The Flying Dutchman
Inactive
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<i>I am posting this as a stand-alone thread (I have posted it to the daily thread as well). Since it addresses the preping for H5N1, the information may not be seen by those interested in Preping - but not reading the daily H5N1 threads -
The Dutchman</i>
<B><center>April 3, 2006
<font size=+1 color=purple>Suburban survivalists prepare for pandemic </font>
By Jennifer Brooks
Gannett News Service
jabrooks@gns.gannett.com
<A href="http://www.marshfieldnewsherald.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060403/WDH04/604030345/1769/MNHlife">www.marshfieldnewsherald.com</a></center>
WASHINGTON -- The more stories about avian flu appeared on the news, the more canned goods and bottled water found their way into Melanie Mattson's apartment. </b>
Gradually, the 52-year-old writer from Falls Church, Va., gave over her spare bedroom to the growing emergency stockpile. If a pandemic arrives, Mattson hopes to have enough food, water and emergency supplies to see her and a few of her elderly neighbors through the catastrophe.
Avian flu is headed this way. U.S. health officials expect migratory birds to carry the lethal H5N1 flu strain to North America this year, endangering wild and domestic flocks. The threat to humans is less clear.
At the moment, the only way to catch bird flu is through very close contact with an infected bird. The disease does not spread easily from birds to humans, but when it does, the mortality rate tops 50 percent. Nearly 100 people have died of the disease, which bears an eerie resemblance to the 1918 influenza pandemic that killed millions worldwide.
The thought that H5N1 might someday mutate into a flu strain that could spread from human to human is terrifying enough to send health officials and ordinary citizens like Mattson into high alert.
A pandemic could drag on for weeks or months. Millions could die, tens of millions could fall ill and millions more would be unable or unwilling to leave their homes. Widespread absenteeism could endanger utilities and other basic services. State, federal and local emergency services would be strained to the limits.
"If you think about pandemic flu, think about 50 Katrinas," Mattson said. "The government's not going to be able to help us. We're going to be on our own."
State, federal and local governments and health officials are drawing up pandemic preparation plans. So are Mattson and thousands of other people who visit the online avian flu information network she co-founded, Flu Wiki.
As many as 15,000 people a day visit the online forum to swap news stories, debate avian flu theories and share tips about disaster preparedness. Founded less than a year ago, Flu Wiki has more than 1,200 pages of avian flu information, all of it contributed by members.
<b>"Our motto is, don't panic -- prepare," Mattson said. </b>
Preparations of another sort are under way at the Nitro-Pak Preparedness Center in Heber City, Utah. Last month, company owner Harry Weyandt decided to offer a line of avian flu survival gear. Sales are up 600 percent compared with March 2005, he said.
The avian flu supplies are the same sort of gear he sells to campers, boat owners looking to stock life rafts and people preparing for emergencies such as earthquakes, hurricanes or terrorist attacks.
First-aid kits. Freeze-dried food in bulk. Water purification equipment. Face masks -- the N95 versions recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention -- along with rubber gloves and hand sanitizer.
For $4,100, shoppers can buy enough freeze-dried food to supply one person for a year or a family of four for three months. For $7,999, Nitro-Pak will ship the Ultimate Family Survival Preparedness Pak, stocked with everything from food to gas masks to sanitation equipment.
The $1,699.99 two-person Emergency Reserve kit has been very popular, Weyandt said. Compact enough to store in the back of a closet or under a bed, the kit promises six weeks' worth of meals for two people, along with hospital masks, a 40-gallon water storage unit and a water purification system.
"Y2K really kind of took the steam out of the preparedness movement," said Weyandt, referring to fears that a computer glitch on the eve of the year 2000 would crash computers worldwide and lead to widespread panic and disorder. Any number of people found themselves sitting around on New Year's Day 2000 with a garage full of canned goods and toilet paper, for nothing.
Weyandt, who founded his company 20 years ago, said Hurricane Katrina kicked off a new nationwide interest in disaster preparedness that has shifted into worries about a possible influenza pandemic.
"We're seeing a lot more professionals ordering these days. We have doctors and lawyers placing orders," Weyandt said. "I had one guy who works for the CDC call. He said, 'Everybody here is stockpiling supplies.' And I said, 'Man, if the guys from the CDC are worried, maybe this is something more people should be worried about."'
Federal health officials have begun actively encouraging Americans to make pandemic preparations.
"The things you would do to prepare for a pandemic are the things you can do for any emergency," said Christine Pearson, spokeswoman for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. "The difference being that a hurricane, tornado or blizzard generally hits in a limited area for a limited time."
With a pandemic, she said, "you would need to plan for something that lasts for months."
<b>Planning for bird flu</b>
There is no way of knowing if the H5N1 strain of avian flu will mutate into a disease capable of spreading to humans. But if it does, the U.S. government wants Americans to be prepared for a disaster that could cost millions of lives, drag on for months and disrupt supply chains, close businesses, stores and gas stations, and make it difficult to maintain even the most basic services like water and electricity.
<b>Make plans now:</b>
Ready a supply of food and water capable of sustaining everyone in your family for weeks or months. During a pandemic, you might not be able to get to a store, or stores might be out of supplies. This emergency supply also will come in handy for other emergencies.
Talk to family members about how they want to be cared for if they fall ill. Would they rather stay at home or seek out hospitals that might be overwhelmed with the sick and dying?
All states and most communities have made pandemic preparation plans. Get involved in local pandemic preparation efforts.
Start practicing common-sense precautions to prevent the spread of disease. Wash your hands frequently with soap and water. Cover your coughs and sneezes. Stay home if you get sick to avoid spreading disease to others. Teach children to do the same.
<b>What to stockpile: </b>
Ready-to-eat, nonperishable foods like canned meats, fruits, vegetables and soups. Protein or fruit bars. Dry cereal or granola. Powdered milk. Peanut butter, nuts and dried fruit.
<b>A manual can opener.
Baby food, if needed.
Pet food for the animals in the family.
Plenty of bottled water, both for drinking and for sanitation.
Prescription medication for everyone in the home.
Nonprescription drugs like acetaminophen or ibuprofen, stomach remedies, anti-diarrhea medication, cough and cold medicines, fluids with electrolytes and vitamins.
A thermometer.
Soap or alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
Flashlights, portable radios and batteries.
Garbage bags, tissues, toilet paper, disposable diapers.
Where to go for more information: </b>
www.pandemicflu.gov/planguide/checklist.html, the federal government's pandemic preparation site.
www.fluwikie.com, an online community dedicated to sharing information on avian flu, including preparation advice and tips on pandemic preparations
www.providentliving.org/channel/0,11677,1706-1,00.html, Mormon church site that offers tips on food storage and a calculator to help families gauge how much food would be necessary to survive from one month to three years.
Sources: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and GNS research
<i>I am posting this as a stand-alone thread (I have posted it to the daily thread as well). Since it addresses the preping for H5N1, the information may not be seen by those interested in Preping - but not reading the daily H5N1 threads -
The Dutchman</i>
<B><center>April 3, 2006
<font size=+1 color=purple>Suburban survivalists prepare for pandemic </font>
By Jennifer Brooks
Gannett News Service
jabrooks@gns.gannett.com
<A href="http://www.marshfieldnewsherald.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060403/WDH04/604030345/1769/MNHlife">www.marshfieldnewsherald.com</a></center>
WASHINGTON -- The more stories about avian flu appeared on the news, the more canned goods and bottled water found their way into Melanie Mattson's apartment. </b>
Gradually, the 52-year-old writer from Falls Church, Va., gave over her spare bedroom to the growing emergency stockpile. If a pandemic arrives, Mattson hopes to have enough food, water and emergency supplies to see her and a few of her elderly neighbors through the catastrophe.
Avian flu is headed this way. U.S. health officials expect migratory birds to carry the lethal H5N1 flu strain to North America this year, endangering wild and domestic flocks. The threat to humans is less clear.
At the moment, the only way to catch bird flu is through very close contact with an infected bird. The disease does not spread easily from birds to humans, but when it does, the mortality rate tops 50 percent. Nearly 100 people have died of the disease, which bears an eerie resemblance to the 1918 influenza pandemic that killed millions worldwide.
The thought that H5N1 might someday mutate into a flu strain that could spread from human to human is terrifying enough to send health officials and ordinary citizens like Mattson into high alert.
A pandemic could drag on for weeks or months. Millions could die, tens of millions could fall ill and millions more would be unable or unwilling to leave their homes. Widespread absenteeism could endanger utilities and other basic services. State, federal and local emergency services would be strained to the limits.
"If you think about pandemic flu, think about 50 Katrinas," Mattson said. "The government's not going to be able to help us. We're going to be on our own."
State, federal and local governments and health officials are drawing up pandemic preparation plans. So are Mattson and thousands of other people who visit the online avian flu information network she co-founded, Flu Wiki.
As many as 15,000 people a day visit the online forum to swap news stories, debate avian flu theories and share tips about disaster preparedness. Founded less than a year ago, Flu Wiki has more than 1,200 pages of avian flu information, all of it contributed by members.
<b>"Our motto is, don't panic -- prepare," Mattson said. </b>
Preparations of another sort are under way at the Nitro-Pak Preparedness Center in Heber City, Utah. Last month, company owner Harry Weyandt decided to offer a line of avian flu survival gear. Sales are up 600 percent compared with March 2005, he said.
The avian flu supplies are the same sort of gear he sells to campers, boat owners looking to stock life rafts and people preparing for emergencies such as earthquakes, hurricanes or terrorist attacks.
First-aid kits. Freeze-dried food in bulk. Water purification equipment. Face masks -- the N95 versions recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention -- along with rubber gloves and hand sanitizer.
For $4,100, shoppers can buy enough freeze-dried food to supply one person for a year or a family of four for three months. For $7,999, Nitro-Pak will ship the Ultimate Family Survival Preparedness Pak, stocked with everything from food to gas masks to sanitation equipment.
The $1,699.99 two-person Emergency Reserve kit has been very popular, Weyandt said. Compact enough to store in the back of a closet or under a bed, the kit promises six weeks' worth of meals for two people, along with hospital masks, a 40-gallon water storage unit and a water purification system.
"Y2K really kind of took the steam out of the preparedness movement," said Weyandt, referring to fears that a computer glitch on the eve of the year 2000 would crash computers worldwide and lead to widespread panic and disorder. Any number of people found themselves sitting around on New Year's Day 2000 with a garage full of canned goods and toilet paper, for nothing.
Weyandt, who founded his company 20 years ago, said Hurricane Katrina kicked off a new nationwide interest in disaster preparedness that has shifted into worries about a possible influenza pandemic.
"We're seeing a lot more professionals ordering these days. We have doctors and lawyers placing orders," Weyandt said. "I had one guy who works for the CDC call. He said, 'Everybody here is stockpiling supplies.' And I said, 'Man, if the guys from the CDC are worried, maybe this is something more people should be worried about."'
Federal health officials have begun actively encouraging Americans to make pandemic preparations.
"The things you would do to prepare for a pandemic are the things you can do for any emergency," said Christine Pearson, spokeswoman for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. "The difference being that a hurricane, tornado or blizzard generally hits in a limited area for a limited time."
With a pandemic, she said, "you would need to plan for something that lasts for months."
<b>Planning for bird flu</b>
There is no way of knowing if the H5N1 strain of avian flu will mutate into a disease capable of spreading to humans. But if it does, the U.S. government wants Americans to be prepared for a disaster that could cost millions of lives, drag on for months and disrupt supply chains, close businesses, stores and gas stations, and make it difficult to maintain even the most basic services like water and electricity.
<b>Make plans now:</b>
Ready a supply of food and water capable of sustaining everyone in your family for weeks or months. During a pandemic, you might not be able to get to a store, or stores might be out of supplies. This emergency supply also will come in handy for other emergencies.
Talk to family members about how they want to be cared for if they fall ill. Would they rather stay at home or seek out hospitals that might be overwhelmed with the sick and dying?
All states and most communities have made pandemic preparation plans. Get involved in local pandemic preparation efforts.
Start practicing common-sense precautions to prevent the spread of disease. Wash your hands frequently with soap and water. Cover your coughs and sneezes. Stay home if you get sick to avoid spreading disease to others. Teach children to do the same.
<b>What to stockpile: </b>
Ready-to-eat, nonperishable foods like canned meats, fruits, vegetables and soups. Protein or fruit bars. Dry cereal or granola. Powdered milk. Peanut butter, nuts and dried fruit.
<b>A manual can opener.
Baby food, if needed.
Pet food for the animals in the family.
Plenty of bottled water, both for drinking and for sanitation.
Prescription medication for everyone in the home.
Nonprescription drugs like acetaminophen or ibuprofen, stomach remedies, anti-diarrhea medication, cough and cold medicines, fluids with electrolytes and vitamins.
A thermometer.
Soap or alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
Flashlights, portable radios and batteries.
Garbage bags, tissues, toilet paper, disposable diapers.
Where to go for more information: </b>
www.pandemicflu.gov/planguide/checklist.html, the federal government's pandemic preparation site.
www.fluwikie.com, an online community dedicated to sharing information on avian flu, including preparation advice and tips on pandemic preparations
www.providentliving.org/channel/0,11677,1706-1,00.html, Mormon church site that offers tips on food storage and a calculator to help families gauge how much food would be necessary to survive from one month to three years.
Sources: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and GNS research
Bubba Zanetti, you are so right. Change the first "S" to 'stock' and the 3'S' rule would apply here. Change it to Stock up, Shovel(bury your stocks/hide them), and Shut up(about having them).
. Neither the first order of five cases and not the ten cases add on order were placed. [BTW,The manager of the store was there at customer 'service' when the first order was written up. She knows me as I am one of their vendors, too]. The kid in receiving I finally was connected to gave me the excuse that the night 'crew' probably just 'blew off' the order. GREAT. The point of this rant is that should anyone on this forum believe they will get 'THE' order they place during 'normal' times GOOD LUCK, under duress FORGET IT. The 'kids' that so many of these stores hire just do not give a flying squirrel. When TSHTF they in all likelihood will be even more worthless or not there at all. Everyone else will be there DEMANDING SERVICE and goods. Moral of the story is to get your menu together. NOW, would be a good time. Place large orders immediately. FOLLOW UP ON THE ORDER!!
If you are concerned about H5N1 I call that prudent. If you think $3.00/gal [or higher] gasoline is in our immediate future you have given yourself another incentive to purchase now before the price goes through the roof. 
