I received an email today entitled Are You Prepared For an Ebola Pandemic? Well, probably not. The company suggested all sorts of survival items we could buy from them, for instance backpacks with enough food, water, and heat to survive 72 hours, emergency lanterns, bulk quantities of freeze-dried food, etc. I decided to pass on their special offers.
Our local utility department has warned us in the past about being prepared to shelter in place for three days, but I doubt that would be enough if our town was quarantined because of an Ebola pandemic. Still, I will replace my seven gallons of emergency water, and I’ve ordered more cans of salmon and tuna because my supply of them is running low. I just stock up on food we use a lot and assume in an emergency we can get by with that.
I’m betting we won’t have to worry about an Ebola epidemic here. What do you think?
October 10, 2014
Certainly not. You need to touch the body fluids of someone infected.
It isn’t airborne, isn’t spread by fleas or other bugs.
I agree, as long as it doesn’t mutate we should be fine. The problem in West Africa is the hands-on treatment by faith healers and funeral practices.
Que sera sera! I have lived through scares of the mad cow disease, the swine flu, dengu fever, bio terrorism and so on and so forth and if I have to catch ebola, so be it.
As I mentioned above, I don’t think it will be a big problem in developed countries.
I did a post on Ebola recently; mainly on the origin of the disease. So if it “lands” here there’s a definite reason for it. But no, I don’t expect it to be a pandemic.
I too have food stuff and water always at the ready. Living through bad storms and a hurricane encouraged my change of heart!
It makes sense for you to be prepared. How much water do you save, and what food?
(My friend in Africa with 2 sets of twins, a daughter & husband.)
Hi Logan,
Will you consider coming home since the ebola epidemic is near your country –or maybe in it ?
from Logan:
No plans to currently. So far we haven’t seen any cases of ebola in our country and pray that it’ll stay that way! Even if it did– a few isolated cases wouldn’t likely be a threat to us. But we are planning on coming to DC to visit family in December and we’re worried they might close the country while we’re gone. 🙂
We haven’t felt worried over ebola, it seems people in the US are more scared of it than we are!
Should I get ebola insurance along with my be-heading insurance?
What country is she in? It seems the epidemic is mostly in West Africa.
Logan is in a western country near Liberia. She told me so long ago where they were going, I don’t remember.
PS I laughed out loud at your, “Should I get ebola insurance along with my be-heading insurance?”
btw I’m not as flippant as I appear in my comment. Ebola could mutate into something airborne. That would be really scary!
Apparently bird flu and other viruses are more dangerous at the moment, and so far they’ve been contained.
the ebola and case and his death in dallas is a bit close for comfort… in some ways.
but truth to tell.
i’m not prepared for anything like that.
i’m sure i should at least stock up on water i guess. but in this tiny wren house…
don’t know where i’d put it.
nope. think i’ll just think like rummy.
que sera sera.
Yes, if you don’t have room no sense worrying about it.
I think that the key is educating ourselves and try to not give into the ‘panic’ from the media. I work in the healthcare field, (dentistry) and quite frankly, I’m more worried about getting hepatitis and even the flu than I am aids, ebola, or anything else.
I haven’t noticed the media fostering panic, but maybe it’s just my choice of sources. I do think some politicians and the company that sent me the email are trying to profit by the epidemic in West Africa.
This comment is Oct. 18 & NOW the nation is panicking.
There’s always some company ready to cash in on public anxiety, isn’t there?
Like Ramana, I’ve lived through any number of scare stories that turned out to be a damp squib. IRA terrorism, Islamic terrorism, umpteen flu panics, creutzfeldt-jakob disease, you name it. The chances of actually succumbing to any of them are pretty minute. Unless ebola becomes a raging epidemic in the UK, I’m not at all worried.
My main reaction to the email was annoyance that the company was trying to cash in. I’m less apt to buy from it now.
Glad I returned to read comments; hate to say I don’t always get back. A wealth of knowledge here! 15 gals of water on hand most all the time. Dry and can goods that display long expiration dates – most with 3-4 years.
I agree with Kim and I think it was also bikehikebabe – more concern over hepatitis, flu, and maybe a plane crashing into my house … as I’m on one of Charlotte’s 4 flight paths. It could happen… but let’s not really think about it!!!
Thanks for the extra information. 🙂