Hi Am looking for people in England preparing for bird flu and would like to make contact to discuss preparations.
Hi UK Woman, you can contact me if you wish. How do you suggest we make contact.
I’m in the UK too
I don’t know whether we need to make contact but I just wondered what other Brits are doing to prepare. The Americans on this forum seem to be buying quite large amounts of food, drugs, water, even guns and I wondered if we we need to in UK where shops are probably much closer so we have fewer worries if transport links go down. Also with the National Health Service in Britain we can’t just go and ask for various drugs like they seem to abroad. If I went to my doctor to ask for antibiotics ‘just in case of bird flu’ he would say I was mad and refuse to give me a prescription. Indeed most people in Britain would think I was mad to be worrying about bird flu. The subject has been raised by the BBC and ITV but everyone I’ve talked to seems to be just brushing it off and certainly not making any preparations. Is anyone here from Britain and reading this forum doing preps?
I am preparing. I could probably go about 6 months on what’s in my cupboard at the moment and I add to it every week. I wouldn’t go on the basis that because distances are shorter the shops won’t run out of stock. You need to remember that very little of what we buy in Britain is produced here. It all has to be imported and if there is trouble in Northern Europe are they really going to be worrying about sending supplies to Britain? Look back to the rationing they had to impose during the war and we still had a reasonable home production then. Next time you are shopping look for an empty space on the shelves and then find an assistant and ask for that product - see if they have any out back! My money is on that being a no. Also remember that if people suddenly get wind of there being a problem they will rush out with no thought and buy up everything they can see. As far as prescription medicines go, I would start making the odd trip to the doctor. Most doctors iin this country prescribe antibiotics at the drop of a hat for illnesses that really don’t require them. Cash in your prescription and put the drugs in the cupboard. Its not perfect but it might put you a bit of a start. Over the counter drugs such as paracetamol and ibuprofen are good to have in stock - you can take these together if you get the flu - but I would spread the purchases out over a period as some chemists are very quick to spot large sales of potential overdose materials!! Be wary of who you tell that you are preparing - the same goes here as in America, if you’ve got it and they haven’t they will be knocking on your door and at the very least putting you at increases of infection.
Keep coming in here, there is a lot of goodwill and help here
I have stocked up with lots of food, water, fp3 masks, sugical gloves, gas bottle cooker, batteries and alcohol hand cleaner, I also purchased a pump up spear gun from a diving shop, if their is a pandemic all shops will run out, and the electricity may go off, all leaving it wide open to looters.
From UK also. Friends think I’m barking mad (as does my husband). Wrote to MP to find out about plans at a local level (I live in a village with lots of single/elderly residents/lots of farms, stables etc) but got a curt reply to say it was not his responsibility.
Have stocked for about three months, although I have started to use some of the stuff. I have a permanent saved basket with my supermarket on-line, in the hope that if I need to get stuff quickly, I can do so at the first hint of anything serious.
Agree with Hoggie about supplies, we live with a ‘just in time’ supply chain.
What do you think of this site? Curious to find out if you notice the cultural differences beteen us and our American friends?
The Only Prepper in the Village - 11:35 ‘What do I think of this site’ I would say that 80% of what I now know about ‘preparing for the coming BF pandemic’ has been gained through using this forum, so to all you guys who reply to our question’s. MANY THANKS
Yes I agree it’s a fantastic site, slightly more down to earth than the Avian Flu Talk site I also visit occasionally. The people using that site seem to think that we are at stage 4 in the WHO pandemic alert stage which is a bit worrying. I’m the sort of person who went out and bought groceries and water after 9/11 so I have also prepared for a month or two of supplies in case of bird flu but to honest if the infrastructure of a country fails then it would be so serious it is hard to imagine how life would be, what a nightmare. Also I work in the NHS and would be at high risk (but very unlikely to get preventative tamiflu) and how do you manage if you don’t get your monthly salary? I’m not at the stage where I’m losing sleep over it but if the situation gets bad, God help us all.
Ready guy uk - that’s a scary thought the spear gun, is it in case of food shortages to fishing with? Is pepper spray or anything similar legally available for sale in the uk?
If the pandemic turns out to be real nasty it is likly we will need to be hauled up for a long time, I have concerns about staying un-detected in my town house for any lengh of time. and I am now considering a country location when TSHTF.
UK Woman - 1304. Monthly Salary is not likely to be available if it is a nasty one,besides in my view you would not want to be out spending your pay cheque when rampant flu is about.That is why people are preparing now, as for defence I am going to use those ‘pump action water guns’ but instead of using water I will be using all sorts of nasty fluids.
“that’s a thought good thought Alan - the water pistols I mean
I live in the UK at the moment. My biggest concern is the almost complete absence of awareness. Plus the NHS sucks even on a good day……. I have great sympathies for the GP’s. The government seems to have shoved the burden onto them.
The one site that I know about that is UK based is http://avianfluaction.org/index.html, which is not very impressive but has links to a few conferences and stuff.
Do you know of any online community that is UK based?
Hi anon-22 thanks for all your help in the past, I agree, I try to talk to my friends about it, and they say I am bonkers.
Yes I think the British have a different attitude - remember when the govt. issued those pamphlets telling people they should store at least three days food and water in case of terror attacks. Everyone slated them for over-reacting.
I think part of it is that Britain is just a very safe place to llive. If you look at the US they have Extreme cold in the North, Earthquakes in the West, Hurricanes in the South and Tornadoes down the middle. There is just a lot more to prepare for in everyday life - and if you read the boards, you see that those that prepare still seem to be in the minority!
I would be careful how you approach the subject of preparing though - I tend to start off by asking their opinion on bird flu. The chances are you will get a negative answer like “oh its only flu, we get that every year” Don’t start talking about storing food until you get a more positive reply. Otherwise all you are doing is advertising your stash.
Just my thoughts
UK woman, pepper spray is unavailable in the the uk to sell, but you can buy it from ebay.com, i think the spray thing may just make someone even more angry, there will be people held up in houses with stockpiles and others wandering the streets looking for stuff, in a shortage if your got nothing your going to try to get it for your family at all costs, I also got some water purification tablets from a survival site like the army use, a CO2 air pistol and a air rifle for shooting rabbits, if your got something to put off a looter he will probably look for easy pickings instead. I hope it never comes to this. Several people i know are also stocking up someone i know as even bought a samurai sword and is taken kendo lessons! I think it pays to be prepaired £200 of water and groceries and a spear gun will last quite a while and if bird flu goes away like sars well i will just eat and drink it and try spear fishing i guess.
Just look at the petrol crises everyone panic buyed and everywhere sold out in hours also my village water pumping station broke due to a lightning strike, i came home from work and every shop within 15 miles was sold out of bottled drinks! that was just in a 30hr shortage, if you had a few pumping stations break in a staff shortage it would not take long for supplies to run out. Just think if you didnt have a car to look for supplies.
Thank you guys it’s made me feel a bit less stupid about buying supplies. I still worry about looters and personal protection, what do you recommend for a woman living on her own, I thought of buying a few small fire extinguishers but they would run out and are non refillable. Any ideas would be appreciated. I can’t imagine myself using a spear gun. Alan the Pom what did you mean by a pump action water gun? What would you put in it if it came to deterring looters? Would a toy water pistol (a big one) be any use? The last thing I’d want to do is antagonise them and make them even more determined.
Hi UK woman, ive decided to get a samurai sword as well, my friend got his from BladesUK.com a Paul Chen Practical Katana, it looks the business and is enough to scare off any looters, i think i would reccomend you one as well, the mace spray you can get from ebay.com is a good idear to, if your going to scare someone off i think its best to do it properly a water gun will just make there sides hurt from laughter! as for the fire extinguishers if there on fire just let em burn. What you rearly need is a man with a big chopper of some description to look after you.
UK woman - you do not need big impressive looking weapons to inflict harm on an attacker. Almost anything around you can be used as a weapon. What is more important is that you get into the habit of looking at all items as potential weapons and walk through ways of using them. On a day to day basis a bunch of keys can inflict a lot of damage if you know how to use them (I’m not talking civil insurrection here just everyday stuff). Remember a lot of what we think of as “serious” martial arts weapons started out as everyday tools to the orientals. Whenever you walk out the door get into the habit of looking for ways out and weapons. Remember our laws on self-defence are a lot different to those in the US. If you are attacked when you run out of petrol you will probably be charged for having an offensive if you hit him with a kitchen knife. Do it with a screwdriver from the car’s tool box and you will probably get away with it.
It is worth taking up some sort of karate if there is a dojo near you. From there you can augment your basics with weapons.
ready UK guy - I disagree - it all depends what you load your water gun with. Bleach in the eyes could be a real bummer, and while they might laugh at first they would soon stop when they got hit.
Lastly if you do decide to get a weapon, it is absolutely no use if you don’t practice with it - a lot! You can have the biggest arsenal iin the world but if you don’t get a lot of regular range time it will do you no good.
hoggie
Uk Woman….you arnt a reporter looking for a story are you ?
You sure ? Everyone else sure ?
I would advise people using this forum to be very very cautious about giving out email addresses or other contact information that could be used to track you down.
Anyone wishing to know more about flu prep can do so here. Anyone wishing to know about flu prep in the uk can do that here. I dont see why anyone would wish to make personal contact for any reason other than an ulterior motive. All information can be sourced here and elswhere online.
As events unfold there may be those who seek to know where and who we are and not for the reasons we might at first expect.
You have been warned.
Devils Advocate - yes I know what you are saying and no I am not a reporter. I haven’t contacted anyone by email from here for the very reason you have given. However it is possible to use a web based email like hotmail if one wishes to remain anonymous (I think that is correct).
You are right in your warnings, my top priority is to remain anonymous and so I haven’t even given the region where I live.
However it might be good if someone would make a story of it for the papers as there needs to be more awareness of the consequences of a pandemic if it happens. I think most people in the UK imagine the government/army/nhs would cope. They would cope, unless it hits really badly.
No Hotmail is not anonymous as far as the Gov agencies are concerned.
Butt Why would you wish to make personal contact ? All contact can be done through this forum.
The papers are inclined to get the facts wrong and sensationlise most stories and the Government is simply complacenent and filled with too much bureaucracy and red tape. Britain is not prepared but the gov will do what they are good at. Interfering. I would be very suprised if the powers that be have not already noted several forum threads that would be of interest to them. Namely Guns stockpiling and people who may be prepared to use deadly force to protect themselves and family. They dont like people like that. They do however like people who do what they are told to do like sheep. They dont like free thinking individuals who wont depend on the government for everything.
So when you come in here and suggest we swap contact addresses you will be looked at with a degree of suspicion.
No offence.
I reccomend that no email addresses be given and all contact is kept within the forum.
Devil’s Advocate - thanks for the advice. I’m a bit green when it comes to the internet, didn’t occur to me that UK anyone might not be what they say they are - ooops
ready guy uk- at 0658, Suggest you read ‘hoggie at 0725 comment again’ if you come within 10m of me with your ‘samurai sword’ you will get in both eyes and I tell you what ‘I dont think it will be laughter I will be hearing’
devil’s advocate- I also support your comments.
what if the attacker had goggles on and a face mask or even a full face mask, masks are reccomended if there is a pandemic for outside public movement in a quarantine area, plus pump up water guns tend to leak and spurt a bit when you pressurise them, so they may cause you harm, just a scray weapon may make a attacker leave without confrontation, i served 3 years in the parachute regiment 20 years ago and i still would say a proper weapon to deter is still a good idear and i agree practice is essential. If you are going to use bleach just a squeezy bottle with a small spout would probably be quicker to use.
I am glad somepeople are getting stocked up and taking a possible pandemic seriouse, have anyone out there managed to get hold of any antivirals? i bought a private prescription from a private doctor and took it to a chemist where its been sitting since October, the online suppliers just seem to dodgy and with so many fake tablets being seized i thought to stick to the uk was best.
anyway im from essex.
Hi UK folks- I’m sorry. I am from and in the US so I hope you don’t mind me asking you a question. Are stun guns (the electric zappers) legal for private citizens in the UK? I won’t make myself a nuisance here on your forum. I was just interested. Thanks!
Stun guns and mace are not legal in the uk but many people mail order them or get them from ebay and risk it, there is enough legal things to buy over here.
there is a VERY CLOSE ALTERNATICE TO MACE in the UK, its called RAID WASP NEST DESTROYER in a spray can, it will spray about 20ft in a stream/jet and is very accurate and is extremely unpleasant when in contact with skin or eyes. You can buy it in DIY shops or tesco.
Thought I would post some links to UK events here:
Run by Wilton Park Conferences, topic International Collaboration on Planning for Pandemics March 2 - 5
This one is in London for “Pre-pandemic planning, preparation & POLICY FOR BUSINESS” March 24
April 3 - 6 symposium on avian flu organised by Defra in cambridge, It is more veterinarian orientated. The draft programme is here http://www.defra.gov.uk/corporate/vla/aboutus/aboutus-ai-programme.htm Speakers include Robert Webster and Albert Osterhaus amongst others
Hi April - welcome. You have made us all very welcome on this board so come on in any time you feel like it :-)
ready guy uk - thanks for that tip, I’ll go and check it out tomorrow
Nice one ready guy…wasp spray is brilliant! Keep a lighter on hand as well…if it is flamable such as hair spray…very spectacular! Greetings from the US.
Nice one ready guy…wasp spray is brilliant! Keep a lighter on hand as well…if it is flamable such as hair spray…very spectacular! Greetings from the US.
Thanks, hoggie. All the best to our friends in the UK.
….yeah, i headed from the uk into the hot zone (at that time at least) was worried about the flu and stuff but more worried about british winter and british crazies with big sticks and the knowledge of their use….thought i’d head on up to the mountains and be near the hilltribe people….great climate and they know how to grow food eh…?…thought, sod it, if this thing happens i’d rather a hot blue sky as my last than a magnolia painted square room with the BBC emergency alert bashing over the battery powered radio; “There’s no reason to panic. Everything will be just fine.” Good to see though that there are still some people keeping the grrrrrr in Engrrrland….
may I coment from the other side of the Norwegian sea? Please forget about the swords… in old viking days the trick was to have a solid door.. so when someone was trying to get in you would hear it, and get ready with something to smack in their head. A baseball bat (or cricket :) would be good enough.. if you think you cant use a bat, you cant use a sword either..
Windovs need a smal lock, or just some screwes, that way enyone trying to climb thru have to be carefull not cutting them self from the broken glass.
Spray is good. dustmasks dont stop mace , cs or teargas.. first spray, then bat..
Turning on the lights and shout that you are armed is probably enough.. and that you have called the police.
As far as I know the UK have a stockpile of tamiflu, this will be used to keep the police and other key workers going thru a pandemic.
Try to hook up with neighbors (if they are trustworty) If a pandemic hits, everybody will listen to you, even if they dont listen now..
Remember that disasters brings out the best in folks, not the worst, you want be alone. (just dont tell any you got a big food supply :)
…wow stg…you guys call it the the Norwegian sea…revelation…of course we’ve gone and changed it to the North sea back in blighty (we did have a big navy after all…!)….i’ll never forget a french guy i met whilst travelling one time…..he looked at me, stared me in the eye and said: “What iz all zis eeeenglish channel shit…?” We call it La Manche….!” I nearly died laughing at his comic indignation……..and good viking knowledge too stg
Ho ho! yes in english its the northsea.. i think only a part of it is called “Norske Havet”.. Its the part between norway and UK.. we used to sail it a lot in the old days ;) http://www.math.uio.no/tidepred
RAID WASP NEST DESTROYER is not like a wasp spray its thick and sticky shoots 20ft and burns very hot and even hotter if you set light to it probably more toxic than Mace Spray.
I am in the USA but I am trying to get my mother ready who is the UK. We use chlorox bleach here to treat water. What should she buy in the UK. I remember she used to clean the toilets with domestos but I don’t think that is the same or will or work?
Tell her to buy Milton - she will find it in the baby section - it is a sterilizing fluid and gives instructions on the bottle for water treatment.
Sorry FSN it just occured to me - you didn’t say how old your mum is so forgive me if this is a silly post. If she is getting on a bit she might not be able to read the instructions as they are printed very small:-
Use half a teaspoon of Milton (2.5ml) to 5 litres of water and leave for 15 mins
Thanks Hoggie Milton is a great idea I’ve got some bleach but Milton is much easier to use and sounds safer.
Thank you so much. I have also tried to find out where you buy foods in bulk in the UK on the internet but have not had any luck. If you have any information on that also it would be appreciated.
It is hard to find on the internet but my situation is complicated by the fact that I live offshore. I think the best bet is the cash and carries but maybe someone else on the board can answer this one better. If I can come up with something better I will post it. If she lives near to a catering suppliers that is usually a good place as well as they do big packs of most things.
FSN - 16:14, What sort of food are you looking for.
I know the internet grocer ships to UK but I haven’t yet plucked up courage to try them so can’t say how much they charge for shipping
Is any one else in the uk interested in sharing which part of the uk they are in. I am not interested in town or even county (noo privacy issues) just North, West or whatever. The main reason I am asking is that if enough people were interested it may be possible to make some savings on big bulk buys through wholesalers. Obviously it would take a big order hence the need for a group of people living in roughly the same region - or prepared to come drive to that area to collect. Too many delivery charges would take the savings away!
Hands up anyone?
What about raising awareness and getting others to prepare too?
http://fluwikie.com/index.php?n=Consequences.RaisingAwareness leads to
Hope this helps!
I just found a internet wholesaler for plastic containers http://www.medways.co.uk/ at very low prices. I must warn you that this site is hell to navigate as you will find yourself doubling back to where you started every 2 minutes and every link says plastic containers but they may or may not go to the same place! However, this is the only one that I have found in the UK where you can get lots of boxes and baskets without breaking the bank.
I am posting this because I spent a fortune on containers before I found cheaper stuff so I thought I could save someone else’s work.
This one http://commercialfreezedry.co.uk/index.htm sells sane quantities to retail shoppers. I tried their strawberries and chicken and they are surprisingly good!
Also this http://www.smithsofthedean.co.uk/Miscellaneous.htm for water containers, some recycled. The blue barrels are food grade and they have the white IBC tanks for non-food use. What I like is that they are willing to put a tap on the lower end of these containers by request.
Nothing on the news again - think they don’t know?
hoggie, I am about an hour outside of London. Whereabouts are you?
Channel Islands
Whoops - pressed the wrong button - anyway Channel Islands but for the purposes of my previous post I would count myself as being on the South Coast
Is any one else in the uk interested in sharing which part of the uk they are in. I am not interested in town or even county (noo privacy issues) just North, West or whatever. The main reason I am asking is that if enough people were interested it may be possible to make some savings on big bulk buys through wholesalers. Obviously it would take a big order hence the need for a group of people living in roughly the same region - or prepared to come drive to that area to collect. Too many delivery charges would take the savings away!
Hands up anyone?
Is any one else in the uk interested in sharing which part of the uk they are in. I am not interested in town or even county (noo privacy issues) just North, West or whatever. The main reason I am asking is that if enough people were interested it may be possible to make some savings on big bulk buys through wholesalers. Obviously it would take a big order hence the need for a group of people living in roughly the same region - or prepared to come drive to that area to collect. Too many delivery charges would take the savings away!
Hands up anyone?
Im from essex
I’m from Glasgow.
South coast here
You’re all nuts! It is sad to think that if anything happened the people on this forum would be responsible for repopulating the planet.
Thank you for your constructive comments cleetus. It is sad to think that if anything happened the people like you would be asking the people on this forum for help!!
Dead swan under examination
Dead swan found in Great Abingdon in Cambridgeshire taken away to be tested.
I notice they call the Weybridge lab ‘European Union’ Lab (whereas overseas news media always call it the UK lab).
….what, nothing to do with us???
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/cambridgeshire/4724266.stm
BBC has exactly the same report with ‘European Union Lab’.
Must be an official statement. Shows you what our officials think, or did someone tell them not to call it the ‘bird flu’ lab?
Funny how the rest of Europe are bringing their flocks indoors apart from the UK. According to Defra yesterday, the risk has increased but still does not pose a “significant risk”
Reminds me of the foot and mouth statements:)
Probably most of you already know this, but there is a UK page? here at Flu Wiki. I just put link there to this thread (at Forum).
I was thinking that it might be a good idea to have a sticker or some sort of sign on peoples houses that have weapons so innocent looters won’t get hurt in the fracas. It would need to be something that had a daily update though so we know that it is not someone that is just fooling (like the guy next door that has security alarm stickers, but no actual alarm! Ha, who is he kidding).
I just heard all of these horror stories from Katrina about innocent looters being hurt and would hate for that to happen here.
You could get a really big sign, shoot through the back with a shotgun so the shards stick out forwards, and then post it in your yard. “We ain’t callin’ 911″ is very popular in Georgia. Or “You are Here!” with an arrow to the holes would get the point across. Keep it simple, though, for those unable to read all the other “signs” and prep for themselves. ;P
Innocent looters????????
Yes, innocent looters!
If things go bad and the less fortunate who were not in a position to prepare need supplies or shelter, then rules go out the window. Obviously I would not support looting a house that was occupied, but surely no one could object to the use of materials from a an empty house?!
I was just trying to propose some kind of system that those who prepared could avoid the innocent looters, thanks.
If they are really innocent and in need then they don’t need to know if someone is armed - they just need to know if the house is occupied!!
My whole point was that i have seen that there are people out there that will put up signs saying that they are home and armed, even when there is no one home, just to prevent people from taking what they need to survive. There should be an honest way to let people know when they can loot, thanks.
preparedlooter2K6,
What have you been smoking, my friend? :-)
Whether I am home or not, I don’t want any stinking looters in my house taking my stuff. Is that the behavior you want to encourage? There might be an argument for the police allowing citizens (in an orderly way) to get essentials from a closed store in an emergency situation (but even that bothers me because store owners are citizens too and taking their stuff without paying for it is not right). But I can’t imagine what would justify anyone looting (i.e., stealing) from a private home. Get real.
Whoa! So I am not getting a lot of support for my looting measures. Ok, relax. I just thought that maybe an intelligent discussion on the subject would be worthwhile. Obviously not here!
Perhaps I should start a looting forum on a different internet?!
Some fun thoughts and bits of news being bounced around here. http://tinyurl.com/ztfw2
I think an innocent looter should walk up to the door and knock. Isn’t that the way one neighbor borrows an egg from another? If no one is home, how do you know they are not visiting another neighbor in need, and will be right back? If you take what you need, what will they have?
Orderly taking food from a store, even with police, will turn into a riot as soon as the mayors wife thinks she or someone else should go first. (mayor’s wife is used to represent someone recognizable that may or may not think she is special in some way) (not meaning to “rich” bash.) The first ones in will take the best, and the last ones know it. Stay away from the line… or store in this instance.
The moral is, do not take what is not yours until you have attempted to ask the owner and received a positive response. Best thing to do is ask other preppers in your neighborhood what they would want you to do with their supplies if you find them dead on the floor. Then ask yourself if you want food from an infected house.
Remember, there may be someone taking your supplies while you are away.
Did I mention that swans are dying in England?
So far only 90 people in the world have died from it. Do you think we might be getting a little worried over nothing more than a bunch of media hype or is my tin foil hat just too tight?
STFU: Well, I certainly won’t be coming to your house! ;)
I sure a certain amount of people are thinking and preparing to loot when the time comes, so much easier . Let me say that what you are taking might be infected, and you will pay another way than simply purchasing an item.
Remember that bird flu pandemic that was supposed to wipe out the human race? Well, the undeveloped country that had it the worst just beat it. http://news.independent.co.uk/world/asia/article346511.ece guess my hat wasn’t so tight after all. ;)
Listen, just prepare. Some simple preps could go a long way. Dont be a fool. Get 4 20 lb bags of rice and 20 5 lb bags of beans. Get some salt and sugar. Some batteries, toilet paper, canned gravey and ride this thing out for a while. best case, nothging happens. take a look around your house, realistically, how many day could you go before you think you need to get stuff. How about some beer and wine just incase. You can banter back and forth about only 90 people. Once this goes H2H with 4 different strains, it will be 6 months before the vaccines are ready. Your income will be dried up, your gasw will be nonexistant, your health care will all be home protecting thier children. Don be a fool.
STFU, It’s a good thing that the efforts in Vietnam worked. However, in the meantime, how many new countries have gotten the virus?
The other thing to remember about vietnam is that the strain there belonged to the pre-Qinghai clade. The very rapid spread from Qinghai lake to Russia, middle East, Africa, and Europe is very different from the behavior of H5N1 in SE Asia before the Qinghai mutations last May. Even the WHO is acknowleging concern over this. That discussion is on this thread http://www.fluwikie.com/index.php?n=Forum.WhoReportOnMutations
I think I might start a thread on the possibility of using looters as an alternative source of protein!!!!!
Hoggie: that is nice! We are all in this together. Some us dont have a lot of money or time to prepare. So what if I need to ‘find’ some food or stereos or something?! Is that so wrong?
In a pinch no. As a strategy you are showing yourself to be a low life. You sure that you aren’t a slug under a rock. The slug has a purpose in this world, but a human slug?
You have money and time to spend on the internet looking at this forum - get off your a*** and prep properly.
If your joking your not funny. A certain spinelessness comes through. Not only do you announce your intentions, calling them innocent, you also lexpect people to feel sorry for you, and condone your attitude. You are not amusing.Get some backbone.
Preparing to loot is not the kind of preparation we’ve been talking about. (Maybe that was just a trolling expedition?)
With law enforcement busy, you can be sure if there is pandemic, people will be ready and willing to defend their homes and families more than in ordinary times, knowing they are on their own. (I’m in the US not UK, but it’s the same everywhere.)
Living a bit more frugally, getting out of debt, and having enough supplies on hand is a long-term success strategy.
So is making sure community-level planning is the best it can be, on how to manage supply-chain disruptions, care for vulnerable populations, and check that plans to bury the dead will actually have the prepared workers and means with which to do that. (We need our rules/laws changed to allow during pandemic all paperwork and inquiries around a death to be accomplished locally, and, some requirements waived. Last I checked, cemetery workers were not stocking up at home either, and one had a misconception that a pandemic would be a 3-week long event!) There will be fewer losses if people and households and communites get prepared now.
If pandemic doesn’t happen, having households with less debt, and food on hand in case of storm-related power outtages, and communities that are willing to get together and plan about problems are all good things, useful all the time.
Vietnam: Usually what has happened when a country or area declares itself free of “bird flu” is, all the people relax, and stop taking precautions. If there is any movement of people, or animals in and out of Vietnam, H5N1, or anything else that is contagious before signs of sickness, can get brought, or smuggled, or just fly right back in.
Folks, surely you realize looter2K6 is playing the devil’s advocate concerning how some people will think if/when h2h occurs.
I suspect he/she is more prepared than most of the people at large, but is just having his giggles along the way.
Please note that I do not agree with this behaviour but I recognize it for what it is.
Possibly, but I think not.I don’t sense giggling, or leg pulling. Just a sad sack,who might need something to do besides feeling deprived.I can see being desperate and taking over an abandoned residence. lEnd of the world scenario, but not planning on doing it. Sorry, everyone can do something for themselves, just getting some food pantry items. I don’t know if they have such things in England. But here is someone like the 900,000 in NO who used false social security numbers to get an extra 2,000. No big suprise for most of us.
Sadly yes - these things do happen. False ids, working whilst incapacitated, working whilst on unemployment, you name it they think it up. I know nothing of our friend above, but as ever there will always be an element of society that is quite happy to live off the backs of others.
I also think what he is suggesting is a premeditated act. I’m sure there will be people window shopping for what they mean to loot here in the U.S.. I don’t know it seems to me suggesting such activity in advance is as stupid as it is wrong headed. I am not going to waste any pity on him or her for their lack of luck in the lottery that is life itself.
Having donated a lot of money to the canadian drug delivery bunch, I vowed never to deal with another internet company.
Had to as I wanted children’s masks so I went to SurvivaAll UK.
I can now say I would recommend them to anyone. My parcels arrived in good time. Some things weren’t in stock so the rest of the order was dispatched and the remainder sent on. I had a couple of hiccups which were dealt with efficiently and pleasantly, and it was a pleasure to deal with this company.
To paraphrase - “go forth and shop”
I think Okieman should win a prize.
What the Devils Advocate prize?
No. The not being an oblivious fool prize.
BTW- Lily wins the oblivious fool prize! Congratulations! Your mindlessness knows no boundaries.
Honourable mention: Hoggie. Sorry. You were in the lead, but Lily is off the charts!
Thanks guys. Sorry though, hard way to make a point.
Devils Advocate.
Devils Advocate.
And the point of the exercise??
If its who I think it is, none.
Re:- SurviveAll - I forgot to mention, they also put a copy of FEMA’s “are you ready?” book which I thought was a nice touch
hoggie, I bought kids masks (and loads more) from SurviveAll. Very friendly people. I got the FEMA book too which I think is very informative. Why does our government not produce something like this?
Dav - I have no idea. It seems to me like good sense. Maybe we should suggest something.
Thanks Hoggie! I also ordered some children’s masks and have been second-guessing the decision (because of the shipping cost to the US). I feel a little better since hearing from you!
hoggie - Yeh, The FEMA book:)
The nearest thing we have to it is the brochure that was posted to everyone last year. If you didn’t get a copy you can read it here
FEMA’s is miles better.
Swann - glad to have helped:-)
Dav - yeah FEMA’s is better. Not sure what it is with this country?
The bird-flu will be dealt with fine if everyone acts responsibly and in a sane way. Its the hoards of lunatic hermit survivalists, and itchy brick-hand looters that the community needs to worry about.
Is this preparedlooter2K6 again?
fortunately, our population here in uk are several generations further along in sanity than our religious, hero-worshipping, gun-toting, american cousins.
to April, no its not.
April, Don’t feed the nasty troll, you don’t know where it’s been.
…Its been educated in the uk, amoungst sane and rational people, who are capable of thinking for themselves, and who dont automatically start worshipping or shooting the first person to do something different in a crowd.
the name is sarcasm “vigilante proactive-mercy-killer”. but surely you got that, right? i am sane and rational and believe that a lot of people here are not. i randomly stumbled across this website whilst looking for safety measures for my female partner who lives in a rough part of london.
“Female partner” you call her? How romantic.
We got the guns originally because we were capable of thinking for ourselves, and didn’t care to worship a monarch who kept sticking his nose in our business.
But now we can’t seem to get enough of the Royal family. Funny right? We love you Brits now…just not trolls. :-)
Its neither romantic or unromantic. Its just a fact.
April: …Hmm thats suspicious… …What an unusual way to phrase it…? …Why would someone say something like that?… …Hmmm… …I wonder if he could be infected?… …what if somehow i got infected through the internet?… …Id better shoot him just incase… …and then loot his house… …but what if his food is infected?… …well i’ll just burn his house to sanitize it… …but what if its a set-up?… …and the government are in on it… …maybe i should wear this foil hat… …it will block out the signals… …then maybe i should shoot some people… …all the dead corpses lying around will stop the spread of that nasty disease.
At this point for the first time in my life - I would like to apologize for being British.
vigilante - if you don’t like it here, you are free to leave any time you wish!!!
The sane and rational people he refers to, those mmust be the British Soccer fans who have been banned the world over for rioting at the drop of a hat.
I am British and I am appalled at this idiot and the things he has said. I dont see him contributing anything useful here and respectively ask that the moderators step in here and silence this poor sad sad little man.
Thankyou.
P.S To my American friends I apologise for this twit. The vast Majority of British people feel very close to our American friends so please ignore ill thought out little rants from strange little mem like this.
Devils Advocate: No need to apologize. This person’s ravings are laughable. In fact, it was the first good laugh I had today.
And by the way, I love you Brits. I have visited your country more than several times.
Hey, no need to apologize hoggie and Devils Advocate. We’ve got plenty of homegrown American jerks in the US that feel the same way about the US.
We know the British people (in general) are our friends. Fortunately, regular people try to ignore those other folks… as we all can ignore that silly vigilante guy. Sounds like he has disappeared anyway. I just can’t figure out what kind of relationship that would be where he refers to a lady as his “female partner”. I have heard about men afraid of commitment who can’t even bring themselves to call someone their “girlfriend” but that is just plain sad.
Hiya, I’m from Cardiff(female) and yes,I’m prepping.I’v got about6 months worth of food so far for me,my partner and toddler son-all sorts of tins,sauces,dried goods,drinks etc and everything household.Bought a camp stove,batteries,masks,coveralls,gloves etc plus wind up radio and torch,candles,portable heater,water butts for outdoors,jerry cans for indoors,petrol container etc.everything bar the genrator and solar panels really!!My wardobes are jammed with supplies,my spare room is overflowing with boxes and general chaos,and every time I go to Tesco I feel a bit bonkers,but at least am prepared.Plan to start using the supplies in Janu 2007 if nothing has really kicked off by then,and will then start a new round of supplies.Lidl’s is excellent for pasta,pesto and tinned curry bargains.Everyhting else I get as Tesco,the cheap Tesco brands do me where possible.don’t forget your tinned onions!And dried egg powder! oh,and a breadmaker!
Hi cosmicpixie
I too am prepping, got about 2 months of food and other supplies. Please could you post where you get your tinned onions and more importantly egg powder!
Tesco has egg powder.
If you can become a Costco member, they sell a lot of stuff at catering size and prize.
price, I mean.
Spend too much time talking to Americans, you reckon?
:-)
I`m U.K. too (country area) Got enough empty bottles I could fill for around 3 months supply of water - and so far could manage about 6 weeks on our food supply. Living on benefit can only do so much a week. Keep adding to it weekly.
Heating could be a problem - cant afford to go out buying calor gas fire & bottles refilles etc. But got plenty spare duvets, sleeping bags & could even move the furniture out of living room & put up our 3 man tent and pile into that with duvets & sleeping bags. Theres only me a one child - and within the confines of a tent it wouldnt feel as cold as in a big room.
Hi sunny, yes,As “anon” said,Tesco for the egg powder,but it desn’t have a long shelf life so i’ve just got 6 at the moment.That is where i got my tinned,pre-fried onions too,they are about 60p a tin and I’ve got about 70 tins,as onions form the basis of most cooking don’t they.Those tins have about 30 months shelf life and i’ve tried one out in a stew and never noticed any difference.Got my minced garlic in a jar there too,and minced ginger,but discovered these are much cheaper if you go to your local indian grocery shop.Tesco also do dried onion fakes in a box-not sure what you do with these but bought 6 boxes,again not much shelf life.i’d also reccommend packets of sundried tomatoes-18 months shelf life,easily rehydrated,pricey yes but boy would we miss tomatoes and i doubt many of us will bother trying to grow them.I’m going to look in health food shops for dried egg powder too.Found mine in the baking section with the flour in Tesco,you have to look hard,i missed them the first 6 trips!pricey-about £2 per tub and it says a tub is equal to 10 eggs. JENNY-have you tried for a social fund loan? you pay it back a few quid a week out of your benefits,it would come in handy for some supplies for you.obviously don’t give that as your reason!!
i was wondering if anyone knew where i could get razor wire? it seems to me that would be a tremendous way to keep people away; whether i was home or not.
You can get it here….:
http://www.birminghambarbedtape.co.uk/
However you need to appreciate the namby pamby british gov and make sure you put adequate signs up to warn the bad guys that they might get hurt or they might sue your ass off.
With legal aid……and defended by drips like cherie blair
Yeah I know a firm where they have a sign saying “danger unsafe roof” so that if someone tries to get on the roof and falls, they are covered!!!???
Pathetic isnt it. Political correctness gone barmy in britain. You know we used to be called Great Britain.
Goofy britain is more accurate now that we have greedy corrupt people in charge like tessa jowell who frankly is and has been taking bribes and I also wonder if she was getting back handers to push through the casino bill and 24 hour binge drinking in the country.
%This Gov stinks and so does Emperor tony.
Time for a change.
Don’t blame me, i voted BNP!
Yup thats the way its going isnt it. The three so called political parties just dont seem to cut it and are so tied up trying not to offend people that folkes are looking at other idelogies and soloutions.
The problem is going from one extreme to another though.
Where will it end ?….and with a possible H2H pandemic around the corner can we trust those in charge….like tessa “ Bribe me baby “ Jowell ?
Nope, it looks like we are being set up for an <i>Omega Man</i> scenario. There better be some good movies playing at the time! ;)
Planet of the apes springs to mind
Orly? Do you think there is a possibility of some genetic mutation that doesn’t kill, rather renders people to be like a character out of 28 Days Later?
Orly ? Who the heck is orly ?
Seriously….no.
But if there was Cherie blair or tessa “ I didnt take a bribe “ Jowell would be a good candidate.
i suppose bird flu is bad enough without the zombies huh?
I love British humour.
humour….what bloody humour ?
We are trying to set the world to rights here :)
Bird flu is indeed bad enough but the fact the zombies took control of government in 97 is bad enough.
No love for the Blair government here, but I haven’t heard the “zombies” thing before. Made me smile.
well, it is obvious! bird flu cant kill zombies. now i need to prepare for 2 catastrophes!
londonprep,
Care to share those preps with the rest of us. We in the US have our own political problems.
Look…by your name im guessing you are in London….capital of the Zombies…..cant you creep into whitehall…..drive a stake through cherie blair and kiss Emperor Tony and restore the Kingdom to peace ?
Then we can have a proper hanging for Tessa “ BIG BUCKS “ Jowell :)
heads up guys - Equinox bird flu special on Monday at 8.00pm on Channel 4. The trailer looked good - compared bf to 1918 - should be worth a look!
hoggie – at 15:09
Thank you for the heads up :-)
So did anyone watch it??
THANKS cosmicpixie for the suggestion (hadnt thought of that)
Regards the programme - yes I watched it tonight. It was quite interesting especially how they searched out the medical records of the first soldiers who had died in 1918. Back then they didnt know it was bird flu and death had been attributed as being caused by `a bronchial infection - but the victims had suffered the cytokine storm (as we now call they) Medically they use the term `cynosis (maybe spelt wrong) But they now know that 1918 was bird flu virus (or mutation of)
They seem to be racing against the clock on it now.
What I want to know is why Blair is NOT telling anyone to stock up and prepare. I may not be a fan of Mr. Bush but at least in U.S. they have been repeatedly forewarned. Is Blair hoping we will all die off, or what?
As I see it, ONLY those who are online & who access sites such as this one (and those who get told) are going to prepare - hence more looters - more trouble makers, and more people who will die because they havent got basic food and water.
When I go out shopping, and see people with children & babies in prams buying toys and luxuries - I feel so sad, thinking “I wonder if they even know they should be buying extra food instead” I cannot imagine what people are going to do who have children to consider. Also animals.
As anyone thought that in addition to trouble makers we may also have to contend with HUNGRY dogs. Hungry dogs are NOT likely to be too friendly, and if I`m right, their `natural instinct will soon kick in if they are not fed. Maybe its just my mind going into over-drive on this, I dunno.
IF ONLY our U.K. government would address `preparedness then at least I feel more ppl would take it seriously. Individuals cannot do it whilst its somewhat unwise to tell the world that we ourselves are preparing (as has been stated on other threads)
Last week I had cause to speak with the police (outside the area where I live) on a different matter - and I made a point of asking them “what plans are in place” Guess what…. the reply was “THATS THE GOVERNMENTS PROBLEM - NOT OURS” Later that same day, I spoke to my doctors receptionist and asked her the same question, only to be told by her that “they hadnt been told anything” Oh, I can just imagine the chaos that would reign !! U.K. health service & police WONT last a week.
I did want to ask the police how we stand (under Brit law) regards self-defence, but thought better of it. But under U.K.law, of course, we are only supposed to use as much force as is necessary against an intruder - and I dont think wasp spray or bleach would be looked upon too kindly. As against that of course, if police cannot handle the situation, what other choices have we got? NONE I can think of except to follow suggestions ppl have put forward on this forum.
Lets just hope and pray it doesnt happen. As an article stated the other day: we can either `pray now… or pray God helps us later.
Keep up the good work folks.
Yes - the programme seemed to deal with it quite well. They seemed to be trying to put over just how serious it could be but my only quarrel with the programme was that it was on C4. Only those that are interested anyway will have watched it. I’m sure it would have got better viewing figures if it had been shown just after Coronation Street or Eastenders. I felt that the programme dealt well with 1918 and the research into the history and also managed to put out quite a scary picture regarding H5N1. They did stop short of telling people to prepare though. I must go on to the C4 website later to see if they give any advice there as they did give out the adress at the end of the programe for those “wanting more information”
I don’t know if the govt. will tell anyone to do anything. I remember when they published that pamphlet about preparing for terrorism and having three days food and water at home. Everyone accused them of scaremongering!!??
Hi if you remember I told you I was going on holiday in OZ for three months, already one month has passed by, the people in OZ are great and very friendly, this has been the first time i have had the chance to check out the news on BF, I can only support the thought and comments about BF attacking only our MP’s. If that was the case i am sure we would see a much more action from them. anyhow I am having lots of fun but at the same time keeping look out for any signs of TSHTF, if the WHO goes to level 4 then i may very well have a problem, but in the meantime I will carry on enjoying myself.
Not sure if this is of any interest but Lidl (UK) have a special offer on fishing equipment next Thursday. You could kit yourself out with a simple line for a few pounds or a complete rod and set of hooks, floats etc for about twenty.
bump… you guys still here now that the fluwiki’s back up?:)
I was wondering the same thing :-)
I am still here - but I spend a lot of time blogging about this from a European point of view - well at least I am trying to. We do have a different perspective, and different problems here, compared to our American friends. In my opinion a European solution must be more community based, as the sole and independent survivor business is not really an option here.
In Europe we are fighting the politicians and their belief that it would only lead to widescale panic if they encouraged people to prepare.
The above post was mine
Still here - just watching and listening !!! LOL
hoggie
I work in the local council. Right next to my desk is the Emergency Planning Unit, the guys who would co-ordinate local response to things like nuclear waste spill, panflu etc.
The other day they were checking out their Temporary Mortuary Plans. I’ve seen one of them also checking maps with locations ofall town halls and so on in the county, which neatly fits with recent news stories about them being used as temproary mortuaries.
Frankly they don’t inspire me with much confidence…they are a small team, but quite professional, “switched on” folks. They are still very much impotent, implementing local versions of unwieldy nationally forumalted one size fits all, vague plans. Essentially it will be up to their leader to go on what he can do, and up to COBRA and all those other things, the organisations “above” him.
As I say, the ideas I have seen are all vague and are really just guidelines. Not much of the “in case of this, we will do this” or “we have made sure water will stay on”. More like: “we will work closely with other teams in the county and under the aegis of national infrastructure will maintain vigillance and etc etc etc.”. I got a look at the regional panflu plan, you see. There was a sort of open day at the council for new people coming to work there and the Emrgecny Unit had a stall out. Also they had a copy of the WHO’s panflu advice on the table.
That said though, obviously I probably never would be able to see the more confidential stuff that might answer all our questions.
I spoke to one of them about panflu briefly…we both identified this comng winter as another “heads up” moment. Then my boss saw me chatting and I had to get back to work.
They have a website they are working on, part of the greater Resillience movement in this county. Like, London’s Resillience forum, etc.
Regarding why Tony hasn’t said stock up, a well informed guy over at Curevents board suggests rationing will be in place in supermarkets. He suggested looking out in the enar future for adverts on TV with a squirrel logo, advice for stocking up.
This is documented on a Lord’s session Question and Answer thing, which you can find on Hansard or the government website. It’s a panel Q&A with business leaders. Some guy from Sainsburys was asked how they’d cope with lots of people in panic buying mode. Their answer was, we have our own in store trained security personnel. That made me laugh. Yeah, those guys with walkie talkies, one per store, holding off a baying mob of rabid parents, kids, chavs, neds etc all wanting their beer, wine, crisps etc.
Anyhow, I started preparing in August last year. I ahve not spent much, abot 300£ on food. My sources are Tesco and Sainsbury. I wish I could join the bulk food place nearby, Makro, but I do not own a business. Also I do not drive and have to use public tranport, which does not help matters. Carrying a 25lb sack of beans onto the bus might be tricky. Mind you, carrying it anyway would be, for me.
I am north of Essex by the way.
The House of Lords Question and Answers session can be found in this document (PDF File - 41 pages). The proper title is: “HOUSE OF LORDS - MINUTES OF EVIDENCE - TAKEN BEFORE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY COMMITTEE - PANDEMIC INFLUENZA - THURSDAY 3 NOVEMBER 2005″. It contains some rather startling information.
Thank you, European, for bringing that to our attention. Love your website by the way, very informative, have put it near the top of my favourites, keep up the good work.
Hi everyone! we’ve been preparing for a year, when we started bird flu was one big joke, it doesnt seem to be now. These clusters are getting more serious. Perhaps we should look forward to this??
croesus,
thanks for your input, I only saw this today.
Interesting what you said about local councils
“Frankly they don’t inspire me with much confidence…they are a small team, but quite professional, “switched on” folks. They are still very much impotent, implementing local versions of unwieldy nationally forumalted one size fits all, vague plans.”
It is also my understanding that any operational plans are in the earliest draft stages. They need to move a lot faster, and of course the biggest question is funding. I don’t even know whether any extra budget has been made available for PPE masks etc for NHS trusts.
“That said though, obviously I probably never would be able to see the more confidential stuff that might answer all our questions.”
Transparency is a real issue in the UK. My point of view is that since this is such an unprecedented threat and NOBODY has any experience how to deal with it, we need all the input we can get from different sectors. The government should be putting up provisional operations plans for different regions and local authorities and inviting public comments. Sure it will be contentious and nobody relishes another headache, but there are some extremely difficult choices that need to be made, like prioritizing antivirals and vaccines.
If we have a pandemic with the H5N1 virus, NO GOVERNMENT in the world has the resources to cover ALL the contingencies that will arise. What we need is for politicians to admit that and start communicating that to the public. That the public has some role to play in helping themselves and each other. Failure to inform the public of the need to adjust their expectations will add vastly to the anger and sense of betrayal and divisiveness that will invariably result from our inability to take care of everyone equally.
I know that there is politicians have a huge phobia of the word ‘stockpile’. And some would say that if you tell people now, they will start panicking now and rush to the supermarkets etc.
My response to that is if everybody stockpiles eg toilet paper or masks today, and these items run out, companies can make more NOW and increase the supply, whereas that option will not be available when a pandemic actually starts, AND EVERYONE WILL KNOW IT. Then there will be REAL panic, even before the virus hits the country. AND they will be blaming the politicians, saying “YOU knew. Why didn’t you tell us?”
We live in the UK. On the 16th of May CORUS formally British Steel sent every employee across europe a letter telling people not to panic BUT then gave them procedures to follow if they come into contact with birds or show flu like symptoms the letter ended by saying there is nothing to be concerned over.What do you all think??????????????????????????
Dont panic hehehehe,
I think your name answers the question :-)
Seriously, there is a huge case of split personality at the moment. TPTB are scared s^&** of a pandemic but ditto about being trashed for ‘scaremongering’ which if you were a man from Mars and didn’t know better you would think was the #2 sin after ‘thou shall not kill’.
Come to think of it, maybe the two sins are equivalent, that’s why they are so split!
Hello anon 22 agreed with your comments i guess its better to be scared prepared and alive then then confident but dead in a collective conforming ignorance. i wonder were the dismissers will run to when it happens, mmmmmmmm let me guess the houses of the preppers. But sorry there will be no room at the inn, but there will be a very very VERY firm rejection. HEHEHEHE
Thing is, “lone preppers” are better of if others prep too. Enlightened self-interest, they call it.
This situation IS difficult:
In Europe you just don’t talk about these things. Crazy Americans!
Sigh!
hi Freak
enjoyed your thoughts
to prep or not to prep that is the question
whether it be nobler to starve
or suffer the slings and arrows of ones friendly neighbors
after bird flu it will be easy to spot the preppers
they will be the fat clean people watching the sensible people grazing on grass and worms
my cousin has just came back from indonesia part of the country the sumatran end has been sealed off the rest of the country is panicing unofficially there are expecting the pandemic any week now. Good luck everyone.
worried,
Thanks for that info. Do you have more specifics eg how is Sumatra sealed off? Are transport links eg ferries etc stopped? Is there any stockpiling of essentials? Food? Masks?
my cousin has been told to keep his mouth shut and he is he is worried about losing his job
ok…
thanks anyway.
oops that sounds bad
very worrying that he has been told to keep quiet. You would think they would want it shouted
hoggie
oops that sounds bad
very worrying that he has been told to keep quiet. You would think they would want it shouted
hoggie
hi everybody we have been prepping for six months we have stockpiled something more valuable then food , we have 16 copies of our lords bible. when the pandemic happens we are going to pray an awful lot. if anybody comes to our door we shall only let them in if they will read the bible with us. AMEN!if any body is armed or uses bad words in front of us we will read the lords words to them until they go away.does anybody want to join us? Bless you all
Hi,
I’m so glad I found all of you. I have felt so ALONE!!!!!!!!!!! I live in the London area and I have been preping for about two weeks now. I have enough food for a month and an half and I’ve gone out and bought a lot of over the counter medicine.
People here are just not taking this seriously. I think that because I’m from Miami, and we preped for hurracaines every year, it seems like the right thing to do. But here people think I’m nuts! Even the pharmasist gave me a dirty look!
I have found the information here VERY useful. I have done a lot of shopping at MAKRO and a place called WIN YIP (they have several locations in the UK) which is a Chinese cash and carry and they have a lot of stuff in bulk. I have a long way to go but I’m now prepping gradually, every week and/or as I think of new things.
My main concern is MILK. Long life milk is not very long life at all. Powered milk is only skimed and baby milk is prohibtly expensive. I’ve been thinking of going over to France and getting some NIDO powedered milk unless someone here can give me a better suggestion. I have two toddlers and they love their bottles.
Thank you for all of the tips and I will keep comming back.
We are all praying but the environmentalist in me tells me that this is the earth’s way of getting back at us for the abuse we’re giving her. I do see this as a very real threat and I would be very surprised if we do not have a mutation in the next two years.
Also, I think the government here is doing quite a lot. Stocking up on Tamiflu etc. But all I would expect from the government in case of a pandemic is to keep order and our utilities running and make sure the vaccine get to everyone FAST. I think we need to take more responsability for protecting our families but people here dont want to know because “it will never happen”. I have written the BBC and all I got was that there was enough coverage on the story already. BUT NO ONE IS TELLING THE PUBLIC TO PREPARE!!!!and its just so frustrating.
Thank you again, I dont feel so alone anymore
Hi guys, well I’am back from my three months hols in OZ, and had a great time exploring the outback, it was interesting to note that the OZ folk in general are just as un-prepared regarding the BF threat, as most people are within the UK. but when you get outside of the populated area’s they do seem to have a way of life that will hold them in good stead in the event of a BF pandemic. But now I need to read all the questons/comments within the forum, to see what’s new on the BF front with regards to prep.
Crazy American Lady in the Village
“My main concern is MILK. Long life milk is not very long life at all. Powered milk is only skimed and baby milk is prohibtly expensive. I’ve been thinking of going over to France and getting some NIDO powedered milk unless someone here can give me a better suggestion.”
There were some discussions awhile back and it seems that adding canned evaporated milk to the skimmed powdered appear to work. You should try varying combinations and get your kids used to them.
“Also, I think the government here is doing quite a lot. Stocking up on Tamiflu etc”
No, they are not. That is the ONLY thing they have done. Actual operational plans for healthcare and other services are at rudimentary to non-existent stages. They have not started the discussion as to who would pay for the extra PPE or antibiotics etc needed. And of course nobody has a clue how they are going to deliver the tamiflu to people who get sick.
Anyway, welcome to the UK. And, oh yeah, welcome to the fluwikie. :-)
Hi, crazy American lady in the village - you are not nuts. You are being responsible in preparing for your family. It’s been a while now since my boys were toddlers, but they still love milk! Did you know that you can freeze cartons of milk? Regarding the long life milk, you could keep a few in stock and then just add that item to your list of ‘last minute preps’ so that when you buy it it will be OK for 2 or 3 months. You can also buy evaporated milk here in UK which can be diluted with water and used as milk but don’t know if its OK to use for toddlers.
Good luck!
Thanks for the tips on the milk, I think I will do both. It really depends on how difficult it becomes to do last minute prep. The minute this thing is air bourn, anywhere in the world, I’m off to buy all my last minute stuff. Which includes huge amounts of toilet paper :)
Also, does anyone know where I can buy wheat? I know I should check out local farms but if there’s an easier way……
I too have thought about how the TAMIFLU will be distributed! I had hoped that a plan was in place! Oh well. In any case, I will only worry about the things I have control over like stocking up for my family and going to B&Q and getting some wasp nest thingi :)
Still, I think that we are in much better shape in the UK than our partners in the US. We have one of the three labs making a vaccine right here. There are fewer of us, and with the NHS, everyone will get equal treatment. I’m so afraid that vaccines will only get to the rich in the US. I was just on the phone with my sister and she tells me horror stories. We are Bush haters in my family so everything that goes wrong in the US will naturally be blamed on him!
THANKS AGAIN, so glad to be here!
Crazy American Lady in the Village
“Still, I think that we are in much better shape in the UK than our partners in the US. We have one of the three labs making a vaccine right here. There are fewer of us, and with the NHS, everyone will get equal treatment. I’m so afraid that vaccines will only get to the rich in the US. I was just on the phone with my sister and she tells me horror stories. We are Bush haters in my family so everything that goes wrong in the US will naturally be blamed on him!”
Don’t get complacent about the UK. Because of the great difference in culture and demeanour, it is very easy for Americans to look at Brits and think they have everything under control. Just about the only thing we have under control is the ability to pretend everything is OK.
The latest official assessment of the H5N1 vaccine situation in the UK, apart from the fact there isn’t one, is that if they succeed in producing one, it will be at least 4–6 months after the beginning of a pandemic before it is available to first responders. We are talking about at least 12 months before there will be ‘steady supply’, whatever that means, assuming optimal non-pandemic production conditions. All this when a pandemic virus is expected to circumnavigate the globe in 120 days.
Your strategy of worrying about things you have control over is best; just don’t let your optimism stop you getting the truth.
Hope for the best; prepare for the worst.
Thanks Anon,
Also, I’ve just had a thought. When I’ve been in Spain, I’ve had no problems buying antibiotics and codeine without prescription. So that could be a strategy.
Does anyone have any insight on exactly what kind of antibiotics are best?
Also, if you’re not planning on going to Spain anytime soon, I’ve come up with a cunning plan. Tell your doctor (boys just skip this) that you have a urinary track infection. In other words, it hurts when you pee. Believe me, they will run no tests and dish out the antibiotics in a heartbeat, specially if its a male doctor :)
I agree with Anon about the British being very good at pretending everything is OK. About 10 years ago, when I first came to the UK, I worked in the City. Someone made a comment to me about Americans being on antidepresive drugs and how over the top that was. To which I responded “oh, yeah, the British way is far better, have all the wakos running loose on the street without medication”. Mainly because to me most people in the City seemed insane to me and the amount of alcohol consumed just plain unhealthy. Ten years on, you don’t see people making comments like that about antidepresants anymore because most high flyers are on them :). On top of it, I’m Latin, and we tend to be all gushy and talk about our feelings, loads of hugs and kisses and do a lot of screaming when we’re upset etc. So you see why they call me the Crazy American Lady? I gave up trying to fit in years ago :)
“I gave up trying to fit in years ago :)”
Good for you!
:-)
Thread closed for length. New thread here