I think because of the WuFlu and the difficulties of “finding stuff,” many people got the chance to learn what it was to live in a Third World Country – you know, Cuba, Venezuela, Soviet Union, China, other formerly Eastern Bloc countries.
The countries that Bernie Sanders likes because he wants their bread lines here, in which WE would be the ones spending hours in “food lines.” But I digress – a bit. There are those, however, that decided that our “just in time shopping”, was never for them.
Imagine that, while most people were racing around trying to find paper towels, toilet paper, or Lysol wipes, many went “Shortage? What shortage?”. I’m betting that the people caught in this nightmare had wished that they had “prepped” for this:
Massive tractor-trailer crash on I-95 leaves hundreds of cars stranded overnight in freezing temperatures in Virginia
An accident involving six tractor-trailers on Interstate 95 left hundreds of drivers snowed in overnight along a 50-mile stretch of highway in Virginia, as the crashed vehicles blocked the road and blizzard conditions prevented crews from reaching the area. ABC News reported that both directions of traffic had come to a halt between Ruther Glen in Caroline County and Dumfries in Prince William County on Monday. The outlet added that the standstill persisted through the night as the area was hit with heavy snowfall and temperatures dropped below freezing.
…The poor weather conditions made the situation that much worse for stranded drivers, many of whom got trapped on the highway without food, water, or warm clothing.
“I’ve got 3 kids [and] we have been stuck since yesterday. Freezing nights and I have a baby on board. No food and no hope please help us letting the authorities know,” one stranded driver reportedly told WTOP-TV. Another person said the traffic emergency might prevent them from getting home to take their ill father to an essential surgery appointment, while another said they might miss their father’s funeral.
“We need help, been out here for 18 hours and no help. This is ridiculous, please use your voice to get us help,” one driver added in an email to the news outlet. Another said, “Haven’t moved since 3 pm … it’s 16 degrees. This is insane.”
I realize that Virginia isn’t New Hampshire, Maine, or Vermont but they got 7-11 inches of snow. However, like doing backups, this is the time of year that you need to be prepared. I always have a get home bag and this time of year, it has heavy winter clothes. And wool socks – ALWAYS socks! A sleeping bag (or multiples depending on family), water, food (emergency bars, MRE’s), candles – absolutely needed. And then build out from that. Nitzkahon started a series on this but he took a hiatus for a bit but if folks are interested, we can keep this topic going.
I watched a news video where a young guy complained about the cold and had run out of gas – always make sure you’re gassed up before you go somewhere as you never know when something like this. Just a winter jacket and a cold car in a frigid night. Not well prepared.
And that Dad with the three kids – I’m betting a lesson was learned and he won’t get caught like that again.
Preparedness is a mindset especially in winter. Plan A, Plan B, and Plan C. What can go wrong and can you mitigate it?
(H/T: The Blaze)
