Birthdays
are always fun for our family, so when we called our grandson to wish
him a happy birthday we were surprised at the course of the
conversation. Our call went something like this:
Me: How has your day been?
RJ: Great! They even sang happy birthday to me in my English class.
Me: Is your birthday bash in full swing yet?
RJ: No, we are waiting for word from the firefighters before we can get started.
Me: What? The fire department!
RJ: Yes, the hill behind our house is on fire and we are ready to evacuate.
We
quickly got off the phone so the family could get back to preparing
and waited to hear more.
Fortunately
they did not have to leave home, but I thought there were some
lessons to be learned and shared with those of you who will be faced
with this scenario someday.
To
follow up I interviewed each member of the family,
and what I learned was instructive and fascinating. Please take the
time to read all the way through.
RJ
loves science, Scouting (he just finished his Eagle scout project),
and robotics. Elisabeth loves history. She has read many of the
American Girl books and numerous others, and also loves swimming and
photography. Brooklyn loves her American Girl doll, piano,
gymnastics, and her hula-hoop. Isobel loves to read, play piano,
ballet and jump rope.
My
first interview was with RJ.
Me:
Tell me how you first discovered there was a fire threatening your
house.
RJ:
Elisabeth said she smelled something burning so we looked around the
house and couldn’t find anything. We went out to the yard and
saw huge flames coming down the hill.
Me:
What did you think?
RJ: I
couldn’t believe it. I didn’t think it could really be
happening and that it could reach us. It took about three minutes
before I realized it was really happening and we needed to do
something.
Me:
What happened next?
RJ:
Mom decided we needed to get ready to evacuate and she told us to go
to our rooms and get our important things and our 72-hour kits and
get them into the car.
Me:
What did you grab?
RJ:
I took the things I would need. I got clothes, my scriptures, Scout
stuff, wallet, pocketknife, journal and gadgets. [He wants to be an
engineer so he builds and loves gadgets]
Me:
Is there anything you forgot?
RJ:
No, I don’t think so.
Me:
What would you advise others now that you have had this experience?
RJ:
I would tell others to have their 72-hour kits handy and updated and
to have an idea ahead of time what they would want to bring if they
have to evacuate.
Next
came my talk with Elisabeth.
Me:
What were your thoughts when you saw the fire?
Elizabeth:
I thought I should get inside and do something to prepare for this.
Me:
What did you do?
Elisabeth:
Isobel was crying and really scared so I said a prayer with her and
then our whole family said a prayer. Then I took Isobel up to her
room and gave her directions to help her gather things and then I
went and got my stuff.
Me:
What did you get?
Elisabeth:
I got the things I thought I couldn’t replace. I knew there
were clothes in my 72-hour kit so I didn’t get clothes —
I got my camera, pictures of my friends, my yearbooks, journal, and
my baptism book with all the notes from our family when I was
baptized. It was a weird kind of mindset because I thought if I
didn’t get my pictures of my friends then I could never get
them back.
Me:
What did you do next?
Elisabeth: RJ
was really focused and done fast — so he was helping mom. I
started getting pictures off the walls and helping the girls get
their things.
Me: Is
there anything you forgot?
Elisabeth:
Don’t think so.
Me:
What would you advise others to do to be ready to evacuate?
Elisabeth:
I would tell them to have all the things they would want to take
gathered in one place so they wouldn’t have to be running
around, jumping over furniture to get things.
On
to the “little” girls:
Me: How
did you feel when you saw the fire?
Brooklyn:
Scared. It felt like it was going to come here.
Isobel: Really
scared.
Me:
What things did you gather?
Brooklyn: My
72-hour kit, stuffed animals, books, baby blanket, pajamas, and Molly
[her doll].
Isobel:
My 72-hour kit, stuffed animals, baby blanket, journal, and books.
Me:
Do you think you forgot anything important?
Brooklyn:
Our birds [parakeet and canary].
Isobel: My
dolls.
Me:
What helped you to be calm and less afraid?
Brooklyn:
When I figured out it wasn’t as close as I thought and we had
time. Also, I remembered the fire drills at school.
Isobel:
Saying a prayer, and then when we found out we wouldn’t have to
evacuate.
Me:
What did you learn and what would you tell others that would help
them prepare?
Brooklyn: Get
the top most important things first and always, always have a 72-hour
kit. Everything will be all right. The firefighters might not let you
leave. Change the clothes in your 72-hour kit often so they fit you
right.
Isobel: Always,
always say a prayer and don’t panic.
On
to mom…
Me:
Tell me about the fire.
Mom:
I got a call from a friend that the hill directly behind her home was
on fire and it was moving our direction.
The
kids already smelled smoke — we all went outside to look. The
flames were enormous and I knew we needed to get moving and get ready
to evacuate. I told the kids we were going to pack the car and go
hang out with friends. I called Rob at work and let him know what was
happening — we got busy gathering and packing the van.
Unfortunately,
after we got the car packed and tried to drive out the firefighters
told us to go home and shelter in place. There is only one road in
and out and it was blocked with fire engines and equipment. They told
us they would let us know when it was time to get out.
Amazingly
I wasn’t scared, I was just all business. There was no panic
because we had thought this through before hand. We had several
friends call to say they could see flames in our area and they
invited us to evacuate to their homes. That helped a lot, to know we
had a place to go.
Me:
What did you gather?
Mom: Our
72-hour kits, the portrait of the kids, laptop, hard drives, Ham
radios, and the safe with important papers. I had told the kids we
were moving RJ’s birthday party to a new location, so we loaded
the gifts and cake in the car as well.
Me:
Was there anything you forgot?
Mom: The
birds! Can you believe that? When the firefighters turned us around I
also went back and got some family heirloom jewelry I had not thought
of, and put that in the van in case we got the order to go.
Me:
What have you learned and what would you pass along to others?
Mom: We
need to back up our files more often and we need to gather everything
into one place so we don’t need to do so much running around to
find things.
Dad
left work immediately upon hearing the news, but he has a 45-minute
commute and was not available to help. When he arrived home the
firefighters would not allow him to drive in so he had to park in the
supermarket parking lot a mile away and walk home.
Now
that you have heard their story, let’s examine a few points.
Did you notice RJ and Elisabeth had two very different responses as
to what to gather? One chose the things needed and one the things
that could not be replaced. Neither is wrong, just different. It is
important to really consider what items could not be replaced or
easily purchased.
For
family home evening, gather your family and make a list of all the
important items each family member would want to take if they knew
they would never be able to return to that home. Once everyone has a
list, read them aloud and brainstorm items that may have been left
off.
Now
it’s time to prioritize. Grandma’s wedding ring and a
favorite family photo might both be on the list, but which is truly
irreplaceable? Do other family members have a copy of that photo?
Perhaps it could be replaced. A list like this is of great value as
you may have ten minutes to evacuate or an hour.
Create
a form with four columns. In the first column, record the items to be
gathered in order of importance. Once you have this list record where
each item is stored and, as Elisabeth recommended, gather items into
a common location as much as possible.
In
the third column assign a family member to gather the items and to
place them in the car if the time comes to evacuate. The fourth
column can be used to check off the items once they are safely
stashed in the car. Finally, you can post your list in an easily
accessible location making it easy to find when evacuation is
imminent.
In
a month or two, arrange with another family to hold an evacuation
drill. Have your friends phone your home and leave a message that you
have 10 or 15 minutes to evacuate. Set a timer and begin gathering
your items.
When
the timer goes off, get in the car, no excuses and go to your
friend’s home. This is your evacuation center. Examine what you
have brought with you, reevaluate your plan and record any changes
you need to make.
Do
all the kids have shoes on, for example? Do the clothes in the
72-hour kit still fit? Did you find grandma’s ring or was the
laptop missing in action? How long has it been since your last
computer backup?
End
your evening with root beer floats and the knowledge that your family
will now be more capable of handling a crisis well.
The
thought of having to evacuate is not a pleasant one. The thought of
contracting the flu is not pleasant either, but we have tissues and
medications on hand just in case. Studies have shown that those who
think about a challenge ahead of time are far more likely to survive
and even thrive, than those who have chosen not to consider the
possibility.
Let’s
all get behind Carolyn this week and “like” her Facebook
page. See it at www.TotallyReady.com.
Carolyn Nicolaysen grew up in New Jersey and joined the Church while attending Central
College in Pella, Iowa. With a degree in Home Economics, she later worked as a high school
teacher, and served as an elected trustee of her local school board. Carolyn has taught personal
and family preparedness to all who will listen. Having lived in areas that were threatened by
winter storms, hurricanes and tornadoes, and now living in an earthquake prone area, she has
developed a passion for preparedness. Carolyn started her own business, TotallyReady, when she
saw the need for higher quality emergency information that could truly sustain families in a
disaster.
Carolyn is FEMA trained and is an Amateur Radio first responder. She serves as Relief Society
president of her California ward.
Carolyn is the author of three ebooks, Mother Hubbard, What She's Doing Now (food storage
for the 21st century), Prep Not Panic (preparing for a pandemic of medical emergency) and That
Won't Happen to Me (a discussion of disaster preparations). She has also authored a glove box
book, Totally Ready for the Road and writes a monthly newsletter and the Totally Ready
facebook page.
