Saturday, September 11, 2010

Emergency Preparedness

I was at a workmates wedding last Saturday when I first heard about the Christchurch earthquake – one of my other workmates mentioned that the airport was closed, and I had no idea what they were talking about (that seems to happen to me quite a bit.)

My first thought was for the people I know in Christchurch who would have all been affected by such a major event. I was in their city a few months ago, doing the tourist thing, taking lots and lots of photos and I wondered how different it would all look now, since all the news footage they have been showing looks like it has been taken from exactly the same spot.

My next thoughts were about how well prepared I would be in case of such a disaster. I have bits and pieces of a 72hr kit, but they’re not located in one place, and I have no idea how I would get to them in an emergency. One lady I know recommended making a poncho with lots of pockets filled with supplies which you could grab in case anything happened – a good idea if you’re likely to be carrying children or other things out of the house in a hurry.

Over the last few years I’ve been trying to declutter the things in my life, it doesn’t help that I have a tendency to hoard, but I have gradually been clearing things away. When I was young we didn’t have much and I got installed with the idea that people are more important than things. I have a small room at the moment, which helps me remember that I should get rid of all the things I don’t use on a regular basis – much easier said than done, since I have a lot of stuff that has been in storage for the last few months. I probably don’t need most of it, but I have an emotional attachment to it.

If it was all destroyed in a fire or earthquake, I don’t know that I would miss it, since I probably wouldn’t remember what was there. Really I should just get rid of it all. I don’t know whats stopping me.

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