You have surely witnessed on the news and the internet the disastrous and sad scenes coming out of the war in Ukraine. Residents of cities where the fighting is hottest, like Mariupol, are being cut off from the conveniences of modern civilization, water, electricity, sewage and trash removal, food supplies, and heat. BBC reports:
Residents of the Ukrainian port city of Mariupol have told the BBC they are trying to survive a relentless barrage of Russian shelling that has smashed residential districts and cut off power and water supplies.
“There has been no light, no heat, and no water now for two full days and we have hardly any food left,” said Maxim, 27, an IT developer who was hiding in his grandparents’ apartment on Thursday morning.
“Food and medicine is not moving in Mariupol now. The local government tried to give out bread and water but it is gone,” he said. “I filled the bath with water before the water stopped. We have about five litres left.”
Maxim left his apartment after the Russian invasion began last week to be with his grandparents, who are in their eighties and cannot leave their sixth-floor, city-centre apartment. The three of them are sheltering with their pets in the hallway of the apartment, with no heating in the depth of winter, hiding from a barrage of shelling.
How long can the Ukrainians last under such conditions, in the freezing winter temperatures? How long could your family last without the basic conveniences of a modern life? Do you have food and water stored? Alternative sources of electricity and heat? How about a plan for sewage and waste removal if there’s no running water or trash pickup? If you don’t have a plan for each of these scenarios, you’ll be trying to come up with a plan after the fact.
Action Line: Start making a plan today. The most important part of any emergency plan is water. You can’t survive a long time without it. Start small. Store just five days of water for your entire family. Don’t be surprised when that’s more water than you think. At a minimum, you want to have at least one gallon per day per person to be able to survive in relative comfort. A gallon will provide two quarts for drinking and two for light sanitation and cooking. Once you’ve done that, you’re ready to get serious. For a serious look at emergency water storage, click here to download my free special report, Emergency Water Storage: How Much, Containers, Purification & More. But only if you’re serious.
