:: Be Prepared Challenge :: Acquire - Step One ::

Thank you for joining Gavin, myself, and everyone participating in this challenge. Here is the original post, outlining the challenge. Over 4 weeks, we hope to inspire you to find out more, and take on tasks to help you get more prepared, using the OARS method - Organise, Acquire, Restock, and Spread the Word. It’s about creating awareness, and finding motivation to do it!

Last week I talked (alot) about being organised, and have added those posts here, for anyone who wants to catch up! Don't feel stressed to complete the 'tasks' during the week, you can always come back to do them in your own time. This week, A for Acquire, Gavin has started with his post here about taking an Inventory. I am going to cover similiar things this week (see list at bottom), but let's start with a whole bunch of questions, to make you think about what equipment, resources, supplies, food & water, bags or backpacks, you might need:

Food & Cooking

• How much food to store, per person?
• How many days, or weeks (or months or years) do you intend to provide for?
• What types of food to stockpile? (Store what you eat, Eat what you store)
• How to cook or heat it?
• What to take if you are evacuating?
• What suitable Recipes & Meal Ideas do you need?
• What about feeding Kids/ Special Diet Needs/ Pets?
• What safety requirements do you need to think about?
• Do you grow and/or preserve your own?

Water

• How much per person per day? For drinking, cooking, washing, pets? How much extra in case of ill health or high temperatures?
• Bottled or Stored Tap?
• How to store it safely?
• How to purify it?
• Could you use other sources?

Shelter/ Light/ Heating/ Cooling

• What if you had to fix damage, or secure, your house?
• How would you stay warm, or stay cool, in extreme weather situations?
• What if you had family, friends or other people to look after?
• How safe and suitable are your lighting methods?

Healthcare

• Do you have first aid, or health care, knowledge & skills?
• Do you have enough medicine to last for several days, or weeks?
• Do you know basic health remedies, using things you may have at home?
• What 'alternative' methods do you know/ can you access?
• When do you need to seek help?
• What special requirements do your family have?

Hygiene

• How will you keep clean, possibly without water or power?
• How would you keep your clothes/ cooking gear etc. clean?
• How important is good hygiene in an emergency, when there may be no medical help available for food poisoning, water borne diseases, sunburn or exposure?
• How will you manage waste, contaminated items, and general rubbish?

Communication

• How will you stay in contact with family, friends, loved ones, emergency services?
• Do you have alternative ways to charge your mobile phone or computer?
• Do you have radios with spare batteries, or dynamo/ solar charging?
• What if you had to signal to emergency services (or anyone) for assistance?

Safety & Security

• How will you keep your family and your valuables safe, when people are in desperate situations, and you may be OK (due to your preparedness planning)?
• What other safety issues could there be (gas pipes broken, power lines down, broken glass, toxic water etc.), in an emergency that you need to be aware of?

Sanity

• How will you stay comfortable and entertained during an emergency, where there may be no power?
• What measures can you take to reassure and distract your kids, pets and other vulnerable people?

Evacuating

• If you had to evacuate, how would you take the essential items with you?
• Do you have a system that allows you to take alot of things in a car, a few things in backpacks if you had no car or had to leave it, and very minimal things if you had no other choice but to leave without a car, and dump your packs?
• How would you cater for all of the above essentials, if you had to evacuate?

I told you there were alot of questions! This isn't designed to panic or overwhelm you, just to make you think about how many things we have each day that perhaps we take for granted, that provide us with a comfortable, safe and happy life. Sure, maybe we could do without alot of it, but it's better to think about it now and decide what measures you are willing to take (or can afford to take) to provide for and protect your family. 

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This week I will also be covering:

• Set up your Storage area (shelving, cupboards etc.)
• Make an Inventory of What you Have
• Work out your budget
• Refine your Needs lists (make a shopping/ check list)
• Emergency kit gear (including a list of links, websites and places to buy/ gather it)
• Stockpiling Food & Water (including cooking/ storage)
• Other items you will need for Shelter, Lighting, Heating/ Cooling, Medical & Health Care, Hygiene, Communication, Entertainment