Devaststing Storms in FL

Having seen the news before I left for work this morning regarding the devastating storms in central Florida, I hope our ETS members and their friends and families are okay. My thoughts and prayers go out to all Florida residents.

Pete

Thanx Pete. I'm up in the Ocala National Forest and was spared the worst in my area. Izzy is in that Deland area that was hit pretty hard - I pray he's OK. I haven't seen any posts from him in a while - he may be gone.

The death toll continues to grow. Lady Lake was damaged worse than anywhere else. Our church has sent one Disaster Relief team down there already this morning and another team will go at 3 PM. Apparently it's real bad.

Pray for the people in the area, the SAR and Relief workers and all those that have friends and relatives in the area.

So what's your EDC <img src="/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> That's the problem with any kit that isn't EDC. I don't really have a BOB per se, I do have a substantial kit in my truck which is always close by.

In this story: http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/02/02/florida.destroy/index.html

an interesting quote...

"We don't know what to do. We have no cell phones, wallets, IDs."

You know, one thing I have in one of my PSKs is an expired lisence. It fits right in, and will provide my identity if needed. I notice that most folks dont take this into account. Just a thought.

This is interesting. I never even considered having some sort of ID as part of my kits. hmmmmm.

How did you get an expired license, here you have to turn in the old ones when you get a new one.
I've been wondering about these important documents lately. I keep as much as I can electronic but what about items such as your birth certificate, social security card, etc. If you loose the original your kind of stuck. Mine are in a fireproof safe at home but what if I had to evac and didn't have time to take that safe with me. Just getting a license in a different state was difficult enough without an original birth certificate because the Ohio DNV wouldn't accept the notarized copy my parents sent me, they wanted the original.

Just tell them it was lost of stolen, and bring whatever other documents (passport, birth cert, etc) with you when you get a new one. Just remember, don't break out the old one by habit when they ask for id. <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />
J

Can an expired license be used as valid ID anywhere? What are the legal requirements when someone wants ID.
What do you do when a clueless agency refuses to accept a copy of a birth certificate, I can only obtain copies of a copy because the original is gone due to a fire in the county records building.

Besides the ID's that I carry, I also have a microfiche copy of my medical history in my wallet. As a habit, I never download the pockets of my pants and shirts until the next morning when I have gotten dressed. Then everything is transferred from the dirty clothes to my clean clothes and the dirty clothes then go into the hamper.

I have downloaded our birth certificates, SS cards and my DW and My DL to a flash drive, and I EDC it w/ my DR PSK

Mike

Not sure if legal or not......
I know someone who, when he gets his new license, waits a month or so, then "loses" it and gets another from the state. That way he has a spare un-expired license for emergencies.

Me, I carry my expired license in my ID kit, along with my expired passport, and a certified copy of my birth certificate and SS card copy.

Go to the County and ask them. Here in my county, they will issue you a valid replacement, with a raise county seal, as a official document.

Two residences demands a duplication of kits to be complete. <img src="/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> Use the opportunity to upgrade.

The idea of not being near my BOB when an event occurred is what made me decide to just put a large kit in the truck. There's a pack in there also; if I need to walk I can build up a walking kit appropriate to the situation. Odds are though that I'll just stay with the truck.

I used to have the stuff in our vehicle in a USGI medium ALICE pack (a pack I hate by the way), then decided that sticking with the vehicle is a better idea. So everything went into one of those plastic "action packer" boxes. We still leave our day packs in the vehicle, and mine is more like a day and a half pack, so we could load them up and walk if really necessary. But that is Plan B for sure...

"...loses" it and gets another from the state..."

Legal, no, at least not in CA. Big deal ?, no again. If an officer finds that you have two valid DL's with you, normally the worst that would happen would be that he/she would take the oldest one and return it to DMV. I never ever saw anyone cited for that particular violation...

"...The weather service had warned that the storm was on the way, and local media had advised tornadoes were possible.
But many residents in the region said they did not know such a huge storm was coming..."


Interesting. I know that if I lived in that country, I would know what a cumulonimbus (CB) cloud (your classic thunderbumper cloud), and its variation, the cumulonimbus mammatus (CM, the one that tornados come from) look like, and if I saw one coming, or building on the horrizon, I would at least have my wallet and cell in my pocket.
Here is what the bottom side of a CM looks like. You see that overhead, start digging.

(sorry, I couldn't find a good pic of a CB in the limited time I have right now, but everyone has seen them. Tall (up to 30,000 ft or so), white on top (often in the shape of an anvil), dark on the bottom. Lightning, thunder, hail, all that fun stuff comes from a CB...

"... here you have to turn in ...If you loose the original your kind of stuck..."

Where do you live? In every state I am familiar with you can get a new birth certificate from the county you were born in, and with that you can go to the SS folks and get a new SS card (something I have to do one of these days, mine disappeared many years ago)...

About the only lesson I can take away from this particular event is the value of a safety deposit box in a bank 7 miles from my home. That is where I keep most of my "originals", and then other copies I have at home in a fire resistant file.
I also recently put a lift of checks from my bank checking and home equity line in the same box.
I am also working on photgraphing. video taping and logging serial numbers for my household inventory. If my house was blown apart, these would be at least the start of my recovery, instead of starting out in line getting re-IDed.
PS Even better if the safety deposit boxes are in the basement of the bank.

I'm wondering though about the safety deposit boxes, all the ones I've seen are just a simple steel box. What happened to all those in N.O. that ended up under water. Maybe get one of those small waterproof pelican cases and put it in the box.

The issue I ran into is the official copy from the county said "copy" on it and the dmv wanted the original. Which doesn't make any sense as the same state (OH) whose dmv wanted the original didn't even send me the original for my son, his says copy on it too. I ended up going to a different DMV and they took the copy, luckily the first one hadn't destroyed my old license yet, thats the nice thing about .gov places you can always get as many different interpretations of the rules/laws as you need to get the one you like <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

I think that would be a great question to ask the bank manager, or whoever is renting you the SD box.
I know mine has a plastic water resistant box inside the actual steel frame. I believe there may be a gasket on the door itself.
Wouldn't matter in Katrina conditons, but in a wind event, I am guessing the safety deposit box wall has lockdown, sprinklers, video survalance and possibly other redundant safeguards not made pulic.
Bottom line, it is a strong box several levels harder than anything in my home.
BTW, When I signed up for mine, I (a white middle aged guy from the burbs) told the banker I was looking for a safe place to "crib my bling"... the guy never cracked a smile and showed me a bunch of the safeguards in place, while my wife stood off to the side rolling her eyes and shaking her head at her idiot husband... As she says, "Men are idiots and I married their king!"

Oh, 1 more observation-
Looks like the guy who sells blue tarp in Central FL is going to make quota this quarter.
Any ETS readers ever had an emergency tarping project?
What are the ABC'c of being prepared, ready and organized in the unlikely event you needed to tarp a storm damaged roof?

I'd be wary of keeping ID anywhere but on my person (or locked up in a secure location).

Identity thieves are active everywhere. Having your identity stolen is a man-made disaster in itself. Apparently it's a nightmare to get everything straightened out -- it can take years.

Just a consideration.

We have two copies of birth certificates for everyone in the family. One in the house safe and one at the closest bank branch. Our SS cards and passports are at the bank too. After Katria, I've often thought of getting official copies to some out-of-state relatives, but that's probably overkill for us. The more copies you have floating around, the more open you are to identity theft.

My bank debit/credit card has my photo on it, which sometimes gets accepted as photo ID. I don't keep a spare license, but I've thought about it. You could also look into getting just a state ID card from the DMV. Those might be more lax as far as issuing duplicates.

There are several legitimate websites where you can easily order a birth certificate from your home county. At least it was easy for us. I'm sure some people run into complications.

I use the bank of my Aunt Norma in Ohio deposit box... works great and no fees. Might take a couple of days to get things back from her though. -Gary

I'm a stay with the vehicle as long as it is reasonable kind of guy. I have far more gear in the Yukon than I can easily carry. I also have a pack in the Yukon for when I might have to select the gear I want and leave the vehicle.

I recently can across a statistic that says you typically spend 80 hours trying to recover from a simple ID theft.

Emergency tarping: I learned a few things from watching the people around here do it the wrong way.

First, have your tarps before you need them. Find a sale, get what you want, then put them somewhere you can find them easily if you need them in a hurry, and make sure family and friends understand that they are NOT available for non-emergencies.

Also have on hand a bunch of cheap lumber. I used 1x3s that worked fine. They were 10 ft long, could have been longer, but they were free. These are to hold the tarps down. Nailing tarps down without wood strips is a waste of time, money and effort.

I tied cheap rope onto the corners of the tarp and let them hang down. I used these to maneuver the tarps mostly into position from the ground. (I'm pretty sure this won't work if the wind is blowing.) Spread out the tarp(s), overlap by a foot or so if necessary, lay the wood just inside the edges and nail or screw them down. Once this is done, lay more strips across the body of the tarp and anchor them, too.

If you just need to cover one side of the roof, be sure to start the tarp at least a foot or more on the OTHER side of the peak. I don't know how many times I've seen people lay tarps on their roof starting a foot or two below the peak, which lets the water run under the tarp.

You can do the same with windows of stick-built homes, but if you're going to be living in them, some heavy clear plastic would probably be better. Use the wood strips here, too.

If you're in a metal mobile home, use heavy plastic and duct tape. The metal and the plastic both have to be dry. Anchor all the edges first, then lay strips of duct tape across the middle for strength, probably every 12-18-24", depending on the wind. Do it vertically and horizontally.

Others here may have more suggestions.

Sue

I keep an old college ID card around for that purpose. It is issued by a state agency, the college isn't going anywhere, it has a unique ID number that isn't used for anything else, and I can use it get into the credit system becuase I have a way into my loans through thier financial aid office. And I'll be remembered long enough that if they ask around, they'll find someine in ten minutes who can describe me and confirm the picture on the card is me. And the alumni office has my perminant address on file.

And it still works to let me into computer labs. Until they revamp the system entirely, it still will, so if I can get there, I've got shelter and communications.

Nice tips, Sue. Thanks for that.

Another little tip. When storing any tarps with a high rubber content, sprinkle the tarp with some baby powder or something similar (foot powder, talc). I've had rubberized tarps bond to themselves in long-term storage so strongly that you could not unfold them without damage.

M

You may want to predrill nail or screw holes in the wood to prevent splitting the wood when it is time to "lay tarp".

One Day Closer!

Thanks Susan,
What strategy would you use for buying the tarps- many small sections lower cost tarps, or splurge on largest coverage area possible? I can see arguments for both, but would like to hear what you observed.
In a non hurricane area, would I be striving to have 50% roof coverage on hand, more than that or in a real world would having enough to cover say 100 sq feet cover 80% of scenarios?

I would go with the largest if I could, simply because of the force of wind-driven rain. But it's expensive. I had to buy mine fast, so I couldn't shop around. But I've since noticed that Harbor Freight online does have some sales that look pretty good.

I have no idea how much coverage you should have. Some is better than none, and if there is a widespread wind/rain problem, you might be hard put to find any at all.

Of course, you could collect enough to cover your entire home, and if you only needed a % of it, you could probably sell the rest to the neighbors! <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

It's the same old question: how much is enough? How much is too much?

Sue