My stepdaughter returns to college for her senior year at the end of the week. Her school is three states and five hours away. She will not have a car on campus.
I am going to assemble a PPE kit for her to take with her so that she can get back to us as safely as possible. We are not sure if she would be ride sharing or if one of us will go pick her up.
Keeping in mind that she will be sharing a cramped apartment with several other young women and probably won’t want them to know what she has in her possession, what would you recommend be included in this kit?
At a minimum, I’m thinking lots of hand sanitizer, gloves, and N-95 masks.
Keeping in mind that she will be sharing a cramped apartment with several other young women and probably won’t want them to know what she has in her possession, what would you recommend be included in this kit?
THAT is gonna be a tough call. Maybe take a look at this thread as well:
http://www.fluwikie2.com/pmwiki.php?n=Forum.ContentsOfBug-OutBag
you are suffering from magical thinking. 5 hours, three states, senior in college, no vehicle. By the time she realizes she is in a position to need PPE, it will already be too late to get home to you.
Retired ParamedicMI – at 18:21 --- I think you may have missed this part:
We are not sure if she would be ride sharing or if one of us will go pick her up
Edna Mode – at 17:57 wrote: “My stepdaughter returns to college for her senior year at the end of the week. Her school is three states and five hours away. She will not have a car on campus.”
I’ve wrestled with the same concerns. My son goes off to college in September. If I hear any credible reports of human H5N1 in North America, he’s coming home. I pay the tuition, room & board. My feeling is that, he that pays and runs away, lives to pay another day. If my son had spent as much time reading these forums, as I, I’m sure he would have come to the same conclusion, instead he conducted his life in persuit of his passion - which I encouraged. I guess we all cross that bridge when we come to it.
The situataion is far more complex than the average person is aware of. Those that read these forums are well served.
BB- no, I didnt miss that part. magical thinking also covers the ten hour round trip through three states with borders, and quarentines, and no gas, and road blocks. When the time comes for PPE or SIP, you better be where you plan to stay. The odds you will get to school and home again are slim at best.
Retired ParamedicMI – at 19:00 --- In my way of thinking, most folks here in the US will have at least 24 to 48 hours of notice, unless a pandemic starts in their neighborhood. If the parents see that an outbreak has begun(mostly by following FluWiki), that should give them enough time to get to the school in 5–7 hours, pick up the kid(s), and return home.
I truly do not believe that if WHO or anyone else declares a pandemic has begun, that travel in the US or anywhere else is going to come to an immediate halt.
A five-hour trip when a crisis is building may take much longer, so food and water should be part of the kit. There was a thread about a daughter traveling alone, months ago. There might be some ideas there.
If a parent picks her up, that’s more than one tank of gas, so you’d have to hope the lines aren’t too long at each of the 3 or 4(+?) fill-ups you’d need for the round trip. Maybe you have a truck and a lot of gas cans? ( I don’t think my daughter will come home, 1000 miles. sigh.)
Retired ParamedicMI – at 19:00 Magical thinking also covers the ten hour round trip through three states with borders, and quarentines, and no gas, and road blocks.
Retired ParamedicMI, You underestimate me! ;) And by the way, there ain’t no magical thinking going on here. 100% red-blooded skeptical realist.
First, I will know when our state is planning on such measures days ahead of those measures being announced to the public—and yes, I will post it here as soon as I hear anything of the sort from my sources.
Second, my trigger for SIP and calling her home is, I assure you, weeeell in advance of my state or ANY state getting its sh*t together enough to close borders. I have zero confidence that our government is going to give any of us ample warning that it is time to duck and cover.
I have no intention of waiting for confirmed H2H in North America to start SIP or PPE.
Getting back to Edna’s original question: I would presume the hand sanitizer would be used openly before TSHTF. In a box or spare backpack in the bottom dresser drawer or back of the closet could be more hand sanitizer, along with gloves, masks, food & water — enough for, say, 2 days until she can get home or you can get to her in your car. A very simple & compact food supply could be commercial ‘meal replacement bars’ such as Power Bars or something similar. Six would probably be enough for a day, and they probably come 12/box. Four 2-liter bottles of water would be sufficient for 2 days. Perhaps a bit of cash for gas, in case she has to come to you, instead of you going to fetch her.
Immediate afterthought: feminine hygiene supplies, along with a stashed small quantity of any prescription meds, and her choice of OTC pain meds.
God bless my efficient software firewall that regularly deletes all cookies … those last two anonymous posts were from me.
I’ve thought about cans of slim fast, protein/nutrition bars, fruit chews, his scrips, OTC meds, masks and gloves. When we flew him up to school early last month I forgot to take the Masks w/us :o( I’ll have to mail them. I have the same dilemma as you. My sons is in Boston and I’m in the Dallas area. Not a fun thought, not to mention that it’d be a logistical nightmare. He doesn’t have a car either. We have a relative in NY and one about an hour outside of Boston, neither of whom are preparers or would. But I’m sure either one would be willing to go pick him up if need be. Still trying to figure stuff out.
Thanks all for the suggestions. They are good ones, and I will use them.
AD — at 21:59, I feel your pain! My stepdaughter has her own car, but her mom won’t let her take it to school because it jacks the insurance through the roof. I’m going to feel her out to see if we pay the difference whether she’d be allowed to take it with her. It would certainly simplify things!
As regards notice, while I concede that the regulars here on the wiki are better informed than 99% of the MSM, you cannot be informed about something that nobody knows. My estimate of the situation is that it’s likely that we will not know that the flu has gone pandemic in SE Asia or China or wherever until the flu has already been transmitted to the US. There is simply too much international jet travel.
When the news breaks that a pandemic has started it may already be too late.
If I had a child in college in a far away state, I’d set up a rendevous location that I could pick them up at; A friend’s house, or a state park, or even a highway rest stop that can be accessed easily by foot as well as by vehicle. In Edna’s daughter’s case, I’d suggest a spot that could be walked to within 10 miles of the college. and a rendevous protocol. Setting up a message dead drop ahead of time would be a good idea.
Things I have recommended to others in similar situations-
PPE;
Pepper spray (bear size can);
4 ounces of gold coins (10 1/10 oz coins, 4 1/4 oz coins, 2 1/2 oz coins, and a 1 ounce coin) in a money belt;
pre-64 silver coins- a roll of dimes, a roll of quarters and a roll of halves;
Currency;
Sturdy walking shoes/hiking boots, well broken in;
A set of Dickies pants and a shirt in tan, brown or green;
3 sets of hiking socks; (1 inner and outer each set)
Change of underwear (USGI preferred); some women need more support than others so a good cotton sports bra may be welcome;
An utterly reliable small light concealable handgun with speedloaders or extra mags, 50 rounds of ammo and a good deep concealment holster;
Consider a good Level IIa kevlar vest cut for a female;
A family radio walkie-talkie with extra batteries and a communication protocol. (You should have a couple spare radios);
2 canteens, a small bottle of bleach or iodine tablets, and a MSR miniworks water filter;
Meds, a couple tampons or pads, extra glasses if applicable, and a first aid fit;
Victorianox Swiss Army knife. I like the Explorer;
Leatherman tool. I like the Wave;
Coiled up cable saw;
MAtches in match safe;
Good compass and large scale topo map of the pickup area;
6 mil poly plastic 8′ square;
Space blanket or space sleeping bag;
small bar of soap and a washcloth;
Toothbrush and paste;
Stainless canteen cup;
Rope. (50′ of 3/8 braided nylon);
A really good bag to put this stuff in with a copy of the packing list..
All this should easily fit into a small lockable hardshell suitcase.
My expectation is that if this goes pandemic with a high CFR, things may break down very quickly and you may be delayed in making pickup. Better to need it and not have it than the reverse. Cash is more persuasive than credit cards, especially for bribes, and gold and silver are even better.
LMWatBullRun – at 22:56 --- Shouldn’t that be “Better to have it and not need it”?
My youngest son’s freshman year was at Baylor, and guess what hit? 911. I flipped. I made him a bug-out bag and a bunch of stuff to have on hand. Made him drive “me” down every imaginable cow trail out of Waco to our rendevous point. The little weasle ate every last thing I sent him and spend every bit of money I stashed.
I know this may sound a bit unconventional, but if it was me… I’d rent a storage unit as close to my kid as possible. I’d stock it with what I’d knew was needed and make sure there was some sort reliable communication system in place. I’d tell the child about the place when needed. I know the down side of storing in these units, but, improvision is sometimes “necessary.”
bump
AARRGHH! Yes, BB, it SHOULD be “better to have it and not need it. Sorry for the brainlock!
Edna Mode - I know that after reading many posts by you that no one should ever underestimate you. And I know how you feel about a grown child living hundreds of miles away. You would move heaven and earth to get them home. My daughter works over 600 miles from us, and in a year’s time my son will return to graduate school even further away. So I have been mentally developing contingency plans for both of them. After reading this thread, I am going to send my daughter some supplies so that she can make it to my brother’s home (only an hour away) when TSHTF. And I’ll send a box with my son when he leaves home.
History Lover – at 10:55 Edna Mode - I know that after reading many posts by you that no one should ever underestimate you. And I know how you feel about a grown child living hundreds of miles away. You would move heaven and earth to get them home. My daughter works over 600 miles from us, and in a year’s time my son will return to graduate school even further away. So I have been mentally developing contingency plans for both of them. After reading this thread, I am going to send my daughter some supplies so that she can make it to my brother’s home (only an hour away) when TSHTF. And I’ll send a box with my son when he leaves home.
History Lover, That sounds like a good plan. I actually was on the phone with my sister, who lives only a couple of hours away from my stepdaughter’s school, about a plan such as you speak of. I think it is a wise move. My motto is to always have a back up plan (and two or three if possible). There is so much about this that is unpredictable, and I never assume I will be able to control for all factors!
This is what I have done: I have two boys away at college, both at the same school. They are roughly 4.5 hours away by car, and both have a vehicle. They both also have all terrain bikes. I have thought about this a great deal and probably have taken my preparedness (and theirs) to an extreme in this regard. They both have 72 hour kits in backbacks that I supplemented with MRE’s, 3600 calorie food bars and Katadyn water filters. They both know that regardless of where they are in the semester, if I tell them to come home they will. If they can’t leave immediately, for quarantines, poor communication, etc. I bought them a house with a FP, two water heaters (so they have 80 gallons of water) and a yard full of pecan trees and a lake at the end of the street. If they plan to come home, they are to come in one truck, loaded with their bikes and gear. If they run out of gas, they are to abandon the vehicle and bike the rest of the way home. My son has already planned his route on county roads to avoid the Interstate. They are also both excellent athletes, skilled marksman, hunters and know how to take care of themselves. I have no doubt they will get home if it is humanly possible, they could walk if they had to. They both can start a fire with two sticks and a shoelace, I know, we all can. >;) It helps to have some lint and vaseline though.
My son and his soon to be wife live in NJ but work in Manhatten. They plan to SIP with me (rural area upstate NY). I knew they would be too busy to do this so I planned a detailed alternate escape route for them from both locations. I gathered local street maps, county and state maps and mapped out local routes to avoid major highways ( as much as possible) in case they are closed. I spent a weekend with them and we did a practice run. We had to make some adjustments. We also added back roads that were not on the map. I’ve convinced them to have a bug out bag kept at work and at home. It is important to find a bag that you can put a lock on. I even gave them an inflatable 2 person boat in a small box that my son stores at work in the event that there is gridlock in getting out of the city back to his car in NJ. If nothing else, it gives me peace of mind to know that they have a plan for getting out of the city in any emergency. I hope these ideas help, Edna.
5 hours away, and not wanting her room mates to know what she has….. You cannot hide much from room mates. And there are some room mate that will find and eat any food in the room.
The ideas of a family network is good if you have the family along the way.
If it was my daughter my second option would be to have her rent a small storage “bin” or such. Most of the college towns have storage for rent. I would include a “cheap but reliable” motorcycle and some extra gas along with food and such. I would feel better about my daughter returning on a motorcycle than walking very far in a panic filled college town, or waiting some place without knowing I could really reach her and when I might could get there.
If you do go to get her, be sure to take enough gas for the round trip plus 50%.
I have the opposite problem. We have an exchange student staying here now. There will be no way to get her home. She will stay and be part of the family and we have preped for that. With that in mind, if you have “church ties” in her town, you might see if anyone there could take her in and keep her safe till you can get her. That would be my first option.
LMWatBullRun – at 22:56
You suggested a small bottle of bleach for the BOB. What kinda bottle would you suggest? I had thought of an empty 20oz soda bottle, but was worried that it might burst and ruin everything in the pack. Or the bleach would eat through the bottle.
Add a hand-pump siphon to that list just in case you, or friend with car, need to borrow some gas.
LMWBR:
Great list. One thing I’d add to your supply list is a flashlight. I would hate to be in a crisis and find myself alone in the dark, unable to see. :((((
I’m in the process of making up a BOB for myself. I saw a cute, girly backpack that was hot pink. I REALLY wanted that for my BOB, but I immediately thought it would stick out like a neon sign, so only ugly bags for me…
I’m always using hand sanitizer, so I am adding that also. Might be useful in maintaining a modicum of cleanliness. I also want some travel TOILET PAPER!!! It’s a girl thing. I figure I could use my hand sanitizer and some TP and start a really GOOD fire if I need to. (Always have plan B)
We females often feel the cold easier than the guys, so I’d think about a lightweight poncho or hat just in case for small females. And a backpack would be much easier for me to handle than a small suitcase if on foot.
Speaking of disaster supplies, WallyWorld yesterday had a Disaster Planning Kit for around $22.00 I was surprised. It had packets of emergency water, food bars, first aid supplies, emergency blanket and some other stuff. It was a pretty good kit. I came upon it while perusing the camping aisle.
Carrey- Lab supply houses make some very nice extra heavy duty plastic bottles for acids and such. I was thinking about a 4 ounce HDPE bottle of bleach; enough to sterilize some canteens full of water.
DennisC- I really like the idea of renting a small storage locker to put the “get out of Dodge” stuff into; Some roommates I have heard of would steal the whole suitcase. On the other hand, motorcycle riding is fraught; I would not want an inexperienced person trying to learn off-road techniques during an emergency. They are also loud and advertise their presence, and it’s hard to shoot effectively from a bike. I think a person would be better off keeping a lower profile.
Instead of keeping everything super-secret from room-mates, why not use this as an opportunity to arrange car pools back to the general area where you live? Probably some students have cars and if they made bug-out arrangements with your son/daughter BEFORE something happened, they would not have to keep stuff secret as much. (Pandemic ride boards??) I know that survivalist thinking will be necessary, but often we can accomplish more by alerting others now and making plans with them. It might also pay to have a plan “B” as some will be jerks, but having two in a car to help with navigation, gas, driving, safety etc. might make sense.
nsthesia – at 14:58
I’d tell my daughter to leave the suitcase, that was just to keep roommates from snooping; alternately, wear the pack, pull the empty suitcase and if surprised, abandon the suitcase as a decoy……..
I always keep hand sanitizer and a flashlight handy now so did not think of them as an “adder” but you are right about those, and an N-95 mask or 5, too. Ditto with hats. TP is better than leaves, for sure, but leaves work very well and around where I am there is no shortage. It’s all in how much you want to carry. My backpacking experience teaches me that every ounce counts.
If I were stocking a BOB for a longer period there are a lot of things I’d add, and the climate and the weather need to govern stuff like parkas and such, but you are right about the need. Probably the only other thing I’d be sure to add for around here is some braided fishing line and small bottle of assorted fish-hooks
Science Teacher-
That is really smart, gaming out the bugout. Far too few people do that.
LMWatBullRun – at 15:12 like I said- if it were my daughter….. she fairly good on and off road. and it is my second option. And my first remains having her stay with church friends or family then get her if I could. But then I should also say, that my daughters are now married and gone. THe “game” here is to allow my exchange student to stay and have enough to take in one more if needed.
FYI, I normally rented some storage for the kids to keep things in for the summer anyway.
LMW, which supply house did you find these at? I’m very interested
Just one more thing - some colleges are watching this very carefully and might discharge students if things start to look bad. They figure only a few days window to decide, so might pull the trigger faster than one would normally expect. They keep very little in food stocks and it would be very difficult keeping thousands of kids in dorms healthy. So it might be that your child is going home at the same time many others are.
Get an open prepaid one way car rental from Enterprise/car rental place….she could jump in the car and drive home! Map out a back road alternative, self protection, cash, cell phone,food/water etc.
Years ago my then teen aged brother wandered into a paperback book exchange and was enchanted to meet “Lilli”, a Frenchwoman in her seventies. “Lilli” had escaped France ahead of the Nazi’s and then bribed her way on a ship (to Casablanca?) and then to the U.S. She told my brother that a young woman needs a smile, cash and jewelry. She literally got through some checkpoints by parting with earrings/bracelets/rings.
This being the U.S., I would wonder if the thing that might get a young woman/young man through a barricade/checkpoint/traffic jam would be a professional looking suit and a picture ID identifying carrier as Dr. Latidah of the Blahteblah research lab. Most universities have some moonlighting kid who makes photo id’s for bars . . . anyway, I’m off in Mata Hari mode, but it is interesting to think about who does get through a jam up and who doesn’t.
Cash is always handy. Why not send along a twenty count box of masks (I got 20 at Lowe’s for 19.95) so all the roommates could at least start out on their journeys home without a cat fight? Also, it might be worth a gander at the map to figure out Most Direct Route/Alternate Route 1/Alternate Route 2 before the pressure is on.
One thing to keep in mind when renting storage units, is that the Federal laws allow government to seize anything in the storage units. That would probably not happen right away but it’s something to keep in mind.
My husband is a director at an engineering college. Representatives from the college attended the county prep. meeting that I attended and since then, nothing has been done—by anyone it appears. They haven’t even scheduled the follow-up meeting.
Are there things from a parents’ perspective that they would like to have the colleges doing? And if I am able to press this issue with my husband or others at the college, then I would have some ammunition ahead of time. Although the timeframe for “ahead of time” seems to be getting smaller.
Mother of Five
Check out the Federal Government’s Pandemic Flu web site:
Could your husband maybe bring up some of these items? Would that help?
Again, great suggestions from all.
I am awarding the College PPE Kit Overachiever Award to Snowhound1 for buying his/her kids a HOUSE! Sounds like that plan is about as close to foolproof as possible.
I am mulling the idea of having her pre-plan bugout with roomates. It would be better overall if they all were prepared. But you all know how getting others to prep goes.
Edna Mode - have you asked the university officials what they plan to do for students who may not be able to get home? Do they have housing, food, masks, etc. for them? What happens to international students who can’t get home?
I think the list linked above should be the questions all parents of college age students should be asking of TPTB, don’t you? Yes, I know about that exasperated sigh on the phone and that “look.” But these are our kids! Gotta start somewhere, right?
Keep prepping!
Bluebonnet – at 20:44 “Edna Mode - have you asked the university officials what they plan to do for students who may not be able to get home?”
Yes, I have.
“Do they have housing, food, masks, etc. for them?”
No, they don’t.
“What happens to international students who can’t get home?”
I was told this question has yet to be addressed.
“I think the list linked above should be the questions all parents of college age students should be asking of TPTB, don’t you? Yes, I know about that exasperated sigh on the phone and that “look.” But these are our kids! Gotta start somewhere, right?”
Absolutely!
That was me. Switched computers.
bump
Carrey in VA-
Will ask the DW tonight. I do most of the requirements and she handles most of the routine family prep purchasing. Any Lab supply catalog should have a 4 ounce acid resistant HDPE bottle, but I’ll check and see which one she used.
INFOMASS – at 15:59 “some colleges are watching this very carefully “
I teach online classes for a university. They are trying to make arrangement with other “brick and mortor” colleges to “take in” (transfer admission/credits) in case of such things. It is a spin off after the hurricanes last year but they are getting some arrangements made.
DennisC, good to hear that information. I hope all parent’s of college age students will be very proactive in finding out what their children’s college pandemic plans are. Also important to make your own plans as well. Parents, if your gut is telling you that it is time to bring your kids home, please listen to it.
ST
I forgot to add one more thing. It really helps to involve your kids in the planning. This will help them to buy into the plan and most of all to remember it.
bumping this for attention, after the breaking quarantine/travel may be difficult to impossible thread, (and the US Dept of Ed pandemic webcast toe-in-the-water).
I am contemplating this same problem myself. Although my son is 1 1/2 years from college, I am thinking ahead. Since I am a single parent and have no ties to Texas I will be moving to the state that he will be attending college. As far as a bug out bag I have no idea’s other than, food, cash, and ppe until I can get him or he can come home with me. This is hard. Letting them go on to their own dreams and yet have to plan like this. Good Luck.
See list as amended above. some good thought there.