Making plans to fly my eldery mother out of FL, I don’t know where Irma will land but if we wait and see it will be too late for her to get out.
I just started a thread for Irma.
Good luck @3scoutsmom . Early out will be the key, before it shuts down.
Gas prices have risen sharply all over this last 2 weeks, so other than the gougers, the prices look “normal”. Once the trucks can get through, it won’t be an issue. After Sandy it took about a week to open enough roads to get gas trucks in. After that, the issue disappeared.
Now to the cleanup…I’m not sure what these folks are running on at this point. They must be exhausted. And now to have to score and rip out half their drywall and everything in the house? Ouch.
Also, after Sandy the government just outright bought some houses and made the owners move bc they did not want to keep rebuilding. They just returned the spot to wetlands or barrier reefs. No one wants that with their home, but it has to be done!
Stay safe out there!
Plane tickets have ** doubled** in price since this morning!
That is disgusting that the airlines are price gouging already. I’m sure they’ll say that all the discounted seats are just sold out, but now is not the time to jack up the prices. Keep them reasonable.
3scoutsmom, where is your mother flying out of, and where is she going to?
@busdriver11 she flying from Tampa to Austin. As fast as I could type out the info to purchase a ticket it would sell out out and I’d have to start again on adifferent flight for a higher price. When I started there were several seats at $179 one way and in the end I ended up geting her on a flight this Friday for $469 one way ecconomy (not including adition fees for checking one suit case!)
Oh wow, that’s crazy that they went up so quickly. I’m glad you got a ticket, though. Smart to get a one way.
We did one way because we have no idea how long the after effects will be felt. She lives on the thrid floor and needs a walker, there is no way she could make it up or down those stairs. No electricity, no elevator.
Is it that airlines raised prices, or that all the cheap tickets are gone now, and what’s left is the more expensive tickets, which were always more expensive? It’s like the difference between “The grocery stores raised the price on Brand X bottled water” and "All the Brand X bottled water is sold out and now all that’s left is the luxury gold-plated bottled water which costs a lot of money.
And why do people buy bottled water anyway, at a time when their tap water is still fine? Why don’t they just use, y’know, bottles and large containers, and fill them with tap water? Or use a bathtub bladder like this device:
https://www.amazon.com/WaterBOB-Emergency-Drinking-Storage-Gallons/dp/B001AXLUX2
@“Cardinal Fang” I’ve never understood airline pricing anyway. It could be either, the higher prices were on the same class on the same flight.
That’s a lot worse price gouging than gas.
When you use tap water, you’re supposed to add a bit of chlorine or other treatment so the water doesn’t start growing bacteria or viruses, I believe. Folks just figure that buying pre-bottled water is easier and safer, plus handier to tote when evacuating.
https://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/emergency/pdf/16_2623928-c_make_water_safe_flyer_508.pdf
Easier to drink out of a 16 ounce bottle than a 1+ gallon jug, I guess.
How long does it take to grow bacteria or viruses if you don’t treat water?
You could use stored tap water and a filter though.
You don’t normally need to treat tap water stored before an emergency. It’s only in the aftermath, when the normal water treatment procedures may have been interrupted, that you need to sterilize water with chlorine.
That said, it would be inadvisable to dip a used cup in your water supply because it could introduce bacteria, which over the course of days could start to grow.
Filters, bladders, storage containers mean planning ahead and work. Most people don’t plan ahead or want to do the work. Buying bottled water is the path of least resistance, if it is available.
The water plant needs power to work. No power - no water. That’s why people buy bottled water. We were at least a week without running water after Wilma, and 3 weeks without power on our street.
Something like this would be in my pantry if I lived in an area prone the flooding/evacuations. Maybe something to consider as a Christmas gift for those with friends/relatives in hurricane country?
Water bottle with filter:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01M3S7O5I?psc=1
People with wells also need power or no water. Bath tub water is to flush toilets, usually conveniently located too!
I would raid my kids’ hiking supplies. They have all kinds of water purification stuff.