The Comm Room
  • Home
    • About Me
    • Personal Website
  • Amateur Radio
    • SkyWarn >
      • What is SkyWarn?
      • Getting Started
      • What Do I Report?
      • Severe WX Reporting
      • Spotter Safety
      • Overpass Safety?
      • SkyWarn in Arizona
    • Public Service & Events >
      • 10 Ways to Optimize Your Effectiveness
      • Are You Making a Difference?
    • ARES Information >
      • ARES Net
      • Prowords
    • Emergency Communications >
      • Emergency & Disaster Radio Operating Procedures
      • ECom Do's & Don'ts
      • Emergency Management Cycle
    • Training
    • EMCOMM Bulletins >
      • RACES >
        • 1995-96
        • 1996
    • Virtual QSL Wall
  • Incident Command
    • DHS Position Paper on NIMS & the ICS
  • Emergency Preparedness
    • Emergency First Aid >
      • First Aid for Pets
    • Planning For Pets
  • Social Media
    • Social Media vs Ham Radio
  • Links & Awards
    • SkyWarn Links
    • Public Service Links
    • ECom Links
    • ICS/NIMS Links
    • Emergency Prep. Links
    • Training Links
  • Radio Logs
    • Contest Log
  • Photos

2000-01 EmComm Bulletins

TO: Emergency Communications Units - Information Bulletin
TO: Emergency Management Agencies via Internet and Radio
FROM: Auxiliary Communications Service (ACS) of the California Governor's Office of Emergency Services

Back

EMC240 - Emergency Preparedness 2/2

6/5/2000

0 Comments

 
Continuation of a response to Bulletin EMC228 "Are We Prepared?" from Don Kulha, Sonoma County CA ACS, Russian River Response Area, California
"4. Refrigeration/Power: I've developed a "minimum energy consumption usage profile" for times that power might not be readily available. This involved 
determining the power consumption of common articles and what power we could produce on-site under worse case situations. The minimal power scenario (>0.5 kW/day) includes running several low power DC fluorescent lights, running AM, CB, and ham radios, scanners, nicad battery chargers, a water pump, a small TV for several hours, my coffee grinder, and a fan. Power produced is stored in deep-cycle batteries (two golf-cart batteries in series is a good start) and used directly as 12 volts or inverted to 117 VAC. Our batteries (2x Trojan L-16's, 12 V @ 350 Ah) are sized for 4 days of energy storage without battery state of charge dropping below 50%. Power for the batteries can come from several sources: utility, generator, jumper cables to a vehicle, solar, or wind. The average refrigerator uses too much power, so we store foods that don't require refrigeration ...and we'll eat what's in the fridge pronto! Information on power consumption analysis is available in the file LOADCALC.PDF in the downloads section at www.homepower.com.

5. Toilets: Where water is deemed in short supply or too valuable to use flushing toilets or the municipal sewage treatment plant is not usable, "sawdust toilets" provide a good alternative. Using a sawdust toilet involves relieving oneself in a plastic bucket with an attached toilet seat. The bucket has a layer of sawdust, peat moss, or other organic matter on the bottom and after use the new "deposit" is covered with the same material and bucket lid reinstalled (we put several slits in the lid edge to ease removal/replacement). When full, the bucket can be sealed/stored, dumped into a pit and buried, or covered with more organic material. The layer of covering material eliminates insects, odors, and soaks up any excess liquid. This is a hygienic approach originally designed for composting toilets, but works well in an emergency (better than having to dig up and empty dozens of plastic bags later). This approach is presented and analyzed in "The Humanure Handbook", ISBN: 096442584X, $15 at Amazon.com

These steps address filing a family's most basic needs. It not likely to replicate a family's normal consumption patterns for energy/food/fuels but will maintain a reasonable comfort level for them for quite some time and keep them healthy. We also store addition quantities of foods, first aid, and sanitation supplies to aid in neighborhood/community response efforts if needed. Think and plan out your approach to these issues now and practice using your preparations so that if they're needed you and your family will be "acclimated" to them. This will help you identify problems in your approaches and forgotten items as well as making sure everyone knows how to use them if/when the time comes. Regards, Don"
Thanks, Don, for sharing your experience. Any bulletin reader is welcome to share your experiences, offer suggestions, provide topics or write a bulletin or series on an emergency communications topic. Please contact cary.mangum@macnexus.org or cary_mangum@oes.ca.gov
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Categories

    All
    A Decade Of Emcomm
    Ale Experiences
    Amateur Radio Withdrawn!
    A Passion For Emcomm
    Are We Prepared?
    Assumptions Kill!
    Because They Care!
    Bulletin Focus
    Comfort Is An Emcomm Unit
    Confined Space Response
    Do You Know What I Mean?
    DSW Coverage Begins?
    Dsw Rules Changes
    Emergency Preparedness
    Exercise En Masse!
    Gila County EMARC (AZ)
    Hidden Jewels
    How Do You Activate?
    How Many To Involve?
    How To Create An Emcomm Unit
    Images
    Important Documents
    Indecision Can Kill
    Informing Officials
    Internet Rims
    Is RACES Unique?
    It Takes Time
    Management Or Operations
    Mutual Aid 2000
    Mutual Aid Recap
    Net Control - A Perspective
    Nsep And Shares
    Operations Techniques
    Pabulum Or Popcorn?
    Preparedness Partners
    Quakes In Mind
    Quick Quotes 1
    RACES - Amateurs Only?
    Races And The Acs
    RACES & FEMA
    Races History
    RACES History - 4
    RACES History - DCS Unit
    RACES History & FLAMES
    Races One Hour Rule
    Resource Directories!!
    Sharing Ideas
    Shortage Of Hams
    Solving The Impossible
    Statewide Comm Drill
    Successful Emcomm Units
    Synchronicity & You?
    Training Test Matrix
    Unit Activation
    Unit Life And Death
    Unit Organization
    Unsuccessful Units
    Use Volunteers? Y/N
    Volunteer Awards
    Volunteer Management
    We Don't Need It!
    Who Writes The Bulletins?
    Why We Volunteer
    Wildfire Volunteers
    Working With Volunteers
    Y2k & Good Timing

    Archives

    December 2001
    November 2001
    October 2001
    September 2001
    August 2001
    July 2001
    June 2001
    May 2001
    April 2001
    March 2001
    February 2001
    January 2001
    December 2000
    November 2000
    October 2000
    September 2000
    August 2000
    July 2000
    June 2000
    May 2000
    April 2000
    March 2000
    February 2000
    January 2000

    ACS Bulletins

    The Bulletins are addressed to the Emergency Management Agency (with sub-addresses to others) with the intent that the Radio Officer, ACS Coordinator or other unit participant will deliver them to the agency coordinator, and discuss their topics.

    RSS Feed

Search This Site:



© Copyright 2009-2022, David M. French.

All original content by David M French is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Other names, titles, and images are registered trademarks of their respective companies or organizations. All rights reserved.
Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.