It’s hard to believe but only a few days ago did the WHO declare COVID-19 a Pandemic. It has infected more than 100,000 people and spread throughout every continent except for Antarctica. It is truly something to behold.
It has brought to bear the lack of world preparedness that exists. The people have reached a full scale panic and are turning to preppers for information about how to respond. It’s a very interesting time to watch unfold.
As the numbers rise and closures increase, we can expect to see more restrictions from federal and state governments. At some point you might be forced to stay in your home for the duration of the virus. Are you prepared for that?
What Are the Biggest Threats of COVID0-19?
Most people are at least slightly confused about the true threats that this virus presents. The echoes of “This is just like the flu,†are very telling. The virus is hardly like the flu and it has potential far beyond just illness and mortality rate, to truly effect the economy and daily life in America.
However, the amount of people who will be infected will be substantially higher than that of the flu. That is because this virus spreads through the air without needed surface contact. It’s a game changer.
There are three essential medial threats when it comes to this coronavirus.
- Medical staff could get sick in large numbers making it hard to service those in need
- 13% of those infected with the virus need critical care. This could become a massive number of required hospital beds and we may not be able to meet the need in densely populated areas.
- Those with compromised immunity, preexisting conditions and older people are dying from COVID-19s.
The economic threats of this virus are much graver. It would seem that this virus is affecting governments, people and businesses in radical ways. The world is nearly coming to a stand still in order to stop the spread of the virus.
Who would have imagined hearing the day that the NHL and the NBA are stopping their playing seasons to give this time to blow over?
Just in the time it took me to write this article local schools have shutdown for 2 weeks and public events have been either postponed or cancelled altogether. I just saw a message from Dana White of the UFC about how this could affect these events.
Bugging In or Seeking Shelter at Home
Your best bet will be to bug in. If you can stay home for an extended period, and work from home, it will lessen the impact of the virus on your family and the impact you have as a carrier. There is a new responsibility to consider and that is the effect you have by running around town as a carrier. Who could you potentially infect?
To bug in will requires a few things so that you can live happily and comfortably with your family. This could be for 2 weeks, 1 month or even 3 months! Let’s look at creating a base level of preparedness so that your family can weather this storm without issue.
Base Level Preparedness
To establish a base level of preparedness you need to affect 6 areas of preparedness, at least. These are the most effective and in a bug in situation, will really make things easier on you.
Food
If you are going to stay at home for a months’ time that will take a lot of calories. Assuming you and yours want to eat 2000 calories a day you will need 250,000 calories to feed your family for the month. Yes, it’s a lot but a 50lb bag of rice is 80,000 right off the top.
Its time to stock up that pantry. Get yourself some shelf stable foods, soups, dry grains and cereals, salt, cooking oil, powdered milk can go a long way, too!
Water
While water might not be a big issue for this emergency, you may want to consider having extra on hand. If something were to happen to the tap or water supply, you only have 3 days to deal with that issue.
An important prep would also be powdered electrolyte. This could be used to deal with dehydration related to illness. Remember, you might not be able to go to the hospital if you have enough cases close by. Liquid IV is a great product for this, and it can be purchased online. Its tasty and mixes right into a glass of water.
Backup Power
Having power is always a priority when emergencies strike. When manpower is affected things can go wrong and typical reaction time could vary wildly.
Gas Generators, solar generators, power banks and solar panels all have some great benefits when it comes to powering essential items and devices in the home.
First Aid
This is an area of concern because you want to be able to stay away from doctors and medical establishments as they will be either overrun, short staffed or just filled with sick people.
A typical store bought first aid kit will not help you much. Be sure you have all the OTC medications that you typically use and need. These medications will go a long way in treating for things like colds, flu and stomach bugs at home.
Seasonal allergies are not going to wait on coronavirus so be sure you have access to those meds, too!
A quality first aid manual will be essential here. I encourage you to fill your medicine cabinet with the things your family needs. Beyond that, buy a big Rubbermaid container and create a first aid reserve.
The reserve should be full of backup items to stop bleeding, infection and add depth to what you are capable of affecting.
Security
This can be a dark situation to consider but it is something that we need to discuss. Italy is on lockdown, other nations are on lockdown and judging by the timeline in other places, we could be in a lockdown-ish situation by the end of this month.
Those who haven’t prepared may fall on hard times either financially or otherwise. Because of this you must be prepared to defend your community and home.
While it might seem like buying open guns and ammo, your first step should be to consider talking to your community. In a situation like this we will be very aware of threats and the public will be prepared to act.
Evacuation
Never shut the door to evacuation. Just because the line is to bug in does not mean that a situation could occur where the need to get away becomes a priority.
Gather the materials you need to effectively evacuate.
- ID’s
- Deeds
- Wills
- Insurance
- Cash
- Protection
Conclusion
Let’s talk about what we do know. Countries are being overwhelmed by the demand and effects of this virus. It will have similar effects here. There will be economic impacts and your daily life will be disrupted. Just with school closings alone we are seeing that.
I hope you have taken some action in the past to prepare for situations like this. If not its time to build your base level of preparedness and prepare to stay home for a while.
