Emergencies are always unpredictable. You don’t know how dangerous the natural disaster is, or if there’s enough time to evacuate your loved ones. In this stressful and chaotic time, it’s good to know some practical survival tips.
The following survival tip comes from Ms. Sheila Pulanco Russell from North Carolina. She called it “The One Cup Tip,” and all you need to have is 3 things: a cup of water, a quarter, and a freezer.
You may wonder what to do with these 3 unrelated items, but once you find out, you’ll be glad you’ve learned about it.
During times of evacuations, it’s unknown if the electricity in your home will be intact. Based on the circumstance, you also won’t know how long you’ll have to be evacuated from your house.
The best thing is to have an evacuation kit, containing imperishable foods and first-aid kits. However, what will happen with your frozen and refrigerated goods? And how will you determine if they are safe to eat when you do return home?
The above image gives you the answer.
Instructions
Put a cup of water in a freezer. Once you see the water is frozen, place a quarter on top of it and return the cup in the freezer. Let the cup stay in the freezer.
What Does This Mean?
This practical tip will tell you if the frozen food you left behind has gone bad, or if it stayed intact while you were evacuated.
For example, it the water in the cup has melted and the quarter is at the bottom of the cup when you return home, it means your goods in the fridge have defrosted and thus are no longer safe to eat.
But, if the quarter is in the middle or the top of the frozen cup, your goods might still be fine. If it’s on top, it means your freezer was intact during the whole period you were evacuated. If in the middle, your goods might have defrosted, but then once again frozen when the power has returned.
Of course, you can use this tip for other situations as well. If you go out and the electricity suddenly goes out, you can see the cup and check if your goods are ok.
As a general rule of thumb, throw out every food you doubt is no longer safe. Safety should be your primary priority!
This nifty little tip is great for people on the East Coast who expect hurricanes.
Stay safe!
