Pretend Your Power Goes Out...

Pretending that our power has gone out is not a stretch; recently this has happened twice for wind storms.  When normal frames of reference are gone and it's nighttime, it’s hard to move around without light.  That lamp that always stays on is out, the porch light and your neighbors lights are out.  That lack of sound from your refrigerator adds to the eerie feeling now to be replaced with scary howling wind.  The TV isn’t there to provide comfort, let alone if you’re watching the World Series, Seahawks or American Idol.  Eating cold Beany Weenies out of a can is not our idea of good dinner, but that’s for another blog post.   If you are on a well that is reliant on electricity or have medically fragile family members you are more vulnerable than others.  Power outage is simply very dark and unsettling.

What did you swear that you were going to do to prepare for the next event and haven’t gotten around to doing?  What’s stopping you?  Perhaps a little encouragement (wink, wink), a reminder of what it’s like to be dark and cold or perhaps its ideas on how to break it down.  Perhaps a reminder that your children, spouse, senior parent and pets depend on you to be prepared.  Like the song says “We Can Help” with encouragement and suggestions, but the truth is that no one is going to make it happen for you but you. 

Imagine how that uneasiness would settle down if you have a plan and you and your family members know where your immediate supplies are for power outages.  Or, if you need motivation, imagine the opposite.  Lets get started. 

Immediate Emergency Lighting. 

Flashlights should be available to grab when the power goes out, kept close by and always in the same place.  At home this might be plug in emergency flashlights/nightlights that illuminate when the power goes out.  You can pick up the previously plugged in, charged (and lightweight) flashlight to maneuver the dark hallways.  This should be enough to take you to your power outage supplies.  (You have these, right?)

Headlamps are favorite choices for hands free and inexpensive emergency lighting.  The one caveat is that they are battery dependent.  Keep the batteries fresh and have spares.  Secure your headlamp to your bed (think about earthquake shaking) and other important places just inside your home entry (might be the front door, could be the door from/to the garage).  Most of these types have built-in tilting heads – keep it tilted down out of others eyesight.    

STOP HERE – If you accept the challenge to improve your preparedness the first part of is up to you.  Start coming up with your own plan and evaluate where you stand on these issues.   We will continue this blog post the on February 6.  You have three weeks – GO!

Will it snow here?

Yes, a little bit of snow is in our forecast. We'll just have to wait to see if it becomes a reality.

The National Weather Service Portland has issed a Special Weather Statement for our area for some possible winter weather conditions. While the cold air is expected to arrive beginning late Saturday, Sunday and into Monday is our best chance for snow down to the valley floor, if at all.

Please take precautions when traveling later this holiday weekend, pay attention to your local evaluation forecast and spend a little time taking stock of how to prepare for winter weather conditions. Keep your gas tank filled with gas, have emergency supplies both at home and in your car and pick up your needed medications before the weather is expected to arrive. This way you can stay safe and dry inside, regardless of what happens.

We have included links to some of our previous blog articles with some great winter preparedness tips.

Is Your Home Ready For Winter? (2010)
Winter Weather Enroute? (2011)
Winter Weather Advisory Issued (2010)

Stormy Weather is on the Way! Time to Remove Your Leaves.

Creative Commons via WSDOT on FlicKr

The National Weather Service has released a "Special Weather Statement" today that shared information about two upcoming storms which will arrive to the northwest, and specifically SW Washington on both Monday & Tuesday of this next week.

If everything falls together as the National Weather Service predicts, there is the potential for very gusty winds and heavy precipitation, particularly on Tuesday.  If the front stalls over the area on Wednesday, we could see some flooding advisories issued for our rivers & streams.

Since this system is a couple of days away, there is still a fair amount of uncertainty in the weather predictions, so we will update you as the impacts become more clear and additional advisories are issued.

What is known right now?  Leaves have fallen all over SW Washington and in any windy situation, leaves get into storm drains will clog them which can result in very significant high water and localized flooding.  If you have trees that have shed their leaves, consider doing your part to bag them up or remove them so they don't cause problems for your neighbors with these coming storms.

And if you weren't aware, there is a FREE COUPON available for leaf disposal in Vancouver and Clark County which can be obtained by clicking on this link here!

Weather Outlook, Watch or Warning?

We may be leaving shedding our coats behind in the afternoons this week, but colder temperatures are right around the corner as our first potential frost is in the forecast. It's time again to start planning for potential winter weather.

The National Weather Service is recognizing Winter Weather Awareness week in the Pacific Northwest during the week of October 16-22. We really like their latest chart to help distinguish what a Weather Outlook, Watch or Warning means. To see this entire article, or read some of their other information for Winter Weather Awareness week, click here.