Campground Emergency - Procedure ?

[UK-RV]

Hi Guys

We're currently at the TT in Seaside, Oregon (leaving today).

The area is in a Tsunami zone and they have a weekly "siren test" and annual full blown emergency drill - a great idea.

This got me and Ann-Marie talking about what we would do if WE had an emergency situation - ie Heart Attack etc.

What would people suggest (other than calling 911? ;D).

Given that CGs are often miles from anywhere, waiting for medics to arrive could be fatal.

I suggested that we should turn the headlamps and hazzards on, open curtains and front door, then do a few blasts on the air horns of the Emergency Distress Signal (you know, " . . . - - - . . . " (dont know if thats how its written).

This would hopefully bring a few people out of their RVs, who could help with directing the ambulance or opening security gates etc etc.

You never know, there may even be a doctor or nurse located 2 coaches down from where you're hooked-up.

What are your thoughts on this ??

Obviously, it may be a bit of a problem waking the campground only to find it's a bit of wind? ;D

Does anyone else have an "emergency plan" they have agreed?

Thanks
Paul

 

[DougJ]

Obviously, it [chest pains] may be a bit of a problem waking the campground only to find it's a bit of wind

My first suggestion is to know the typical set of symptoms of heart distress, if not a full blown heart attack.  This reduces the chances of you mistaking a heart problem for gas, although the latter does often mimic the former.

Second suggestion is not, in the face of chest pains--and of course a heart problem does not always manifest itself as a pain in the chest, it does occur elsewhere, and in women it is often more subtle than in men--to ascribe it to gas, especially if you have a sense that you have some degree of coronary artery disease, in which case you may be practicing some degree of hopeful avoidance.

Third suggestion is for both of you to know how to perform CPR.

It may be useful to know what over-the-counter medications may be useful in case of a heart attack (I think there are some, eg aspirin) and have them.

Ciao,

Doug--not an MD but a coronary bypass survivor as are others on this forum.

 

[Alaskansnowbirds]

Paul,

One thing we always make sure we have is the street address of the campground. Emergency personnel can't respond to a post office box address. The 911 system here in the US can tell the emergency personnel where the call is coming from if the call is from a land line phone. They can't tell where you're at if you call on your cell phone, you have to tell them. Some areas are now getting the ability to track cell phone calls.

We also have a typed list of all our medications and allergies to give to the emergency responders.

 

[Betty Brewer]

Paul,
I once learned in a  safety seminar to always keep the campground receipt in  a specific place while staying at the campground.  If you have to call 911 you will have access to their  physical address and phone number on the receipt.
I also keep a whistle beside the fire extinguisher by the front door.  The whistle would be  better heard to  attract attention than just my hollering  "help!"

Betty

 

[Tom]

I also keep a whistle beside the fire extinguisher by the front door.

Sounds like a new use for Helaine's whistle.

 

[Chet18013]

We have printed up a standard form that we fill out as soon as we stop at a new campground. The front side has the campground name, location, dates, GPS co-ordinates, phone and site number along with the description and license numbers of both the Motorhome and the toad. The rear of the form has the name, address and phone numbers of both our son and daughter, as well as our home address, phone and both of our individual cell numbers. We both always carry this for in our billfolds. This way if something happens to both or either one of us while out of the campground, there is a trail back to the motorhome and to our family. Laurie fills out the form while I am outside hooking up the power and water. After 4 years of use, this has become a habit

If nothing else, this does help give us some confidence that we can more easily be identified, should the need arise.

Chet18013

 

[John From Detroit]

I'm getting a few ideas here. (Which is not a good thing because I'm a retired police dispatcher and should have thought of these things myself... Kicking myself as indicated)

I do agree, Keeping location information where each of you can find it easily is of VITAL importance.  Note, might not be a bad idea to check in with friends and family as well...  I've had to try and track down a few RVers for family members.... Some days I got lucky,,, One I missed by forty five minutes (Found where they were staying, My Supervisors never did figure out how I did that... What can I say... I had a campground directory in my work bag)

Many modern cell phones and vehicle security systems (On-Star, On-Guard) Can report your exact location (Plus or minus around 3-5 feet average, that is feet folks)  Vehicle secuirty systems can also unlock doors, flash lights, honk hornes and, should you fail to pay your bill, lock the engine OFF till the repo man arrives (Ok, so there is a downside)

My cell phones are NOT GPS equiped, so I assume T-Mobile has another way to pinpoint them

The downside here is that not all police/EMS dispatch centers can access that information (Where I worked they could not) so it does no good at all unless YOU know how to obtain your GPS location and the dispatcher (IE: ME) knows how to use that info...  So having a proper address is vital

Next: The first responder in any emergency is YOU (Or your spouse if you are the victim)

Both my wife and I have CPR training, I'm addditionally certified in the LifePack AED and in first aid

All but the AED was a job requirement... I also have additional training in selected areas but that is for personal reasons.

Next.  www.medicalert.org  Visit their website, this is of little help to you or your spouse as first responder, however it can be of great help to the professionals once they arrive.  MedicAlert.org will keep on file your entire medical history, Operations, Innoculations, Allergies, Conditions, X-Rays, EKG's and more can all be kept on computer and FAXED or E-mailed to a local to where you "Crash" on request.  You can also order an E-Health Key, this is basically a Sans Disc Thumb drive that has some software pre-installed and allows you to do the updates of the Medic-Alert system from your own desktop.

Join Medic Alert and wear the jewlery, Carry the thumb drive and... Of course, get trained in how to respond

 

[Tom]

Chet,

Any chance you could upload the form?

TIA

 

[Chet18013]

Any chance you could upload the form?

[/quote

Since our form is preprinted with all our personal information, I'm not uploading it. You can pretty much come up with what ever suits you from my post. Our form is arranged out so that I can get 6 copies of it on one 8 1/2 x 11 piece of paper in 2 columns, printed on both sides. After printing several copies of it, I then cut the individual forms apart and put them in our RV travel file. 

I got the original idea from an Escapees campground information form, which I then expanded to include all our personal  information and emergency contacts.

Chet18013

 

[Tom]

Understood Chet. Didn't mean to suggest you upload your personal information, but thought you might have had the blank form on your PC.

 

[Ned]

Tom,

I'll give you a copy of our version when I see you today.  We just have to remember to fill them out.

 

[Tom]

Thanks Ned. Do you have a scanner? I was looking for something folks can download.

 

[Ned]

Since one side is all the personal contact information, every one needs to set that up for themselves.  The other side is more generic but still contains our names vehicle information.  I'm sure you can make a sample from the form to post.  You'll see what I mean when I show it to you.

 

[Pat]

Because I have a cat:

Couple things I do in a new place.  I try to obtain a copy of the local phone book.  I locate and, if possible, actually drive past the closest emergency veterinarian (the night and weekend folks).  Get my route in mind just in case.

Honking and flashing for personal emergencies is an excellent idea.  I can see myself sitting in here quietly waiting for paramedics for myself.  Heck, even the Schwan's guy has trouble finding spots in here and he comes through every two weeks.

--pat