Hey, why not, everyone else is getting their share. You've got the qualifications, if I were you, I'd go for it too. Nobody has more money than those who make it. I am a bit surprised this didn't happen sooner.

That said, reading all the posts on this thread has me more convinced that a local community shelter constructed, run, and used by those who would invest in building it, seems to be the best solution if individual shelter needs are less desirable and bugging out is not an option.

My mother does the same thing for the hospital she works for.

The state wouldn't sign off on their plan until the bean counter in question was take to the site and shown that they have a 200' elevation change from the river to them. *eyeroll*

I don't think the bean counter quite knew what to make of a hospital that has water wells and filters if they need to go off town water. :P

The hospital was in Vermont? I spent 4 years in/at Middlebury, and learned to admire Vermonters' very practical and straight-forward approach to problem-solving-which doesn't translate into bean-counter language at all.

Consider my fingers crossed, and congratulations. It's reassuring to know that our government is actually tapping into some real expertise in the emergency preparedness arena.

Jeff

I apologize if I gave the impression that I thought you were attacking Red Cross folks. I know you weren't. Your observations on human nature, shelters, and individual preparedness are well taken.

All I was trying to do was illustrate how a typical "Red Cross Shelter" comes in to being. My key point is that, although the Red Cross provides much of the service, they don't get to dictate all the rules, and many of the things that may happen are simply beyond their control, such as local officials setting up metal detectors or doing searches.

Furthermore, although I am a former Red Cross paid employee and volunteer, that was many years ago. I have no current active affiliation with the American Red Cross, and my comments are strictly my own opinion. I do, however, work alongside and around Red Cross folks in a different disaster capacity, and have tremendous respect and affection for them and for the American Red Cross.

Jeff

No prob Jeff. I sometimes let my opinion override my diplomsy. As far as situations out of the personells control. You are preaching to the chior. I had the experience of working in a direct supervision jail. I figure it would be similar. If the mass descided to do something, one or two personell would have little say in whether it happened or not. Pretty scary and thus, I own my own survival shelter and have educated my family on self-sustaining. Best way to stay out of a bad situation is not to go into it.

The Red Cross does try, and does a fairly good job with what they have, in fact, their paid staff does a great job on the local level (I think there is a tad of feather bedding/politics up at the National - well, duh)

I did the whole "shelter Managaers" series, and was on call this weekend in case NYC opened a shelter, but thank G-- we didn't have to. GNYARC does have one strange issue with opening shelters - because of the way they run day to day, it's EXTREMELY rare they actually open a shelter. Reception Centers, yes, shelters, nope. That's because there are SO many hotels in NYC that the ARC has agreements with that they usually intake the clients, and pass them off to a hotel with a voucher for food, clothes, etc. Last two shelters ops I was on, they opened 3 or 5 shelters. Between the 8 shelters, on 2 operations, the TOTAL client count was .... ONE

I do have some funny stories - like the blackout, and the fact that someone forgot to refuel the ERV before they put it away, and trying to find a place to get 10-20 gallons of diesel during a blackout... (my pickup took the place of the ERV while they went to refuel - got a bunch of goodies from NYPD because of that - I've been told it's policy that if you use flares at a scene that the PD will replace them)

^ That is very impressive. I only wish Magen David Adom had the same funding...