Quote:

dude,

you left something important off of that list.......

What kind of lame-azz thread is this?

How can you have a thread about a "to-go bag," and not include a list of contents for the "to-go" bag?

I'll go first:

-Revolver (or Browning automatic, discuss amongst yourselves)
-Gold coins
-one of those radio's that you crank and don't require batteries
-Beef Jerky
-Condoms
-couple of bottles of Evian
-couple of bottles of scotch
-book "Preparing for the Coming Disaster"
-Flint stone (to light fires up in "The Heights")

Quote: We can't let those animals from NY come through the tunnels! We would have to start a fire just to cross 14th St. Like this guy hadda do.

When they tell Hudson to evacuate, they mean it
Monday, July 30, 2007
By CHARLES HACK
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

Preparing for a major hurricane in Hudson County has many uncertainties, but if there is one unambiguous message from the Office of Emergency Management, then it is this: "When we say go, then go."

Because devastating hurricanes are rare in the Northeast, hurricane officials worry that complacency could be the biggest killer during a storm.

"Convincing people to evacuate in a major hurricane would be difficult," said Hoboken OEM coordinator Captain James Fitzsimmons."We could not force people to leave, but we would do our best."

Where people would be moved would depend on the intensity and direction of the storm. North Hudson towns such as Weehawken, West NewYork, North Bergen and Guttenberg would work with the Red Cross to move waterfront residents to shelters in schools, community centers and other municipal buildings high-up on the Palisades.

Bayonne, which would bear the brunt of a storm heading north, may need a more complete evacuation, said H. Mickey McCabe, director of emergency medical services in Bayonne.

In Hoboken, Stevens Institute of Technology - one of the few relatively dry areas in the Mile Square City during a hurricane -would likely become a shelter, Fitzsimmons said. He also wants to firm up agreements with Union City and West New York for shelter sites on higher ground.

Any storm surge would force the evacuation from Palisades Medical Center in North Bergen and Meadowlands Hospital Medical Center in Secaucus, said McCabe, who is also EMS coordinator for the county OEM. A major hurricane would likely be a regional problem, and all bets are off as to how long it would take for a full-scale evacuation of Hudson County, officials said.

Evacuees may have to compete with New Yorkers flooding through the tunnels - jamming up roads like Routes 1 & 9 and Route 78 - one of the main routes out of the area for Bayonne, Jersey City and Hoboken. In North Hudson, Weehawken, West New York and Guttenberg, residents heading out by the Route 495 would have to compete with evacuees through the Lincoln Tunnel.

Emergency planners can track storms five days in advance, but the public might get just two or three days notice to evacuate, officials said. Warnings would go out through various local broadcast media, officials said.

"Every town has a way of notifying the public, even if comes down to patrol cars driving around with a public address system," said Jack Burns, OEM coordinator.

Preparation at the Hudson County OEM is a work in progress. The OEM has been stocking up on new emergency and communication equipment, but other aspects are still under development, such as improving public address systems and getting information to the public.

Hudson County has received a grant to survey vulnerable senior citizens and disabled citizens who would need help getting out.The better the public is prepared for the unthinkable, the smoother an evacuation would go and the more people would survive, experts said. Also still in the works is a mailer that would explain what to do in an emergency.

Emergency planners recommend creating a "to-go bag" with essentials such as flashlight, radio, medical prescriptions, copies of important documents, change of clothes, keys, food and water. They also recommend having enough emergency supplies at home to ride out a storm for four or five days.

Burns said he wants to build a network of Community Emergency Response Teams - trained volunteers who help out when professional services are overwhelmed - in each neighborhood. To date, there are around 200 CERT-trained people in the whole county, he said.

FEMA officials also recommend every household getting flood insurance. All Hudson communities participate in the U.S. National Flood Program, allowing residents to buy flood insurance for as little as $100.

Weekhawken Mayor Richard Turner said the North Hudson Regional Fire and Rescue and other emergency services are now well equipped and trained for a major disaster.

"We have a very well integrated emergency service in North Hudson,"Turner said. "We are probably better prepared than we have ever been."