ALL RIGHTS RESERVED (the lists of supplies may be republished and every picture on this single blog entry, except the one containing my cat, may be freely republished for educational/non-profit purposes to help people with winter safety preparations)
http://bryanreo.blogspot.com/2011/01/bryan-reo-cannot-give-you-four-day.html
As stated- Bryan Reo cannot give you a four day forecast...
So he'll give you his unsolicited opinion instead... Yeah, I'm really lame, aren't I?
Here’s what Bryan Reo has to say about winter weather and general preparedness as it applies to stuff you can keep in your vehicle…
http://www.newsnet5.com/dpp/weather/weather_news/groundhog-day-storm%3A-computers-now-focusing-heavy-snow-on-ohio
Of course step one to winter road safety is to drive safely, reduce your speed according to the road conditions and remember that it will take you extra time/distance to brake and to come to a complete stop. Even if you have 4WD you are not immune to the problems caused by icy or wet/slick roads.
As of right now it appears as though we are in for what may be a very memorable snow storm. Thus, I'd just like to take advantage of the opportunity this coming storm presents to offer some survival/safety advice for folks by discussing what I keep in my truck in the way of emergency supplies.
Firstly, I have a sleeping bag rated to -20 degrees Fahrenheit which I always keep in my vehicle (whatever the vehicle is, the bag goes with me, if I am using somebody else's vehicle the sleeping bag goes with me and goes in their trunk or the back seat).
Additionally, I have two bottles of water in spots designed for bottles (each spot being on the back doors) for a total of about 2 quarts of water there.
Anyway, I'd like to say that some of the things I may mention have little to do with winter survival/safety and are more about general preparedness since I keep them in my truck on a constant basis. Mainly that last statement has to do with the stuff I keep in the center holder or the glovebox of my truck or in the pockets of my coat. I will deal with those items shortly and include pictures.
The main thing is my "supplies bag" (which like the sleeping bag also accompanies me if I switch vehicles) which contains the following...
1- First Aid Kit
2- Wool socks (heavy insulated winter type)
3- Cotton socks (I know cotton is bad for winter, but I intend to wear them under the wool socks so I don't have to endure itching every second- don't use cotton socks in place of wool socks)
4- Spare change of undewear (yes I know people may ream me out over the cotton but if there is an issue where you get wet and are so messed up you cannot dry off and stay dry you have more problems than wearing cotton underwear, likewise if you are soaked enough that it goes through your outer garments and gets to your underwear, it makes little difference whether they are cotton or wool)
5- Mountain House freeze dried meals (three entrees, each serves two people for one meal)
6- Assorted MRE (Meal Ready to Eat) components including 4 wheat bread rations, 1 brownie ration, 1 rice ration, 1 beef ration, silverware, and 3 MRE ration heaters
7- DATREX concentrated ration bars (two bricks, each containing 18 bars with each bar consisting of concentrated protein with vitamins and minerals and a total of 200 calories, thus each ration brick is 3600 calories- note I have three more ration bricks in the truck at all times)
8- DATREX emergency water rations (about 20 pouches each containing 4.27 ounces of water)
9- Matches and a quick fire starting log
10- A packet of water purification tablets (each tablet purifies one liter of water)
11- Collapsible baton (this is more of a general preparedness item)
12- One box of 50 rounds of ammunition in caliber .40 S&W (this is more of a general preparedness item)
13- One box of 5 rifled slugs in caliber 12 gauge. (this is more of a general preparedness item and an item that is there so I never have a moment of "darn I can't believe I didn't bring my slugs with me" when going deer hunting)
Additionally I keep some items in my truck at all times that are just there for whatever reason. I have several packs of disposable ear-plugs in the event I ever forget to pack them before going to the shooting range, but they would also come in handy if I find myself with a sudden need to shoot out a window on my vehicle (so as to facilitate an escape from a vehicle sinking in water) without deafening myself in the process (admittedly an event the likelihood of which can best be described as very remote, but a possibility all the same).
I also have a can of pepper spray (for use in situations when potentially lethal force is either unwarranted or unnecessary), a spare magazine of ammunition in caliber .40 S&W, a .30 caliber rifle cleaning kit (for a .30 caliber rifle), and a QuikClot packet for any instance of traumatic external bleeding.
Finally, I have a pair of nail clippers because hang-nails are just really annoying and you want to keep your nails short so dirt doesn't get under them and six Imodium tablets because diarrhea is never welcome (in a safe home environment it is a nuisance, in a survival situation it may be a death sentence).
For winter issues make sure to have several days worth of food (something along the lines of MRE rations, DATREX emergency protein rations, granola bars, pouches of tuna fish, packets of beef jerky, etc) and several days worth of water (either in heavy duty plastic containers such as canteens or in emergency pouches).
If you are in your vehicle and become stranded in a blizzard or some other winter storm situation you may be best served by staying in your vehicle unless you are within sight of a structure of some sort. Make sure you have some sort of sleeping bag or multiple blankets that can be used to maintain warmth while inside of your vehicle. If you are going to run your engine you will likely have to periodically leave your vehicle to clear the exhaust pipe from any snow that may be clogging it (as an added precaution against carbon monoxide poisoning you may wish to leave some of your windows down an inch or so).
You should have some sort of personal defense weapon because you never know what may happen (this applies all of the time). Normal weather conditions always have the possibility of danger, but the possibility may increase in times of bad weather as nefarious individuals decide to take advantage of the chaos caused by the storm to prey on those they perceive as helpless or at least less ready and less able to resist. A firearm can also be used as a signaling tool, a much more effective tool than say a whistle. When using a firearm to signal a distress you fire three rounds and then wait for a reply, which would usually consist of two rounds being fired by a rescuer, if you hear the reply then you fire three more rounds, with a brief pause between each round. Also, try to make sure you're not firing at a time when gunfire would normally be expected (i.e. while the sun is still up and hunting is going on in the area) or else folks may not realize you are signaling distress.
Anyway, I promised to talk about what I keep in my coat (this is my main coat in spring and autumn and I use it in winter when the temperature permits, when the temperature does not permit I leave this coat in my backseat as a "secondary/backup" coat and I switch to a heavy winter coat) so here goes... Disclaimer: The cat is not kept in the coat, he simply wouldn't get off of the blanket when I was taking the picture.
What is in the coat:
Autumn/winter gloves
Autumn/winter hat/helmet liner (German military surplus) with ear-flaps
3.0 inch blade pocket knife (folding locking blade)
Swiss Army pocket knife
Lensatic compass
20 water purification tablets
Magnesium striker (for starting fires)
Pen (you never know when you're going to need a writing utensil, I probably should have a better pen but the pen is mostly so I can write down phone numbers and other information folks may give me when I'm out and about)
Finally, what I keep on my person and take with me everywhere (unless not permitted to by various laws).
1- Springfield XD caliber .40 S&W with three loaded magazines
2- Ruger LCP caliber .380 ACP
3- Incredibly bright handheld energizer flashlight that activates with a push button located on the bottom of the light.
4- 3.0 inch blade pocket knife (folding locking blade)
5- Digital audio/voice recorder (this has a number of uses, I leave it on when driving so it will record the audio of any accident I might be involved with, I leave it on when driving in the event I need to "write" down a list of stuff to buy or if I need to "write" down the name of a song I just heard that I liked without having to engage in the dangerous undertaking of trying to write on a notepad while driving, also and perhaps most importantly it will record any of my conversations and in the unlikely event I wind up in a confrontation it will record who started the confrontation/trouble/problem/etc- check your local laws and see if you live in a two party or one-party notification state, in my state you may record any conversation you are a party to and you do not need to notify the other party/parties that you are recording).
