Today, my wife and I live in Western Washington State, a land of many rivers, streams, wetlands, and rain. So, the danger of flooding concerned us as we searched for property. The house we built sits atop a large hill. Several times the hill has become an island in a sea of flood waters, but the house has never been touched. For me, prepping is like insurance. I buy what I think I need. Our land on this hill is my flood insurance.

The next day we knew much more about the situation in the Denver metro area. Thousands remained without heat and light. Many roads were washed away or flooded. We knew all of that about Shaffers Crossing because we were living it. According to radio reports, hundreds of repair crews were working to fix the problems around Denver. No one seemed to be aware that we were also without power and phones. Perhaps, since there were so few of us, we were merely low on the priority list. Armed with more questions than answers my father left to try and find a way out of the hills and valleys where we lived.

In the late 1960’s my parents moved to the tiny community of Shaffers Crossing, high in the Colorado foothills. There along with my older sister and her daughter, we lived on thirty acres of forest and pasture land. The looming slopes that surrounded the tiny community would be called mountains in most other states. Those lofty peaks blocked most of the radio and all television reception from our little valley. Cable TV hadn’t arrived in Shaffers Crossing and satellite TV and cellphones hadn’t been invented. News reached us via the more powerful AM stations, shortwave radio, and the weekly newspaper from the nearby town of Evergreen. We shared one phone line with the seven other households and less than fifty people who made up the community.

Electricity is an amazing tool but, we are totally dependent upon it. I’ve been lucky where I live, the power rarely fails. However, a few years ago I awoke to a very cold house. The electricity had gone out during a nighttime snowstorm. Fortunately, my wife and I were prepared with plenty of stored food, a woodstove for heating and cooking, and a hand pump on our well. It did get cold as the fire in the stove burned down in the night but, we had plenty of blankets. We were fine, but not everyone had prepared. Thankfully, the outage only lasted five days. Imagine life without power for a month or longer. Would you survive?

Part Two of our Family Communication Series

It has been a week, and the power is still down. Water is scarce, and the food in your fridge has spoiled. You’re trying to eat everything in the freezer before it goes bad. The nights are growing colder. The local radio station is only on the air for a few minutes each day. You’re worried about friends and relatives and have growing fears about your own survival. How will you find food or medicine? How do contact those you love or call for help?

Part one of our Family Communication Series

You wake up one morning and the power is off. Out of habit, you click on the TV, but the screen remains black. Your computer turns on but doesn’t connect to the internet. Your cordless phone is dead. Your mobile phone has service, but you can’t connect with anyone. Hopefully, you can hear news using a battery-powered radio. But, what if the news is bad? Help won’t come for days. An electromagnetic pulse (EMP), either natural or manmade, could shut down power for months.

In a crisis, what you expect from the government depends upon your political viewpoint. In 2005 as hurricane Katrina reached New Orleans, Mayor Ray Nagin directed residents to shelter at the city convention center without any provision for food, water, or medical care. Within a day, many were desperate for drinking water.