Dealing With Emergencies

CEDAR CITY - A free seminar is set for Monday by Braun Books in Cedar City will provide Iron County residents with an opportunity to get practical information about preparing for emergencies.

Dan Kidder, who produces the media for the Sportsman's Warehouse in St. George, is presenting Monday's seminar at 5:30 p.m. He said he served in the U.S. Marine Corps during the Gulf War and was trained in emergency preparedness and survival.

Braun said he has hosted Kidder's emergency preparedness seminar once before and the event brought in more than 40 people.

"It's a topic that I think is important, and it's popular around here," he said.

Kidder said his interest in emergency preparedness grew after his mother became concerned about the possibility of disasters and purchased a 72-hour emergency kit.

"It was a pre-made kit, and it was junk," Kidder said, adding that he searched through it and told her to discard most of the items.

He said it is impossible to predict the kind of natural or man-made disasters one might face. That uncertainty makes it important to have a general preparedness plan, he said.

Kidder said because he is the editor of Sportsman's News Magazine, he writes survival articles and reviews survival equipment.

He said he has been motivated to put together the ultimate 72-hour "get out of Dodge" evacuation kit.

He also started talking to people about emergency preparedness and learned that there are many misconceptions about it.

Kidder said three or four times a year, he goes out to deserted areas to live off whatever is on his back and in his pockets for a period of four days to a week, depending on how much time he has available.

"I think it's important, if you're going to guide other people, that you walk the walk," he said.

Kidder said the best kind of emergency kit is self-assembled, and he recommends taking the kit out into the wilderness once it is assembled to test its usefulness.

That is why he is planning a camping trip from May 18 to 20 to provide people with practice in using their emergency kits.

Braun said he believes many people have survival equipment, but they do not use it, and if an emergency took place, the equipment would not be organized in a way that would be useful.