If you are interested in emergency preparedness, you should check out the Citizen Corps. As part of the Citizen Corps, the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) program offers free online training through FEMA.
The main focus is to help out your community after a disaster, although "disaster" can refer to events all the way from a house fire, to a winter storm, to a major disaster.
I recommend taking the Incident Command System (ICS) courses to get a good understanding of CERT and how it fits into local and state emergency response. Start with the IS-317 (Introduction to Community Emergency Response Teams) and move on to IS-100 (Introduction to Incident Command System) . There are many other courses that might interested you; study materials are available without registration, but you'll have to fork over your SSN if you want to take the test and get the certificate.
Thursday, June 08, 2006
Saturday, September 17, 2005
How to Find Help After an Emergency
Business Week has a great list of resources for getting assistance after a disaster. It's targeted at Katrina victims but contains great links for anyone needing help.
The Seattle Times also has an excellent article on preparing for a disaster, as well as a printable disaster tip sheet.
One of the latest recommendations coming from unfortunate Katrina victims' experience is this: 72 hours of emergency supplies is not enough. Experts are now recommending a week's worth of supplies, including water. As many Gulf Coast residents also found out, the police and other emergency services aren't prepared to respond even if the phones work, so people should be prepared to protect themselves.
The Seattle Times also has an excellent article on preparing for a disaster, as well as a printable disaster tip sheet.
One of the latest recommendations coming from unfortunate Katrina victims' experience is this: 72 hours of emergency supplies is not enough. Experts are now recommending a week's worth of supplies, including water. As many Gulf Coast residents also found out, the police and other emergency services aren't prepared to respond even if the phones work, so people should be prepared to protect themselves.
Sunday, July 10, 2005
Cooking systems
I was talking with another outdoor enthusiast about cooking systems, specifically outdoor dutch oven cooking using charcoal briquettes. He brought the multi-fuel pyromid cooking system to my attention. It's pretty efficient, and has add-ons for baking. The whole unit folds down into a compact package. The literature proposes it as a possible solution to some of the fuel shortages (read: deforestation) in rural Africa.
A couple days later, I was at the African village display at the local zoo and noticed the design similarites between the Pyromid and the Kenyan Clay Jiko (KCJ), an effort to get folks away from their highly inefficient and unhealthy traditional cooking fires.
Some reading about the KCJ revealed another African design: the Vesto. It's a stove based on a five gallon paint can. It's built in South Africa and costs considerably less than the Pyromid, although it is more bulky. It would certainly be useful for camping and emergency use. I'm still looking for a source in the U.S.
A couple days later, I was at the African village display at the local zoo and noticed the design similarites between the Pyromid and the Kenyan Clay Jiko (KCJ), an effort to get folks away from their highly inefficient and unhealthy traditional cooking fires.
Some reading about the KCJ revealed another African design: the Vesto. It's a stove based on a five gallon paint can. It's built in South Africa and costs considerably less than the Pyromid, although it is more bulky. It would certainly be useful for camping and emergency use. I'm still looking for a source in the U.S.
Tuesday, January 18, 2005
Movie: The Gleaners and I
I just saw The Gleaners and I, directed by Agnès Varda. C'est fantastique!
Agnès exposes what good dumpster divers have known for some time; the amount of waste in Western society is astounding. Her French subjects, ranging from Gypsies to street kids to volunteer teachers to gourmet chefs, realize the untapped bounty in leftover produce, from both the field and the market.
We would all do well to take a lesson from Ms. Varda's subjects. If you're averse to gleaning or dumpstering, you should at least pay attention to efficiently using and re-using what you have.
Agnès exposes what good dumpster divers have known for some time; the amount of waste in Western society is astounding. Her French subjects, ranging from Gypsies to street kids to volunteer teachers to gourmet chefs, realize the untapped bounty in leftover produce, from both the field and the market.
We would all do well to take a lesson from Ms. Varda's subjects. If you're averse to gleaning or dumpstering, you should at least pay attention to efficiently using and re-using what you have.
Thursday, December 02, 2004
Communications Academy 2005
I went to the Communications Academy a couple years ago and thoroughly enjoyed it. It is two days of seminars on a variety of radio communications topics. I highly recommend that anyone who is interested in emergency communications attend. It's extremely interesting and free! 2005 session is April 2-3 in Shoreline, Washington.
Have a look at past offerings to get an idea of what's in store. (2004, 2003, 2002)
Have a look at past offerings to get an idea of what's in store. (2004, 2003, 2002)
Friday, November 26, 2004
Casting Party
My friend Dan had a casting party last week. You may be thinking "thespians," but no.
This was a molten metal social event. Dan turned his backyard into a foundary workers dream. There were a dozen people there and at least 2 projects going at any one time. Dan was melting aluminum in the foundary while another fellow fired his lost-wax mold for a small totem.
The keystone for the occasion was Mike Porter's backyard furnace. The furnace or forge is made from an old propane tank. Ingenious. These furnaces get hot. As I mentioned, Dan was melting aluminum, and the totem cast was later filled with molten brass. Mike was there, signing copies of his book, "Gas Burners for Forges, Furnaces & Kilns," which details the making of both the furnace, and most importantly, the burner, which fires the furnace.
The greatest thing about these furnaces are their versatility. Depending on how you build it, the foundary furnace can be easily flipped on its side and used as a blacksmith's forge. Very cool and very portable.
This was a molten metal social event. Dan turned his backyard into a foundary workers dream. There were a dozen people there and at least 2 projects going at any one time. Dan was melting aluminum in the foundary while another fellow fired his lost-wax mold for a small totem.
The keystone for the occasion was Mike Porter's backyard furnace. The furnace or forge is made from an old propane tank. Ingenious. These furnaces get hot. As I mentioned, Dan was melting aluminum, and the totem cast was later filled with molten brass. Mike was there, signing copies of his book, "Gas Burners for Forges, Furnaces & Kilns," which details the making of both the furnace, and most importantly, the burner, which fires the furnace.
The greatest thing about these furnaces are their versatility. Depending on how you build it, the foundary furnace can be easily flipped on its side and used as a blacksmith's forge. Very cool and very portable.
Sunday, August 24, 2003
Chicken Tractors
Check this out: I have been designing a chicken tractor - drawings & descriptions in my notebook - that allows me to move chickens around the yard. It keeps down weeds & bugs & distributes fertilizer while keeping the chickens secure & free-range happy. Imagine my surprise, when visiting the Evergreen State Fair in Monroe, in finding a luxury chicken tractor! This coop has everything: a second story with nesting boxes & roosts and a pull-down ladder for the chickens to descend to ground level. This thing is cool. www.backyardfarming.com calls it their Boughton Range.
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