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U.S. foreign service officer here, my go-bag when I'm overseas varies slightly by country where I'm assigned (different needs in Istanbul versus Libya, for example), but there a few commonalities. I keep one full set of clothing and sturdy shoes by the bag at all time, and in the bag I've got several hundred in cash for each of dollars, euros, and local currency. Passports (tourist + diplomatic) stay in or near that bag, along with a set of phone chargers and backup battery supply for my personal + work phones. Multiple photocopies of major credit cards, passports, local diplomatic IDs, driver's licenses, and emergency contact info in country and back in the US. Flashlight, flares, K-bar knife, hand warmers, radio, GPS tracker if required where I'm serving, and basic first aid - bandages, painkiller, rehydration tablets, whatever. In Libya my go-bag stayed next to my PPE, for obvious reasons. In IST my husband and I each had a designated cat to grab and throw in our respective bags, since the biggest risk we were likely facing was an earthquake, and we knew where the rally points were around the city in the event of an evacuation of Americans on official status, though for some disasters/crises we'd be moved to the Consulate instead to work from there on the crisis. I have never had to use my go-bag (was out of the country on vacation when Benghazi went down) but having one ready to go is as key a part of my preparation for a new assignment as is learning my way around the city or figuring out how to yell "HELP ME, I'M YOUR FRIEND BUT MY ANKLE IS SPRAINED" in the local language.
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Oct 24, 2016 20:30
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BarbarianElephant posted:Finding a cat in a disaster could be fun as the little buggers have an instinct to hide whenever anything bad happens. Yeah we had a small apartment. God help us all if any poo poo goes down when we're in a bigger house.
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Oct 28, 2016 00:11
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Beer4TheBeerGod posted:the_chavi's bag is specifically about a situation where they need to literally GTFO. It's not about disaster preparedness, it's about being prepared to leave as quickly as possible and head for a designated location as part of their job. Yep, exactly. Moving to Ankara next summer for the same job, so my go-bag will be less earthquake-focused but still heavily document- and cash-focused. Also poo poo that I'll need for a kid. I should figure that out.
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Oct 28, 2016 00:11
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Free Market Mambo posted:And some stuff to read when you have to wait, because you're going to wait. ^^ this is brilliant. Evacuations of any sort are the definition of hurry up and wait and wait and wait.
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Oct 28, 2016 00:14
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30 weeks right now? Arrives in January.
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Oct 28, 2016 03:30
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