Emergency Preparedness For RV’ers

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I’ve been thinking a lot lately about emergency preparedness and how ready we are or aren’t…

First, there were all the Northern California wildfires where sometimes the smoke was so bad I had to stay indoors all day. Then I heard a report about how the San Francisco Bay Area, where we currently live, has a 30% chance of experiencing a catastrophic earthquake in the next ten years. And then, of course, we watch as hurricane Michael wreaks havoc on the southern coast. All that flooding is not where I want to be in an RV or a sticks and bricks. Which leads us to our thinking of our RV, The Phaeton Menace, as an important part of our emergency preparedness plan.

So what do we have on-board?

Well first, the easy stuff. I’m sure most people that fulltime already have most of this but we’re still tied to a regular old house for another year so we have to double up on some things. To start with, we always fill our fuel tank on the way home. We have a 100-gallon tank so with that filled we can get a long way away from most disasters. And if we can’t get away because the roads are impassable, we can run our generator for a long time on that much fuel.

We also keep our propane topped up, so we can keep cooking, stay warm and have a quick and hot shower wherever we are.

And speaking of showers, another thing we fill is our fresh water tank. I know a lot of people don’t like to travel with all that extra weight but when you live in earthquake country, you need to be prepared.

Emergency supply of food and medicine

Just like the experts say to keep an emergency supply of food in our house, we keep some favorites in the RV. Wayne loves all kinds of jerky. Our daughter recently got him a Mancrate full of it for his birthday. (Mancrates are really fun gifts for a guy who’s hard to shop for) Jerky is a great protein source and lasts a long time. I like canned ham and chicken so stocking a few cans of those is easy. And I never forget the peanut butter. But besides that, I like to have some basics. Flour, sugar and baking soda plus some spices are all stored in pest-proof containers.

And I can’t forget food for our furry family member. He eats a prescription diet so having his usual is a must.

We try to always have our prescription and some OTC medicines stocked and sometimes we even remember to check the expiration dates.

Clothes that fit!

Ok so if you live in your RV this will be easy but take it from someone who’s weight fluctuates a lot. Check the sizes and make sure you have something that fits.

This tip reminds me of a time I helped a friend go through her emergency preparedness kit she kept in the garage. She had all the basics, freeze dried food, water, a first aid kit. But when we got to the clothes we knew it had been a loooong time since she’d gone through her kit. Her kit contained a package of diapers and baby clothes. The problem, her youngest was now 12.

Is emergency power something you think about?

Many RV’s have a generator. Ours powers nearly everything in our RV but not always at the same time. But what if it doesn’t work? We have this awesome charger just in case. It stores enough power to charge your phone for days and can even jump start your car. (Ok that’s what it’s really for, but I’ve only used it to charge my phone 😊 ) It’s also great for charging the USB rechargeable flashlight we have.

Weather radios and paper maps can really come in handy too don’t you think. (Here’s our tips on GPS and map books) I mean I know I don’t want to be caught in 100 mile per hour winds or 2 feet of snow in my sticks and bricks much less the RV.

One of my favorite things I’ve found for the RV

A great first aid kit is a must, always. Ours has everything we need for emergency response. I mean I’m not going to give anybody stitches or perform surgery, but I can stabilize a broken limb and stop the bleeding when I need to.

 

What about beyond the basics?

Here’s where we have some work to do. Leather gloves would be great to have for broken glass and debris clearing after a disaster. Sturdy boots, dust masks, and safety glasses could also come in handy in a real disaster.
Hopefully, we can avoid any kind of natural disaster. I mean when your house has wheels, you can usually get out of the way. But just in case, I want to be prepared.

What do you do for disaster and emergency preparedness? Have any tips to share?