I've been put on "standby" for a 10 day deployment to New Orleans. My combination of skills as Firefighter/Firs Responders/Ham Radio Operator/Computer Geek has been noticed in some database somewhere.

If I ship out, it will be Monday. I'll let you all know what happens.

I need to buy a dozen MRE's in a hurry, dont' want to raid the family supply, can't find any around here...all sold out or not in stock...

Have some other issues to discuss w/r/t security. PM me for an offline discussion.

Good luck Martin. Be safe.

So lets make this a general, hypothethical discussion.

Why would I be concerned about?

Your want to be careful about the water, wash frequently and keep any wouds covered. Sunscreen!

Communication is an issue, as is getting power. I'd learn & carry a 2 m ham radio, also my cell and expect it not to work.
Batteries!

Bring a gps and a map, in case you lose your group and need to walk out. ( also a bunch of plastic sheetig to catch rain water)

Life jacket and mabye a ballistic vest, Baby wipes!

MRE's? Either check with friends or raid your family supply and mail order some new ones today to replace.

TRO

Hi Martin,
Best wishes for you as you go! My wife and I are "supposed" to leave in 10 days for a two week stint feeding FEMA agents in Hattiesburg, MS. The situation is still very fluid, so not sure yet, but I want to go and help, if I can.
I am a Ham op also and plan on taking radios and a trailer of extra supplies.

Right now I would think hauling MRE's to New Orleans would be like hauling wine to France.

Taking some food with you is probably a good idea, but would at least some NOT MRE food items be a better idea?

Hi Ron,
We, at least, are not taking MRE's. The food that we will be serving, will be provided by the organization. We (myself, wife and another couple) are taking a small trailer of toothepaste, wipes, toothbrushes, insect repellant, and many other small items--this is just our own personal contribution to the disaster, but a good comment.

Twice as much of the non-food consumables as you think you will need, or as close as you can manage.

For the MREs, I have to echo TRO- take what you have, and order more to replace it. It is a window of negative impact until the replacements get in, but I don't know if there is much option. Supliment with cans and wetpacked ham/tuna/chicken, rice (heavy, but you can treat them like MREs for the short term), and vac packed dehydrateds.

where can I see a nutritional values and close-up picture of an MRE? - thanks
(Newbie and crawling out of ignorance :-))

Last fall when Ivan hit South Alabama, my parents were without power for 10 days. (They had a generator and enough food to have lasted for months before the storm hit. Once I found out they had made it through the storm OK, I didn't worry too much about them.)

As soon as the trees could be cut out of the roads, there were trucks in passing out MRE's and bottled water. It wasn't until the power was restored and trucks could get in that the grocery stores could reopen. While they had plenty of food, my mother ran out of bread because there was no place to get it.

What I was trying to get at is that MRE's are the standard food that gets passed out. It is the stuff you are talking about that is hard to get.

Best of luck. Take care of yourself.

From what I gather cell phone reception is bad in some areas. Last fall it was three days after the storm before I finally managed to get through to my sister, the first member of the family I could reach. Make it a point to check in with friends and family at home while you are gone when you get a chance and let everyone know you are OK. Not knowing is hard on the people outside the area, especially when most of what you see on TV is the negative sides of what is happening.

MRE? Those are the green bags you see the Army eating out of - they are VERY high in calories, and usually have all the vitamins you need - 2 are meant to keep a soldier in combat feed for a day - for days on end

I saw something the other day about actual firefights/special forces missions - the can't keep it up for too long - you actually burn so many calories, that it's almost impossible to EAT as many as you burn