Shortly after September 11, Margarita Barritt and her family started stockpiling. They bought water, they bought canned food. They purchased extra batteries and new flashlights. They started to maintain cash on hand, updated their passports and gave a list of their financial information to a relative.
"We realized we had to take action in case something happened," she said.
The Barritts have continued to do so since, and so this most recent recommendation by the Department of Homeland Security on how to prepare for a disaster did not come as a surprise to them.
"We added duct tape and plastic to the list. We hadn't thought of that before," said Barritt.
Perhaps the fact that Margarita lived in Nicaragua during the Civil War is what prompted her to take action long before the rest of the country. In her home country, they lived in constant fear of being attacked by the rebels. They hid food in a trash can covered with clean trash and secured their jewelry and valuables.
"We had a bunker of encyclopedias set up under the dining room table," said Barritt.
"The difference is we knew who they were and when they were coming. Now we're living with an unknown."
OTHERS ARE NOW heeding the warning and supplies of duct tape, plastic, batteries, flashlights, canned food and water are disappearing off store's shelves as people try to complete the checklist for their emergency preparedness kit.
Larry Gray, owner of Village Hardware, said that they ran out of duct tape and plastic by the end of the first day the list was issued.
"We were out of product in one day. We sold 300 rolls of duct tape and every bit of plastic was gone, too."
Taking advantage of his flexibility as a small business owner, Gray drove down to West Virginia and picked up supplies from his distribution supplier.
"We were going to get an order on Friday, but I wanted to stay ahead of things," he said. "We're more hands-on and care about our customers."
Gray said that requests for things slowed down a little when the snow started, but that they have enough supplies for about six months now.
Safeway on Fort Hunt Road was also hit hard. Sharon Holbrook, assistant manager, said that they quickly sold out of water, boxed and powdered milk, and canned fruit. They have placed replacement orders for all of the above, but some of the deliveries have been hampered by the weather.
A very timely publication was sent home with county school children and included in major newspapers. "Your Guide to Emergency Preparedness" was compiled by the Northern Virginia Regional Commission (NVRC). This 16-page guide has detailed, yet concise information on preparing for an emergency; a check list for emergency preparedness kit; emergency planning for pets; household and financial preparations; handling mail safely; and evacuation procedures. There are also four pages of emergency numbers for the surrounding towns, cities and counties.
WHILE MANY OTHERS are heeding the warning to be prepared, just as many have not. Some think that there's nothing they can do to prepare. Others think that this warning is overblown and being done to scare people.
So, is it necessary to prepare a "safe room?î" Kyle Olson lives in Waynewood and doesn't think that the people living in the suburbs need to worry too much.
"I wouldn't worry about creating a safe room," he said.
As the vice-president and senior associate of Community Resources Associate, he is a leading authority on the threat of chemical and biological weapons. He does consulting for the Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security.
"The fact that Washington, D.C., is a target doesn't equate to the suburbs being a target," said Olson, and went on to dispel some myths.
He said that if chemical weapons were used, they would be much localized, one building or one street, and the volume of material is not going to pose a threat out here.
The same holds true for a "dirty bomb." The amount of radioactive material that would be released would only affect a very small area.
"The biggest concern would be the cleanup and decontamination of the area," said Olson, who doesn't see much reason for boarding up windows. He said that if we lived in a densely populated area like Israel, then there might be more concern, but where we are living, it would probably be sufficient to shut the windows, close the doors and put a towel over any openings. Within an hour, it would most likely be safe to go outside.
"The one that is a problem is biological. Smallpox would be a very grim scenario," said Olson. "It's extremely contagious and a significant number of people would catch it."
The good news is that there is a window of opportunity; people can still be vaccinated after they've been infected.
FAIRFAX COUNTY ALREADY has a plan in place for a mass vaccination. A statement on the Fairfax County Public School web site states, "In the unlikely event that a smallpox outbreak required all Fairfax County residents to be vaccinated, the county's high school buildings would be used by health department medical teams as vaccination centers. Schools would be closed for approximately five days during the vaccination period. A significant school system effort will be needed to maintain the school buildings and to provide logistical support to the medical teams as they vaccinate approximately one million county residents."
Olson said that the fact that most of the tools the terrorists would be most likely to have would be in small quantities and short-term work in our favor. As far as stocking up on things other than duct tape and plastic, Olson said, "FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) has been telling us to do that for years. There are plenty of other disasters that wouldn't hurt to be prepared for."