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Lessons learned from last weeks tornadoes

HERMET

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The Hen that laid the Golden Legos
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We were lucky, other than losing part of our roof the house came through relatively undamaged. The same can't be said about our property and the things around the house. It's a damn mess and I don't know if I'll ever get it back to normal. Some of our neighbors had it way worse.
They got the lights back on this weekend but still no internet service .
Those utility repair guys are amazing and whatever they're being paid it isn't enough so a big thank you to those people.

I like to think I'm prepared for most anything but there are always lessons to be learned.
1. Cash on hand, keep more than you think you need. No power or internet= no ATM or debit machines at stores and gas stations. I got caught short on that one.
2. Generator accessibly. I keep my generators in my shop which is separated from the house a good bit.
Trying to move them from the shop to the house after the storm in the dark through the fallen trees and debris was herculean.
I'll be building a generator storage location closer to the house.
2A. Make sure they're in good working condition before you need them. I had to repair one of mine before I could use it.
A periodic check will be in order from now on.
3. Water, I've been saying for years that I needed to add a supplemental pump to the well but never got around to it.
I will definitely be getting around to it.
4. Batteries...lots of batteries.

I'm sure there's more I'm forgetting right now but that's a short list.
Feel free to add anything I may have overlooked.
"There are no atheists in foxholes or tornadoes."
 
Always takes a big man to admit on things he can improve on and some people cant' ever admit that (stunts their growth in the areas they need to improve on). I think this is a great post with good tips and encouraging we all can take and apply in our lives to improve!

Most importantly we are glad you survived!

I wish you a happy and better 2023!
 
This storm ws brutal for us. It took seven hours to get home Thursday. I realized I need to add a much bigger flashlight and a phone charger to the truck and add a packable raincoat to the truck bag. A chainsaw in the truck would have been helpful, but not practical.
 
This storm ws brutal for us. It took seven hours to get home Thursday. I realized I need to add a much bigger flashlight and a phone charger to the truck and add a packable raincoat to the truck bag. A chainsaw in the truck would have been helpful, but not practical.
Glad you're ok, I had to take my wife to the ER after the storm and trying to get there was a navigational nightmare. I almost plowed into several downed trees and powerlines along the way.
The ER doctor is a neighbor and he said it took him multiple detours and U-turns to get to the hospital.
One of the sons who lives down the road a few miles came to check on us immediately after the storm and he had to cut his way through to get here.
 
glad you're ok, that's the most important part. I've been near a few and lost my office in Texas to an EF3 (thankfully after I had put in notice, cause otherwise I would have quit anyway).

one thing I do now with storm warnings is to gear up with whatever I'd need to be self sufficient for 24+ hours. Work pants and boots, duty belt with gun/ammo/reload/light/multitool, etc. I also grab a small EDC/bug out bag that has enough stuff to support my family for a few days. Mostly food/clothing/cash, as local "disasters" are easier to bug out to if the hotel down the street wasn't hit.

have some food and water handy, and ways to cook it like you're camping, even if it's in the house.
 
I built an enclosure off the garage for my Genny. Used one of the pre fab deck boxes-

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I'm considering getting another portable large capacity water filter ,several 5 gallon water jugs, and a solar powered generator for charging phone ect... and a small battery powered chain saw for small stuff. Extra gas for vehicles. I still keep all my camping gear from scouts ready. Stove ,lantern tent,sleeping bags and some freeze dried meals for a couple of days.
 
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