Here at 4Patriots, we frequently recommend that you stock up on survival food, water purification devices, backup power and much more.
But because we want you to hear it from others besides ourselves, we occasionally provide testimonials from customers just like you.
The same thing holds true of preparedness in general. We preach it on a daily basis. But we understand the message also comes through clearly when you hear it from a reputable third party.
And it doesn’t get more reputable than Team Rubicon. This national nonprofit organization unites the skills and experiences of military veterans with first responders. And mobilizes them to rapidly deploy in response to disasters and humanitarian crises.
Live Facebook Event Features Team Rubicon
That’s why we recently set up a Live Facebook Event featuring Team Rubicon CEO Art delaCruz and our very own Danielle.
Team Rubicon helps communities prepare, respond and recover from natural disasters and humanitarian crises. These Greyshirt volunteers have incredible skills, education and experience that are brought to bear to help people on their worst day.
4Patriots has supported Team Rubicon since 2017. In September, we tripled our regular monthly donation from $2,000 to $6,000 in celebration of National Preparedness Month.
The Live Facebook Event featured a walkthrough of Team Rubicon’s mission. It then led into a conversation on Emergency Prep 101, highlighted by five steps we can take to prepare for an uncertain future.
Disasters Are Increasing
Art set the stage for these steps by reviewing recent and current situations in the U.S. highlighting the need for preparedness.
“So, 2020, we’re coming off the worst hurricane season in recorded history essentially for North America,” he said. “In 2021, it’s continued. We’ve had incredible natural disasters that have stressed our power grid.
“It wasn’t that long ago that Texas was frozen. We’re seeing droughts out West. We’re seeing floods and tornadoes in the Midwest. We’ve seen a spate of hurricanes across 2020 and 2021 that have impacted the Gulf Coast.
“And against that backdrop, we have this global disaster called COVID, which is impacting every element of our lives and our communities’ lives.
“Hope is a terrible strategy if you’re going to deal with natural disasters or humanitarian crises.”
5 Ways to Prepare
Art added, “If you’re prepared, the likelihood of it becoming a disaster for you or your community lessens because again you’re ahead of the game.” Then he provided five ways to prepare.
1. Learn of Past and Current Hazards in Your Area
- Develop awareness of the natural and manmade threats specific to where you live.
- Identify the emergency resources available to you and your community, as this will help you know what scenarios to plan for.
- Identify if you live in a flood-prone area.
2. Know Your Evacuation Routes
- Map out the quickest paths of exit from your home, neighborhood and community.
- Work to determine alternate routes of exit.
- Tip: Remember, if you’re trying to evacuate your neighborhood, then everyone else probably is too. Your alternate routes would help to avoid bottlenecks and congestion points.
3. Know the Location of Utility Shutoffs Within Your Home
- Locate your house’s gas meter, water line and electrical box.
- Learn how to interact with them (or at least how to turn them off) in the case of an emergency.
- Tip: Gas leaks, electrical fires and flooding from broken pipes can cause additional harm during and after a disaster. Knowing what you can manipulate to reduce the damage can help.
4. Plan for Emergency Food Beforehand
- Survival food with a long shelf life is ideal to ensure you and your family are equipped with easy-to-make meals in case of power outages or grocery store shortages.
- Both FEMA and the Red Cross recommend having at least three days’ worth of survival food on hand in case of emergency.
- Tip: Roads could be blocked off and you may not be able to make a trip to the store. Skip the panic and keep survival food tucked away for the moments you most need them.
5. Select a Fume-Free Generator
- Selecting a fume-free generator is a foolproof option to keep your important medical devices, laptops and phones powered throughout a blackout. Time and time again we see tragedies of folks bringing gas-powered generators indoors, not knowing they can be lethal. Fume-free generators allow you the comfort of keeping them in your house without the worry.
Art said that immediately following a disaster, people will say one of two things about preparedness. They’ll either say, “I wish I had” or “I’m glad I did.”
Stockpiling necessities such as food, water and backup power in advance will often result in them saying, “I’m glad I did.”
How You Can Help
“We really appreciate the incredible outreach and support 4Patriots has provided,” Art said. “Thanks again for the donations and support from your team.”
Anyone interested in learning more about becoming a Team Rubicon Greyshirt should visit teamrubiconusa.org.
“We’d obviously love to have you join our team,” Art said. “One of the things that Danielle talked about is our ability to be there. And we’re there because we’re part of the communities.
“We have 150,000 volunteers from all sorts of backgrounds. About 70 percent have a military or first responder background, but there are also civilians like you.
“They joined the team and are ready to be trained and equipped, and then to answer the call when people need help.”
