Growing up in the Boston area, threatening things to be prepared for included bad drivers, muggers, and the occasional hurricanes and blizzards. Travelling to the mid-west, your primary fear is a tornado, which having lived on the southern edge of tornado alley, I've become accustomed to. (While I don't know anyone that has one, if you drive up the road just a few miles, there is a place that sells tornado shelters. I have a closet under the stairs that is too full of stuff to possibly be any good, assuming anywhere in this house of sticks is actually safe.)
The places I lived in New England don't tend to experience storms like Katrina or Rita. And even with those storms, you could see folks along the Gulf coast treated them very much like we did in New England, with many folks not evacuating, but they were not typical storms. Even Irene's whallop this year is uncommon.
Being ready for a typical hurricane isn't so bad if it's not a high-category storm and if you're not on the coast. For the lazy and unconcerned, making sure they have enough stuff to stay entertained and fed for the duration is typical. For the somewhat more responsible, you also put tape over your windows, maybe even plywood, and you make sure your lawn furniture and potted plants and such are secure. Having a flashlight and even a battery-powered radio is certainly advisable if you lose power. Most people won't even consider flooding a potential issue and evacuation isn't generally necessary. Kids will be excited by the prospect of a forest of downed branches (I loved my jungle!).
Blizzards are very much the same with the addition of having to dig snow and if you lose power, you also need to consider a way to stay warm. Rural folks will try to make sure their roof is kept shovelled to keep it from caving in, but the city folk will find it a relatively foreign idea. Kids will be excited by the winter wonderland of sledding and snowball fights and the thrill of school being cancelled.
In both cases, if you do need to evacuate, it likely won't be in a considerable hurry and would be more due to loss of power than anything. A couple days worth of clothes and toiletries will be assembled, and you'll make sure your doors and windows are locked before you leave. Almost like a vacation. The chances are very good your house will be fine or only minorly damaged upon your return. In general, though, you just stick it out and wait.
This year, we have broken a 1920's record for the number of days to reach 100 degrees or higher. The previous number was 69. Summer started particularly early this year - back in late April/early May. And we're likely not done yet. We blew the record out of the water with 80 days at or over 100. Well, that's if there was any water to be had...
Back in September, we had plenty - there were roads with water on them that we hadn't seen flooded before. The start of the year, things were pretty lush, the lake nearby had been stocked with fish, and we were looking forward to summer thunderstorms (even if they brought a risk of tornadoes). You may recall my post from when we were travelling to New England in the RV. Already at that point in time, you can see on the rainfall map, that central Texas was below average for the year. It didn't get any better. Any possible chance of rain continually evaporated with the intensity of the blazing ball of fire in the sky.
Tropical storm Don made it to Galveston, but didn't make it far enough inland to bring any water to us. Despite the path being totally wrong, we wished for Irene to change course and visit us. We hoped hurricane Lee would bring relief but he didn't and it was dumped just a little too far east.
We are currently nearly 13 inches below the norm. And there is no rain in the forecast. And Texas is on fire.
We're hurting in a bad way, as I'm sure you've noted in the recent Facebook activity and venues like CNN if you pay attention to national news. This is a snapshot of the larger fires in Texas... I say larger because there were at least three in the Austin area today that did not make this map.
The largest fire right now is burning in Bastrop, which is just south east of Austin. A picture was circulating of the Austin skyline with the smoke from the Bastrop fires in the background. The smoke is so thick in places, it actually shows on the radar in green and yellow and thus appears we are getting rain there. This morning, it was 25 miles by 6 miles, with thousands of people evacuated and 2 known deaths. It has crossed highways and even the Colorado River.
More immediate to me and Ed, there was a fire about a mile from our house just yesterday/last night, that was still active today in a few places, including attics. You can see where the fire was, and we are the green dot. We are more on edge because earlier this summer, there was a fire just beyond the edge of the greenbelt that runs behind our house, on an undeveloped lot. This is indicated by the blue dot.
The situation has certainly become more dire, so we are rather nervous. These fires can move very quickly, as seen in this video.
So what do we do, with the threat of wildfire looming?
The first thing is very mental and emotional - facing the fact that unlike with a hurricane or blizzard, there is a very real chance that we could lose everything if we are truly threatened by a fire. Being mentally prepared to leave knowing there may be nothing to return to, but as long as I, Ed and the dogs are safe, that is all that really truly matters.
We will be trying to adjust our work schedules so one or the other of us is home until the fire risk diminishes. In the last couple of weeks, we have been out and roads between us and our destination have been closed due to fires. When a community is evacuated, if you aren't home preparing to leave, you aren't allowed in. We don't want to risk not being able to get back to the house and the dogs. We made sure to sign up with our cell phones for the reverse 911 service available in our area for alerts on nearby fires.
We have a small suitcase packed with a couple days worth of clothes and medication, as well as all our important documentation close to the door so we can grab it and get out quickly. If we have to leave so quickly that these can't be grabbed, the documents are at least in a fire safe. Our computer bags are packed as much as possible while still using the machines. We also have a couple of other bags of hard to replace items as a fourth priority. The car already has spare pillows and blankets for some small amount of added comfort.
With extra time, we have identified a handful of items to try and take, such as my great-grandmother's paintings. It is difficult to decide what is most important and valuable in a short span of time. While I like to think I would have had my priorities right if I was unprepared and only had 10 minutes to get out, I have read stories of people who found themselves frozen and unsure. And indeed, when I first started packing, once I was beyond the obvious documentation gathering, it did take me a few minutes to sort out priorities and what to prepare next. Even now, I doubt that I made all the right choices with what I packed.
There are road signs along some of the highways here for hurricane evacuation routes. We cannot plan ahead and choose where to evacuate to because our destination may also be threatened by fire or the roads closed. We have to play it by ear and keep a close eye on the sky, web, and news. We have to be flexible.
Despite all the preparation, there is also dealing with the uncertainty. Being in a near-constant state of heightened awareness of what is happening beyond the immediate neighborhood, paying attention to a 5 mile radius... And still going about normal daily life.
Because regardless, life goes on. Work still needs to be done, food needs to be eaten, and we still need to take time to relax and not let the stress of the situation eat us from the inside. If there is a fire, life will continue and we will rebuild.
We continue to hope for rain, a lack of wind, and for the safety and success of those fighting the fires.
