Since it’s that time of year again when so many people are driving to see friends and family, and there’ve already been large snowstorms in the mid-west and mid-atlantic, I’ve had a number of requests to edit and republish this post. A request I was happy to fulfill.
Two years ago, Virginia got hit with an unexpected snowstorm. It was one of the last big storms that hit the east coast and shut down Interstate 95 in Northern Virginia (below Washington, DC) for over 20 hours. At the time, the news didn’t mention until the next day that lots of people were stuck in their cars for hours, and many ran out of gas. That event was an almost tragedy since, while everyone was stopped on the interstate because of accidents and stuck snow plows, the temperature dropped to 11 degrees F. And the wind chill made if feel closer to -10 degrees F. So today we’re going to talk about building a Winter Car Emergency Plan.
That night, for those people stuck in their cars in the freezing cold, must have seemed like a nightmare. While I live in Virginia, my family and I were lucky that we’d made with home from Charleston, SC a few days earlier. So we were tucked and warm in our home and beds. Still, I couldn’t help but think about those people–and the children–trapped outside in a wintery and icy disaster. I knew the fear and worry that was a constant companion as night settled in. Many, many years ago I was in a similar situation. I ended up stuck on Interstate 287, in the Ramapo mountains on the border of New York and New Jersey. At the time, there were no cell phones, no internet, no emergency notifications unless you had an AM radio.
A fast moving blizzard moved in and trapped me, along with hundreds of other cars and trucks, for over 12 hours. Honestly, it could have been longer but I’ve forgotten most of this terrible night. Because there were no cell phones or internet, and I couldn’t get radio reception in the mountains, I had no idea what was going on. I couldn’t reach my family to tell them I was okay. I had no idea how long this would last. And the snow fell faster and faster until it reached over two feet. Lucky for me, I had a father who always thought ahead. When I told him I was going to NY state for the day (and the weather showed no signs of snow), he threw a blanket in my car along with a flash light, some water bottles, and a few snacks including some Little Debbie snack cakes.
I will forever be grateful to my dad for his planning ahead. Because I had a blanket, some water, and a few snacks, I was able to get through the night mostly unscathed. And I used the flashlight when I needed to get out of the car, in the middle of the night, to head to the woods on the side of the road to go to the bathroom. I can’t truly explain the terror of trying to find my way through snowdrifts in the dark woods because I couldn’t wait to find a bathroom until we were rescued. While I saw others do the same thing, it was so windy that no one stopped to talk to each other. We were all worried about making it back to our cars while we could see them. Yes, the blizzard winds were blinding.
The next morning, State Troopers (who’d parked miles away), hiked in with backpacks and were handing out water and small snacks to people in their cars. The snow had stopped and, finally, we were able to get out and assess the situation in the daylight. We were also able to talk to other people in other cars. We were told that the there were snowplows, and people with shovels, who were slowly clearing the roads and extricating the trucks who’d jackknifed and were blocking both the north and south lanes. A few hours later, I was able to turn on the car and follow the other slow-moving cars. While I was only an hour from home at this point, it took me another four hours to arrive at my parents’ house (mine was still another two hours south). Most of that extra time was caused by having to dodge cars left on the road because they’d run out of gas.
It was a major disaster and led to all sorts of new rules about closing roads in the mountains ahead of storms. As well as requirements for snow tires or snow chains for tires. While things are different now because we have so much up-to-date information, I still worry. Which is why, ever since that incident, I always prep my car (and my kids’ cars) for winter. While I may end up in another storm, like that one that hit this week and shut down I95, I will never be caught unprepared again. In fact, that event on 287 so many years ago is one of the reasons why I became a prepper-minded person before anyone had a name for it. It was a huge blessing that no one died during that ordeal, or the one here in Virginia.
Still, because we live in a world where anything can happen, being prepared improves my family’s chances of survival. And the more prepared I am in an emergency, the more I can help others by sharing what I have. So here’s my plan for when I travel by car in the winter throughout the U.S. (the rules are different for international travel, so this list is just for the U.S.)
First, before winter hits, my husband winterizes the cars by checking all the fluids (including wiper fluid), changing the oil and spark plugs, checking the all-weather tires, etc. I try to keep the gas tanks close to full during these months, as well.
While he’s doing that, I’m reloading the car’s Winter EDC aka the Winter Every Day Carry Emergency Bag. This is the list I use for my long distance travels (over 2 hours). While I don’t need all these things for shorter trips, I just keep them in the same duffel. I’d rather have a heavier bag than be caught without what I need. For some of these items, you’ll need one item (or more, like food) for every person in the car.
Winter Every Day Carry Emergency Bag
Although this is a long list of things to consider, the goal of traveling (hopefully) is to have fun. The great thing about a Winter Every Day Carry Emergency Bag is that once you build it, you don’t have to do much to maintain it. And switching things out for different seasons (like taking out mittens and adding bug spray) is easy. All you really have to update are the snacks. 🙂 I hope you find this list helpful and not stressful. The point it to get prepared and then forget about it because you’ll know that no matter what craziness happens, you and your family will survive. And maybe you’ll be in a position to help others as well.
