October – December 2011
Winter
Storms
Winter Storm Safety
Rules
1. Keep informed of winter storms by
listening to the latest National
Weather
Service warnings and bulletins on
radio and
television.
2. Check battery-powered equipment
before the storm arrives. A portable
radio or television set may be your
only
contact with the world outside the
winter
storm. Also check emergency cooking
facilities and flashlights.
3. Check your supply of heating
fuel. Fuel
carriers may not be able to move if a
winter
storm buries your area in snow.
4. Check your food supply. Your
supplies
should include food that requires no
cooking or refrigeration in case of
power
failure.
5. Prevent fire hazards due to
overheated
coal or oil-burning stoves,
fireplaces,
heaters, or furnaces.
6. Stay indoors during storms and
very cold
weather. If you must go out, avoid
overexertion.
7. Use moderation when
shoveling snow. It
can be very exhausting for anyone not
in
good physical condition and may bring
on
a heart attack--a major cause of death
during and after winter storms.
8. Dress to fit the season. If
you spend
much time outdoors, wear
loose-fitting,
lightweight, warm clothing in several
layers; layers can be removed to
prevent
perspiring and subsequent chill. Outer
garments should be lightly woven,
water repellent, and hooded. The hood should
protect much of your face and cover
your
mouth to ensure warm breathing and
protect your lungs from the extremely
cold air. Remember that entrapped,
insulating air, warmed by body heat,
is
the best protection against cold.
Layers of
protective clothing are more effective
and
efficient than single layers of thick
clothing.
Mittens, snug at the wrist, are better
protection than fingered gloves.
Use of Automobiles
During Winter
Storms
Your automobile can be your best
friend--or
worst enemy--during winter storms,
depending
on your preparations. Get your car
"winterized" before the
storm season begins.
Everything on the checklist shown
below
should be taken care of before winter
storms
strike your area:
Ignition, system Lubrication
Defroster, Battery
Snow tires, Lights
Heater, Chains
Wiper blades, Antifreeze
Brakes, Fuel system
Cooling system, Winter-grade oil
Tight exhaust system
1. Winter Storm Car Kit. Be
equipped for the
worst. Carry a winter storm car kit,
especially if cross country travel is
anticipated. The kit should contain
blankets or sleeping bags, matches and
candles, an empty 3-pound can with
plastic
cover, extra clothing, high-calorie
nonperishable food, compass and road
maps, knife, first aid kit, shovel,
sack of
sand, flashlight or signal light,
windshield
scraper, booster cables, two chains,
fire
extinguisher, and an axe.
2. Winter travel by
automobile is serious
business. Keep these points in mind,
especially for severe storms:
a. If the storm exceeds or even tests
your
limitations, seek available refuge
immediately.
b. Plan your travel and select primary
and
alternate routes.
c. Check latest weather information by
phone or on your radio.
d. Try to travel with others along.
e. Travel in convoy with another
vehicle, if
possible.
f. Always fill the gasoline tank
before
entering open country, even for a
short
distance.
g. Drive carefully and defensively.
3. If you are
trapped in a vehicle by a
blizzard, avoid overexertion and
exposure.
Exertion from attempting to push your
car,
shoveling heavy drifts, or performing
other
difficult chores during the strong
winds,
blinding snow, and bitter cold of a
blizzard
may cause a heart attack--even for
persons
in apparently good physical condition.
Stay in your vehicle. Do not attempt
to walk out
of a blizzard. Disorientation comes
quickly in
blowing and drifting snow. Being lost
in open
country during a blizzard is almost
certain
death. You are more likely to be
sheltered in
your car.
Don't panic. Keep fresh air in your
car.
Freezing wet snow and wind-driven snow
can
completely seal the passenger
compartment.
Beware of the "gentle
killers"--carbon monoxide
and oxygen starvation. Run the motor
and
heater sparingly, and only with a rear
window
open for ventilation.
Exercise by clapping hands and moving
arms
and legs vigorously from time to time,
and do
not stay in one position for long.
Turn on the
dome light at night to make the vehicle
visible
to work crews. Keep watch. Do not
permit all
occupants of the car to sleep at once.
Hypothermia
Cold kills in two distinct steps:
Exposure and Exhaustion. The moment
your
body begins to lose heat faster than
it produces
it, you are undergoing exposure. Two
things
happen:
· You voluntarily
exercise to stay warm.
· Your body makes
involuntary
adjustments (such as shivering) to
preserve normal temperature in the
vital
organs.
Either response drains your energy
reserves.
The only way to stop the drain is to
reduce the
degree of exposure. The time to
prevent
hypothermia is during the period of
exposure
and gradual exhaustion.
Hypothermia. If exposure continued
until your
energy reserves are exhausted:
· Cold reaches the
brain depriving you of
judgment and reasoning power. You
will not realize this is happening.
· You will lose control
of your hands
(they will become numb and you will
not be able to grasp or hold onto
things.) This is hypothermia. Your
internal temperature is sliding
downward. Without treatment, this
slide
leads to stupor, collapse, and death.
hypothermia.
Your first Line of Defense:
-
Stay Dry
-
Be Aware of the Wind
-
Understand Cold
- Use your Clothes
-
Your Second Line of
Defense:Terminate
Exposure
-
Get out of the wind and rain. Build a fire
-
Never ignore shivering.
-
Make camp! Forestall exhaustion.
-
Your Third Line of
Defense:
Detect Hypothermia
-
If
your party is exposed to wind, cold, and wet,
-
think hypothermia. Watch yourself and
-
others
for symptoms.
-
· Uncontrollable fits of shivering
-
· Vague, slow, slurred speech
-
· Memory lapses. Incoherence
-
· Immobile, fumbling hands
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