was mentioned, DON'T ever become a refugee, if you leave your home they will not let you back in the area. I have heard the police and other government officials say you shouldn't worry about your personal belonging being stolen an it isn't worth confronting a thief as they can be replaced, That may be ok to say if you lived forever but everything you purchased represents so many hours of your life that you worked that can not be replaced.


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## WoadWarrior

Hmmm... did anyone read the article about the guy that was finally let back in and found out his house had been bulldozed down? Apparently... it had slipped off the foundation a bit. So... instead of getting a crew to jack it up and move it back on the foundation.... they just bulldozed it down... without even mentioning it to the owner so he could pull his stuff out. And... then denied doing it until Fox News got involved. Oh yeah... you can definitely trust your government.


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## Smitty901

We know that the government just can take care of everything. We know the power company does not have many people that really work for them , they need to call in crews and contractors from everywhere. We learned if you a non union fire fighter stay out of NJ no madder how much they need your help.
We know even if they want to there is just not much anyone can do over night, it takes time. And when the government is running it even more time. Your are going to have to care for your self.
If you live in an area like that or New Orleans of FLA. And they tell you the biggest storm in 100's of years is coming a least a week ahead of time. Lock the place up and vacation time in Wisconsin . 
We learned once again FEMA is worthless, they grab a head line , some cash party and go home.
We leaned that even if you home is in a safe area the power is still going off that service will not be there all the good feels in the world will not change that.


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## Smitty901

I'll let then explain it them self
EXCLUSIVE: FEMA teams told to 'sightsee' as Sandy victims suffered | Fox News


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