Did you get your Duct Tape?

[E40FDNYL35]

Are you ready at your own home????
Plastic
Duct Tape
Flash Light
Radio
Batteries
Mask
If I'm at work I don't want to worry I did not take care of my family.

[Bones42]

Might I just ask a question? If you duct tape plastic over all your doors and windows to make your house air tight...how long will you survive without fresh air? How long until the O2 level drops and the CO level rises? Is your house really that air tight that no air (or bad stuff) will leak in? Just some random thoughts...

[foyt20]

You supposedly cant get Duct tape in Union county because of fears of an attack. Of course you seal yourself in your house and you will suffocate. The news dosent mention getting carbon monoxide poisoning, or what you do when you have to go outside. And just because there are threats against the United States dosent mean it will happen in our borders, it could be against any of our intrests overseas or a military base. I really wouldent worry about it. Just see how the area develops.

BE SAFE
LIVE YOUR LIFE

[E40FDNYL35]

Originally posted by foyt20
I really wouldent worry about it. Just see how the area develops.

BE SAFE
LIVE YOUR LIFE

I'm glad your not worried...You know something I never worry about anything before. But something happened on 9-11-01. Now I worry.

[cozmosis]

Plastic? Nope
Duct Tape? Always.
Flash Light? Always.
Radio? Always.
Batteries? Yep.
Mask At $300/ea? No way.

My place is no where near air tight. I could cover the windows and doors with plastic... But that would just make it harder for the authorities to collect my body when I died from gas seeping in everywhere else.

Would I feel different if I lived near previous terror targets? Probably. But the whole plastic & duct tape thing seems far fetched to me...

[DanTCFD]

im in school and it would stink if they attacked when we were in school and for "safety reasons" they closed the school for days and we were stuck in here.

i also thought it was stupid to cover up your whole house since it probably has holes for the gas to leak through and even if it doesn't, you then die from CO

[RyanEMVFD]

we got duct tape and trash bags are made of plastic. got an scba out in the rescue van but after 30 minutes what's the point. still got plenty of ramon noddles for camping so i'm set there. got radios and flashlights. ah! what firefighter doesn't collect flashlights and other little toys? could use some more batteries but i'm set for this but we know how murphy is in regards to these matters.

[Lewiston2FF]

If you own a house your attic has vents right? If you have forced air heat the make up air has to come from somewhere. I find it highly improbable that I would be able to make my house air tight, especially with the cold temperatures we are having now. Wouldnt be able to get the tape to stick. Besides I would think that by the time you notice to seal up your house or, go to the room you previously sealed off, you will have been contaminated. I am all for being cautious and smart, but I think some of this is overboard.

[nmfire]

OK, I am turing on my "Dumb@ss Rant Mode". Please do not take the comments personally, anyone.

I am quickly losing faith in the human race. Everytime something bad happens or it is threatened, people get stupider and stupider. This duct tape and plastic thing has got to be the most insanly idiotic and stupid thing I have ever read, heard, and seen in my entire life. I know someone that works at a local hardware store. Yesterday, she told me about a few of these idiots that came in looking for Home Depot... I mean Homeland Security Supplies [Leno].

"I need some duct tape to protect my house from the Bin Ladin People"

"I want to put this duct tape on the floor in front of my door like fly paper. That way if Bin Ladin comes, he will get stuck to it."

It is times like this that bring out the true idiocy. I think we need to step up the space program, hopefully we will find intelligent life somewhere becasue it sure ain't here.

[end rant mode.]

[Resq14]

sounds like the "duck and cover" rhetoric from the Cold War.

"duct and cover"

same thing. a plan that in no way will realistically protect you from an attack. sealing older homes... i mean, even newer ones... it ain't gonna happen.

it's nice to know north korea is capable of hitting the west coast now. such a pleasant thought.

[Adze39]

Duct Tape? yes
Flash Light? yes
Radio? yes
Batteries? yes
Mask? no
Plastic? Do condoms count? No wait..their latex

If I'm gonna go, I'm gonna go out with a bang!

[Lewiston2FF]

If I'm gonna go, I'm gonna go out with a bang!

Or,.... Nah, I ain't gonna go there, too easy.

Duct Tape? yes, MacGyver was my hero!
Flash Light? yes
Radio? yes
Batteries? yes
Mask? no
Plastic? Some drop cloths from painting.

[Adze39]

From http://www.msnbc.com/news/870313.asp?0cv=CB10 :

DISPUTE OVER THE BILL
The federal government pays for the tighter security in Washington, but local officials said they were racking up mammoth bills, estimated at more than $3 billion already.

“When emergencies happen, people do not call the White House. They call 911,” said Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels, a Democrat. “The federal government needs to step up funding for cities to be able to answer those calls.”

Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, a Republican, said: “We have a lot to ask for from Washington, D.C. We’ll keep our list long, and we’ll work very hard to get the funds that we think we deserve.”

The National League of Cities said cities and towns were being forced to lay off police and firefighters even as they braced for the possibility of terrorist attacks.

“The challenges we face as a nation ... are not going to be solved by duct tape,” said the group’s president, Democratic Mayor John DeStefano Jr. of New Haven, Conn.

[Oushore]

You all make valid points that the "over reactors" don't consider... I've been getting all these freaky tones and instant messages, as I am a member of The American Civil Defense Assoc. They have been telling people to attempt to make their homes, or at least one room of their homes so that outside air cannot get in. Never was there any consideration for build up of gasses produced during lack of oxygen situations... The best way to provide protection if someone is REALLY that over protective; is a professionally built shelter. They include airtite seals, but also microbial filters to bring in fallout-free air, and a filtered system to let out any toxic air. While still allowing the shelter to have a livable temperature, where as your home heating would have to be turned off. Also, that duct tape isn't going to help if there were to be a nuclear attack... An incendiary (air burst) will vaporize anything with in a mile, and burn anything with in 15 miles... and a Ground burst will create a pressure so great, it will relocate you a few miles away. As far as WMD (Weapons of Mass Destruction) go today, we are looking at something much different than the Atomic age... The atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima was worth 12-15 KT.. A Nuclear bomb is worth about 550 KT (Kiloton)...

As far as all this duct tape and plastic sheeting goes... People need to get a grip. Lowes Hardware in Maryland was selling 15 dollar rolls of plastic for 156 dollars... At one point, they said you couldn't buy bottled water in DC.. The end result to all this is going to alot of rich store managers, and a thousands of people with a house full of junk that they'll never use and can't take back!

Also, I don't think the people who need to be prepared are. Are all fire-rescue & ems departments prepared to treat contaminated victims? Before any patient can be treated, you need to consider the following rules of Mass Care from WMD's..
DECONTAMINATE
DECONTAMINATE
DECONTAMINATE
There has to be a system set up so that these toxins are 1. not laying around after washed off. 2 not flowing into storm drains or septic systems, and 3. run off is contained to a secured system that can be carried away safely.
However regular tarps, hoses, and a sloped surface draining into sealable barrels is a good start. Also, what about mass stock of medical, personal protection, and breathing air supplies. If such an attack were to occur, I feel that our actual preparedness has been underestimated.. As WMD's are so much more powerful than they were 50 years ago...

ANYHOO... THAT'S MY STORY AND I'M STICKING TO IT... MY OPINIONS ONLY... BTW.. KIWI... MY FIRST POST WAS AN INVALID STATEMENT B/C JUST BEFORE I HAD A CHANCE TO KEEP ON TYPING MY POWER WENT OUT... SO GET A GRIP..

[WVFDCap]

I really think that people are a little too anxious about all of this. Yes, the possability is there; however, like Lewiston2Capt said, the people are going to be contaminated before they ever get their homes "sealed up".

_____
Gone, But Not Forgotten - Our Fallen

[FlyingKiwi]

Oushore

"The atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima generated a huge amount of energy when it exploded. The amount of energy generated by the bomb was equivalent to the amount of energy generated by a 15-kiloton TNT explosion."

Taken directly from http://www.csi.ad.jp/ABOMB/data.html
the Japanese A-Bomb on line site about Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

[Oushore]

KIWI! My power went out while I was typing it... If you;ll read my full post now, after the paragraph using megaton's was deleted... I was using an example that most people would understand... The Atomic Bombs were measure by megatons of TNT... That compare to a Nuclear bomb would be like an M-80 compared to a mortar shell.

However.. Thank you Kiwi for the link... It's really sad to look at that type of destruction and now to think that someone could do the same to us...

[bobsnyder]

Originally posted by Resq14
sounds like the "duck and cover" rhetoric from the Cold War.

"duct and cover"

same thing. a plan that in no way will realistically protect you from an attack.

Exactly.

I DID stock up on batteries & water and I have a slightly larger-than-usual stock of canned goods. I have duct tape and plastic tape around the house anyway. I'm much more concerned about disruption of services (either from direct attack or as a result some public panic), such as electricity, than I am about sealing my home up due to chemical attack. If there is one nearby, I'll likely be out helping with evacuations and I'll be screwed whether my windows are covered or not.

Back to the point:

Because the general public wants deep down to believe that this whole "war on terrorism" thing will follow a nice, action-packed Hollywood plot and have a classic "everybody's OK and the good guys win" Hollywood ending, the government has to give them something to do with themselves to feel like they have an effective plan to make it work out according to the script (just like the "duck & cover" nonsense from the 50s & 60s).

Can you see the reaction to Tom Ridge saying something in public like: "stock up on food, water and batteries and have an escape plan in case something happens to disrupt services, but if you get caught by surprise in a chemical attack, you're probably just screwed"? It would be true, but it's going to go largeley unsaid, I guarantee it.

If it weren't true, we'd have everyone within a 5-mile radius of train tracks or a port standing by with this sort of protection just in case of any number of possible, really nasty haz-mat incidents that could occur completely by accident in those areas. I checked my Emergency Response Guidebook, and I can find lots of data on evacuation radii in the green pages, but nowhere does the protocol say: "all residents in a 1.7 mile radius shall duct tape plastic over their windows". I mean, get real....

[ChiefReason]

During my college dorm days, we would take duct tape and tape up the inside of our door and put a rolled up towel at the bottom of the door, so, you know, sound from the stereo wouldn't get out.
We could stay in that room for hours at a time and you know, listen to music.
Carbon monoxide? It was too smokey-I mean, too loud-for that.
CR

[Bones42]

“The challenges we face as a nation ... are not going to be solved by duct tape,”

Darn politician...duct tape fixes Everything.