Here are four quick things I think you should be aware of.
China Flexing
You may have seen the article from the Washington Times titled Inside China: Nuclear submarines capable of widespread attack on U.S. It says that:
“Chinese state-run media revealed for the first time this week that Beijing’s nuclear submarines can attack American cities as a means to counterbalance U.S. nuclear deterrence in the Pacific.”
It surprises me that China would make an open statement like this. I don’t think they are threatening to destroy us, but I think they want us to know they could. I doubt anything will come of this, save more saber rattling.
Bats are Biting…and Spreading Disease
Here is a report from FOX News Insider called Alarming New Study: Bats Can Spread SARS-Like Virus Directly to Humans. It says:
“A new report states that a SARS-like virus could spread directly from bats to humans. Some believe bats were responsible for the 2003 SARS outbreak, which killed more than 750 people worldwide, but it was never conclusively proven.”
And goes on to say:
“The new bat-to-human discovery suggests that the control tactic may have limited effectiveness because a SARS-like virus remains loose in the wild and could potentially spark another outbreak.
“It changes the equation” for public health, said Peter Daszak, a senior author of the study and president of EcoHealth Alliance, a group involved in conservation and global health. “We can close all the markets in China and still have a pandemic.”
The article states that in 2003, the virus spread quickly from human to human and had a mortality (death) rate of 9%. I have stated before that a pandemic is the scenario of the “least likely to happen scenarios” that concerns me the most. If one infected person boards an international flight, the virus could spread worldwide in a matter of days.
I have covered the topic before in How a True Pandemic May Look and in Flu and Pandemic Preps to Buy Now.
The Preparedness Review
The next item I want to cover today is that the bi-annual Preparedness Review has just released the third addition. I am humbled to be in this addition with some fantastic presenters! There is a lot of great information, so make sure you download a copy!
Daylight Savings
Here are some things that should be checked biannually and daylight savings is a convenient reminder.
• Smoke detectors. The batteries are most likely still good, so use them in a remote or some other non-life saving item. Put new ones in the smoke detectors.
•All Kits; change out any seasonal clothing, rotate food if needed.
•Flash lights, if you keep the batteries in the flashlights then makes sure they haven’t started to corrode and make sure the flashlight still works. Another way to keep the batteries near the flashlight but not inside it is to put them in a plastic bag and secure the bag to the flashlight with a rubber-band.
• If you have a generator then this would be a good time to exercise it and do any routine maintenance.
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