Surviving the Hazards of Winter Travel
By Carolyn Nicolaysen

If anyone doubts whether “being prepared” is on the mind of the average American, just consider that among the tempting impulse items I saw at the checkout of our local Bed & Bath store during the holidays. Along with the fragrant soaps and scented candles was an emergency preparedness handbook for ten bucks. Good thing, too, since if you followed the news in December, there were three big survival stories you will instantly recall from the headlines. All three played out in the opening days of winter weather:

• “James Kim Found Dead in Oregon Mountains”
• “Search for Mt. Hood Climbers Called Off”
• “Thousands Stranded in Denver Airport After Blizzard”

Most of us cannot identify with climbing Mt. Hood in December, but many of us have taken the road less-traveled in winter, and counted ourselves lucky to reach our destination when road conditions became dangerous. Partly because we know it might have happened to us, we were riveted to the story of a family lost on a deserted road in a snowstorm. Most of us have also experienced winter flight delays due to weather, or wondered whether airline connections would leave us stranded.

The Denver airport closing for four days due to an overwhelming blizzard made us wonder how prepared we should be when traveling, and wondering also how prepared our government is to step in with help. What if the blizzard, hurricane, earthquake, or labor strike happens while we are just traveling through? Will we be ready? Will they?

The experience of a friend who was in Denver airport during the December blizzard will make you change your mind about traveling barebones light. Just consider the real scoop on what happened when Denver airport was closed down for four days.

Down in Denver

It was Wednesday afternoon, December 20 th. I had just picked up my son at the airport and we were driving home when he got a frantic text message from his friend who left BYU-Idaho two days before, telling him she was stranded at the Denver airport and didn't know if she could get home to St. Louis before Friday. Thus began a really harrowing week for his friend Cait, and her family and friends.

Let me see if I can help you understand the chaos that ensued. Cait was talking to her dad trying to get some help and comfort when her cell phone went dead. There she was, along with nearly 5000 other passengers, all trying to contact family through overloaded cellular systems, and very long lines for very few working pay phones. Passengers have just been told they will be at the airport for at least two more days.

Everyone makes a mad dash to buy some food and drink, but no one is accepting debit or credit cards because the computers are down. Go to an ATM for cash? Right. After a very short time there is no longer cash in the ATM machines or they are not working at all. By the time the ATMs are working again, all of the restaurants and food venders are out of food and the Red Cross is still not able to get in with supplies.

Everyone is stuck. It has only been one day and already there is no food, no bottled drinks, and no way to get any because the roads are closed and snowbound.

At this point it is time to think about just getting some rest and hoping tomorrow will be better. The airport staff has been out to the planes, and opened those where doors were not frozen shut, gathering all the blankets. Another line in the terminal forms to get one blanket per person, if you are lucky. Cait waits for two hours to get a blanket.

There are a few cots but you must be 75 years old or older to get a cot. Families have their children sleeping on luggage they have stacked together to keep them from having to sleep on the floor. And then there are those stuck in airplanes on the tarmac, where snow is too deep to taxi the planes to the gate where passengers can disembark.

Finally, the airlines unload airplanes with passengers still on board. Inside the terminal, some passengers are invited to go to baggage claim to pick up their luggage. Hundreds are now trying to find luggage that hopefully will contain a few things to make this “adventure” more bearable. But no… now that they have their luggage they are not allowed to return to the comfort and warmth of the terminal boarding areas. This is because they are only allowing those with boarding pass through — the departure areas of the terminal are a “secure area.”

Naturally those who are stranded do not have boarding passes. This leaves those who went to fetch their luggage now stranded in the baggage claim and passenger check-in areas — sleeping on luggage conveyer belts or on concrete floors where, in addition to the colder temperatures, they are now joined by bugs and mice (who are also cold and looking for a warm place to snuggle). Of course, no one is really sleeping anyway, for fear someone will steal their luggage.

To further sour the situation, passengers are now told they probably can't get out on a flight until Sunday, Christmas Eve…

Carry-On Essentials

So to learn from Cait's experience, next time you or a family member is traveling, especially during the winter months, there are a few things you should be sure to include in your carry-on baggage.

1. Carry your cell phone charger . There are not many, but there are wall plugs throughout the airport. Being stuck in an airport overnight is bad enough, but when you cannot communicate with loved ones, mere trials become ordeals.
2. Emergency ID Card : Always carry an emergency card with your name, home address, allergies, and medical conditions, in your carry-on bag. Also, carry phone numbers for family and friends. When stressed, we can forget these numbers.
3. Carry cash . Small bills are best. Retailers may not accept large bills in an emergency, so be prepared with ones, fives, and tens. Consider what it might cost to eat, buy supplies, or even a magazine, and multiply by two or three days. Don't be caught short.
4. Carry some food for backup . Cait was stranded for four days and only had two candy bars and a cookie. Carry a few high-calorie bars like those in a 72-hour kit. Some of these bars taste terrible, but others are really good and taste like shortbread cookies. Buy some and have your family test them first. For your travel day, pack a lunch with a sandwich, a few carrot sticks, an apple… if you don't need them, well you were prepared, but if you do need them they will be priceless. Avoid salty foods that will make you thirsty, like chips, beef jerky, and such.
5. Drinks . With the new flight regulations it is difficult to carry drinks, but as soon as you get through security, if you think there may be any chance your flight will be delayed or canceled, purchase a bottle of water. You can refill these as often as you need at a water fountain. Hard candy and lifesavers help to keep your mouth moist, too.
6. Vitamins . One of the first things the Red Cross brought in after three days was a baggie with vitamins for each passenger.
7. Medications . Always carry your prescriptions in your carry-on bag. Add pain relievers, stomach medication, cold relievers — you know the drill. All of these come in various forms so you don't have to worry about liquids at security.
8. Change of clothing . Include a change of underwear and a clean shirt in your carry-on. It is amazing how much better a change of clothes makes you feel.
9. Personal hygiene items . Folks in Denver were longing for their toothbrushes. You can get toothpaste, bars of soap, shave cream, deodorant, almost anything, in travel sizes now. All of these will be some of the first things to sell out at the shops, not to mention feminine supplies. Anything you couldn't live without goes in the carry-on. While you are at it, include a washcloth.
10. Mark your luggage in a unique way . If you are competing with hundreds or thousands of others with look-alike bags, attach a crazy luggage tag, colored duct tape, or a wild sticker to your bag to distinguish it from all the rest.
11. Insect repellant . Sounds crazy, I know, but I would really rather not be bug bait.
12. Pack a diversion . If you are traveling with young children, pack books, crayons, paper, or a favorite stuffed animal. In our 72-hour kits we include a small inflatable beach ball and styrofoam airplanes. These are cheap, practically weightless, and could be fun for a long time. If they happen to hit someone nearby they will not injure or make tempers flare. For adults, include a book, magazines, crossword, sudoku, or a travel game.
13. Mylar survival blanket . If you are lucky enough to get a blanket you will want to use it as a covering and that leaves you sleeping on a filthy floor. Place your mylar blanket on the floor and even though you may still be visited by insects, the surface under you is clean, and the foil side of your blanket will reflect and retain your body heat.*
14. Travel soft . If you are traveling with two carry-on pieces, put your soft items in one bag, like your backpack, and keep bulky shoes, camera, etc. in the other bag. Now your backpack is ready to be used as a pillow if the need arises. There were no pillows provided to passengers during the Denver airport shutdown.
15. Moist towelettes . When you are stranded like passengers in Denver, help and supplies can't get in. Restrooms run out of supplies, food courts run out of napkins, and Kleenex — forget it.

These tips also apply to traveling by car, however, you may also want to add the following to your trunk for a road trip:

1. Glow sticks for light during the nighttime hours for you and to make you more visible to rescuers. I love the 10-inch glow sticks that are sold with a bipod. These are great to use in place of flares, to mark a path, to direct traffic after an accident or during an emergency or to signal rescuers at night. They can be seen for a mile.
2. Work gloves to change a tire or put on chains.
3. Snow chains .
4. Sand or kitty litter to help with traction if your car spins out in the snow.
5. A small shovel to build a snow cave or dig out a car.
6. Waterproof matches or lighter.
7. A metal container to melt snow.
8. A mirror or extra mylar blanket to signal rescuers.
9. An umbrella . Instant shelter. Eric, from Vale, Arizona, tells us that Ray Jardine, in his book Beyond Backpacking, says an umbrella is one of the most useful tools in his arsenal for long distance hiking. It allows him to keep hiking when unfavorable weather has other hikers holed up for the duration. He goes on to say that when hiking in the desert in summer, covering his umbrella with a space blanket allows him to hike in the daytime when it would otherwise be infeasible. It places the entire body in the shade, which no hat can do. Consider these possibilities for umbrella and mylar blankets in summer.
10. Safety vests to be worn so you can be more easily seen by rescuers or while near the roadway (bright orange vests, cheap ones). You will all be safer if you need to leave the car, and each passenger wears one. These can also be attached to your car as a distress signal.
11. Cell phone charger for the car.
12. Small candle . If placed on the dash this will help keep the air in the car above freezing. Don't go to sleep and leave it lit. You can also run your car engine for 10 minutes every hour to warm the car and charge the phone. Make sure before running the engine that the tail pipe is not blocked. Also, leave a window, which faces away from the wind, open very slightly to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning.
13. Wool blanket .
14. Knit cap and mittens . Most of your body heat is lost through your head, so the cap is important. Mittens are warmer than gloves. Remember wool or manmade fibers are better in cold/wet weather than cotton.
15. Body warmers , the instant heat type. Make sure when purchasing these that you buy the ones rated for 20 hours, not 20 minutes. These are small and easy to stash in your auto emergency kit.
16. A whistle can be heard much further away than the human voice. I would have at least 2 in the car. If one member of your party needs to leave to look for help you can signal each other every few minutes and help guide them back to the car. It is not wise for anyone to leave alone, and go further away than “whistle distance.” It is just too easy to become disoriented and lost.
17. Flashlight with extra batteries and an extra bulb.*
18. A portable radio is great to hear news and weather reports without draining your car battery. Make sure you have both AM and FM bands. Look for the ones that are also a flashlight and siren. Handcranked power is also good.
19. Tool kit. How sad to be stranded for lack of a screwdriver or wrench.
20. Tow rope . Some people who could help pull you out of the ditch are not equipped with a rope. Think of how smart you will look, when you say “I've got one!”
21. Maps . Do you pay attention to where you are when traveling? If you don't know where you are, how will you find where you want to go?
22. Compass . A Scout would know what to do with it.
23. Roll of TP . Essential.
24. Fire extinguisher . What good is your emergency gear if it's burning up with the car? More than once, we've seen cars fully ablaze at the side of the highway, and not from a traffic accident. Gasoline + heat + leaking fuel line = fire.

You may think the above list looks extreme, but what will the headlines say thirty days from now? With a little time gathering the items we already own, and a small investment to buy a few others, we can all be better prepared and survive quite well, any winter challenge that awaits us.

By the way, Cait did make it home for the holidays from the Denver airport, only after being rescued by relatives who drove from Utah to drive her the rest of the way home to Missouri. In our arsenal of preparedness tactics, the most important will always be our family.

Carolyn Nicolaysen grew up in New Jersey and joined the Church while attending Central College in Pella, Iowa. With a degree in home economics, she later worked as a high school teacher, then served a term as an elected trustee on her local school board. Carolyn has taught Personal and Family Preparedness to all who will listen. Having lived in areas that were threatened by hurricanes and tornadoes, and now living in an earthquake-prone area, she has developed a passion for preparedness. Carolyn started her own business, TotallyReady.com, when she saw the need for higher quality emergency kits that could truly sustain families in a disaster.

Carolyn and her husband, Don, are the parents of four children and grandparents of seven. They live in Oakdale, California.

Emergency Preparedness Archive