When we bugged out of the homestead in the middle of the night recently, moving to higher ground because of a tsunami warning (see Tsunami Scramble) we not only assured our safety against an unpredictable event, we tested our emergency preparedness.
After we arrived at our rendezvous point on the ridge top, we began assessing our response. Inevitably, we speculated on whether or not we’d overreacted. Later, we learned that our local police department had urged everyone to evacuate to above 100 feet, and that a small tsunami had actually been generated by the earthquake.
We agreed that, if nothing else, the experience served as a drill. None of us dipped into our bug out bags or the bug out bucket—those stashes provided a baseline of essentials, but we only used the extras we picked up. We started a running list of anything we thought of after leaving that we would have liked to have with us. It had surprisingly few items on it by the time we finished!
Michelle’s extras, gear she grabbed beyond her bug out bag (shown at bottom of photo). (Photo: Michelle L. Zeiger.)
