At one time when I was living in Essex, we had a very, very heavy snow fall. Schools were closed and so I was home. My daughter had come home from University for the weekend and was unable to return, because the trains were having difficulties too. We could see 2ft long icicles from the roofs on the houses opposite us, a really awesome sight!
We decided to have a walk down the supermarket, when we got there what a sight. There was two men on the doorway stopping people going in, it was so crowded! We joined the queue, and was let in as people came out. We were shocked to see empty shelves, no bread, no cereals, no water, no flour, no cat litter!! (I had made a path through the snow for mine to the small garden)
We'd come for a bottle of Crofts Original Sherry, as we used to have a small glass in late afternoons. We queued for nearly an hour to pay and chatted to others in the queue too. We didn't need any foodstuffs. I was brought up in a home, that had gone through WW2 so I never had a food shortage, because I always had extras in my food cupboards 'incase!'
How ridiculous that snow can make people panic buy.. a bit like when there was the covid epidemic and there was the panic about a shortage of toilet paper!! Did you run out? We didn't, but I did laugh about the fact that I had an outside toilet when I was little, and paper was news paper on a meat hook behind the door!
I have read a lot of books about situations when the world has suffered a major power outage and people are left with a world stopped, because no technology.. so we always keep a good back up of dried foods and bottled water. And as we buy in bulk to save money and we have the space, we buy large quantities of toilet paper! So guess we'd be ok!
What about you are you prepared?
Chrisxx
17 comments:
I don't keep a large stock of anything, I have one, sometimes two of things we use a lot of but that's it. If people didn't buy huge amounts of things to stockpile there would be enough to go round, I've never understood panic buying and no, I didn't run out of toilet paper during covid and I didn't panic buy it or stockpile it either.
People are so accustomed to everything being available all the time, all year round, that the slightest hitch in deliveries throws them into a flat spin.
That kind of power outage that affects an entire country is scary.
We're usually slightly prepared, but we are totally dependent on electricity - I think even the gas boiler uses electricity!
We have a pretty good stockpile of things, but being without power is hard because everything runs on it.
I have brandy, gin etc so yes, I am prepared!
Living in Canada it takes a LOT of snow to have things shut down - but - I am always prepared - usually stock up about mid-November just so that I don't have to deal with any heavy items when there is two feet of snow outside (i don't drive, use transit and walk with a cane so always take note of these things. I don't understand - especially after Covid - that people aren't at least a bit more prepared than they seemed to be on the news. It was chaos. Didn't the fact that they moved their grid to "green" & sustainable a couple of weeks ago end up being the culprit?
The other day on a local social media site, somebody was asking for free food as they were waiting for a new bank card and had no cash. I just thought who doesn't keep a stock of food in for emergencies, beans, soup etc and why do people never have any cash either. I could live for a month on my food stock, toilet rolls etc. and always have plenty of cash available.
My mother always had a large stash of tea and sugar in her bedroom cupboard. She said she wanted to be prepared in an emergency to be go to the Church Hall and serve hot drinks to the community. I have kept some basic foodstuffs/toiletries on hand ever since I prepared my Brexit Box. It certainly helped when we got Covid before lockdown started and could not get to the shops OR get a delivery. We were so glad of it then, and I have maintained such a store ever since.
I keep a few extra items of things we use all the time but not too many.
We are all so accustomed to having everything available.
I think there have been various calls by UK government that in case of emergencies to be wise and make sure we each have at least three days supply of food (tinned best for emergencies like power cuts - don't forget the tin opener!), water, medicines etc. and yes a torch with spare batteries.
All the best Jan
What an interesting story, and how funny how people can panic in situations that seem so manageable! It’s fascinating how both the power failure in Spain and the heavy snowfall in Essex led to similar reactions, even though the causes were so different. It's truly refreshing to hear about your upbringing in a home where there was always plenty of food available during difficult times. Your preparedness for the snowstorm must have been quite enlightening! I can't imagine the scenes at the supermarket, especially for just a bottle of sherry! Your story about the outside toilet and newspaper is truly a fascinating piece of history to share with others. It's remarkable how certain events have reached their zenith.
I was raised by parents who grew up during the depression. We’d be okay for months.
I could do a couple of months - at least and have 6 months to a year's worth of hygiene, paper and cleaning products. It's only me so no problem storing it even in my small 1 bedroom apt.
Our power (in West Michigan) was out today. But thankfully came back on after 6 hours. Still creepy when it happens.
I live in earthquake country and I try to be as prepared as possible to be able to manage without electricity, water on tap, and sewer services. I keep bottled water and extra food on hand. But, it is hard to cook without gas or electricity and all the food in the freezer will spoil after a couple of days of not having electricity.
Between the pantry and the freezer, I think we could survive for several months. We'd miss fresh produce, but that's all.
We are always being told to have enough supplies to support our family for at least a week as we live in an earthquake zone.
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