[Fleecewife]

We've touched on this before. 
Last night hundreds of vehicles and the people inside them, were stuck on the M74, just to the west of us, for the entire night. There seems to have been a great tangle of jack-knifed lorries and badly driven, crashed cars which made it impossible for snowploughs and gritters to get in.  They are just now being cleared.  The local Moffat Mountain Rescue team was called in to help, by checking everyone was safe.  However, in other circumstances you could find yourself stuck on your own, or off the road in a ditch, so you need to be self sufficient.


So how about we make a list of the things we can do to keep ourselves safe 


My first suggestion is to listen to the warnings by the weather forecasters and the police.  They are not issued for fun, but from a genuine fear for people's safety. I get the impression that a proportion of the car drivers in the M74 chaos had ignored the warnings because they saw themselves and their journeys as too important to be stopped by mere weather, and were driving pushily and dangerously.  Or maybe they just don't know the M74!!   So, stay at home if you possibly can.


Make sure you have stocks of feed throughout the winter, enough to last your livestock a week or so, and the same for yourselves.


Just in case you really do have to go out, or in case you are caught in sudden bad weather when you are already out, carry a survival kit (your 'go bag') in your car at all times.  This should contain several foil space blankets (pennies online), as well as woollen travel rugs, or sleeping bags for everyone one board.  Always have foul weather clothing in your car such as woolly hat and gloves, big outdoor waterproof and lined coat, waterproof overtrousers and boots.  You will also need bottled water, chocolate and energy bars.  If you can find one of the little solid fuel stoves, they are great for heating a tin mug so you can have hot soup from a dried packet.  Open the window a crack when using it to get rid of the fumes.


Always carry a shovel.  Just google 'folding shovel uk images' and you'll find loads.  They are great for digging yourself out of snow or a ditch, and if you're caught short!  Don't forget some hessian sacks to give you some traction too.


Never go out without a charged mobile phone.


Had Mr F's brother-in-law followed those simple rules (especially the first one of don't undertake non-essential journeys) then he might be with us today.  Remember - snow and floods are serious and killers.


So, my list is a bit scanty and doesn't touch on on-farm cold weather safety - please add your thoughts for all our safety.

[Womble]

All good tips Fleecewife.

One thing I wouldn't be without now is a pair of Autosocks. They're basically modern snow chains, but made out of fabric.




I'll be honest, I was sceptical at first, but these have got me home on five occasions now when otherwise I'd have had to abandon the car and walk two miles in the dark. They're still showing hardly any sign of wear too (although you do need to remove them when you get back onto gritted road or apparently they get trashed very quickly).


All in all, absolutely brilliant  .

[Rupert the bear]

An excellent topic, our vehicles have winter tyres, each has the basic survival kit as mentioned above, along with a phone charger ,a strobe location beacon, even sends SOS in Morse ! tow rope and telling someone where you are going and when you expect to arrive, and letting them know you have arrived or not

[Perris]

Timely and great advice, though I'd beg to differ on "several foil space blankets" - unless these do actually work now. As someone who's used one in earnest, I'm not a fan. I was rescued from a capsized dingy when quite hypothermic about 3 decades ago, and 'wrapped' in one of those, and it seemed to me utterly useless; reflecting heat only works if you're generating any in the first place, and it's also difficult to actually wrap round yourself as it's so thin and unaccommodating to human form. Psychologically it's ineffective too - gives no sense of warmth or comfort. I'd prefer a nylon fleece any day.

[Black Sheep]

Good topic idea.

I'd add a torch, whistle, pen and paper. The little back up power sticks for mobile phones etc are good as they are cheap and small. An empty plastic bottle or two are also quite useful - getting more drinking water, rinsing windscreens. If you need regular medication then keeping a day or so's worth in the car may be sensible too. Something to do if you are stuck may also help pass the time and keep people calm - so a pack of cards or such like. Guess it all depends how much you want to prepare for.

If you are using one of the hexamine stoves my recollection is that the combustion gases can be quite toxic so do need good ventilation and not sure I'd burn anything inside a vehicle, especially if wrapped up in a sleeping bag If you're going to light anything you'll need a lighter/matches etc.

[Fleecewife]

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Hands-Instant-Hand-Warmers-Pairs/dp/B000YF3DUA
These hand warmers are quite good especially if you have already got cold.  Also for wearing inside your gloves if you're a motorcyclist.

That's a good idea about meds Black Sheep.  I usually take mine with me if we're going out for the day, but I must admit if we expect to be home in a couple of hours then I don't - I'll change that


For space blankets, you can get thicker, more expensive ones, which are not so flimsy, and conform more to your body shape but they are bulkier and heavier than the foil type.  We used space blankets alot post op, although you do have to take them off as soon as the patient is warming up.  The reason I said 'several' is because you may well be stopping to help others, so several people needing care, but also because as you say they are awkward to use, so having several means you can push one down the front of clothing, and use a second one underneath the body for anyone lying on a cold surface.  A corner should be used to cover the head, then a woolly hat put on top. For severe hypothermia, hospital treatment is essential, with slow core warming.  I am seeing them as a first aid measure.  And yes, they flap horribly in the wind.


If you're not happy with a hexi stove, then take a flask, or use it outside, but the ability to make a hot drink is useful.  Maybe you could stand your tin mug on the engine 

[Backinwellies]

You can get kettle or mug which plug into car and heat.       I'm now wondering if I need to buy a bigger car 

[SallyintNorth]

I’ve no experience with space blankets but I do know that a woollen blanket - or anything made from proper wool, from a sheep - is way better at warming and keeping you warm (even when wet) than anything nylon or acrylic.

[Steph Hen]

I used to drive a lot, well, hour and half every day and kept everything:
Torch, spare torch batteries, water, water, water, screen wash
Solid fuel stove, matches
Nuts, couple cans fish, dried fruit.
Blanket, spade. Tow rope.

Never needed stove or tow rope. Used spade to dig my car out of refrozen snow that had slumped off bonet.
Water and screen wash were good. Twice gave some away to motorists stopped in lay bys needing some, on a9 near Perth. Food always handy.

[Fleecewife]

Oh I agree with that Sally  .  There's nothing better than lovely woolly clothing and blankets, unless it's a living sheep to cuddle.
The idea of a space blanket is that it's something which folds up very small - less than 3"x4"x1", and is very lightweight so will fit in a first aid box or backpack. It will also stop the wind whistling through a wool blanket. A space blanket holds the heat next to the body, reflecting back what is generated.  I can see that if you already have severe hypothermia then its effect will be very slow, but better than losing any more heat, and better to prevent the severe hypothermia from occurring. 
If you're a biker and you or a mate comes off the bike, you will be lying in the road, no nice cosy car to hide in, and your neck to protect so lying flat on the very cold ground, plus you are unlikely to carry round a lovely big woolly blanket on a bike.  Bikers in particular are likely to be pretty cold even before an accident, so a space blanket above and below can be a life saver. All ambulances carry them, and for me they are essential in first aid kits.  Of course, you also need to know how to use one. OK so not everyone is a biker, but you may unfortunately find one who has crashed when on your travels, and increasingly likely in bad weather. For walkers, they will be warm from the exercise before their fall or whatever, but will therefore be likely to lose that body heat rapidly - a space blanket can stave that off. Add to that, that people who have been involved in accidents tend to be in one kind of shock or another, so keeping them warm will help.  Similarly, if you are stuck in a car for hours on end, especially if you have run out of fuel (although apparently running on tick-over with the heater on uses very little fuel) then the vehicle will cool down very quickly.  The lovely woolly blanket AND the space blanket will be useful     
My brother-in-law froze to death in a car stuck in a snow drift.  He was wearing a light business suit and indoor shoes.  There was also a sheepskin coat in the back but it seems he didn't put it on. Nor did he use the stuffing from the car seats, or their covers to keep himself warm, nor did he eat the dog biscuits or hold the dog for shared warmth - the dog survived! There was not even a shovel in the car, let alone food and water, yet he had set out into severe weather in the Highlands, without even a pair of boots. Basically, his mindset didn't stretch to survival anywhere other than in the business world.  This topic is to make sure all our minds ARE set on survival, both on the roads and on our smallholdings and farms.

[Fleecewife]

I used to drive a lot, well, hour and half every day and kept everything:
Torch, spare torch batteries, water, water, water, screen wash
Solid fuel stove, matches
Nuts, couple cans fish, dried fruit.
Blanket, spade. Tow rope.

Never needed stove or tow rope. Used spade to dig my car out of refrozen snow that had slumped off bonet.
Water and screen wash were good. Twice gave some away to motorists stopped in lay bys needing some, on a9 near Perth. Food always handy.

It's always worth carrying those things (I hadn't thought of fish, but you can get Norwegian dried fish which might be a bit less messy!)  Mr F always took mixed nuts and dried fruit on survival exercises - he discovered various places to hide them, as anything like that was taken off them before they set off, so if one bag was found, he knew he had more  .  Great idea to include them in your emergency kit.  Also, don't forget to replace with in-date food each year.


When I used to take a car to work, about an hour away, if the washers froze, then I would stop and clean the screen with snow.  Makes for slow progress of course 

[Foobar]

Winter tyres!!!!!  They make a huge difference in terms of grip.  Encourage everyone you know to use them!

[sabrina]

Too many people have no idea on how to drive in snow as we don't get the winters we used too. I watch the weather every day, think most people do when they have animals.Keep a stock of feed for them and also ourselves. My OH keeps goodies in his car just incase he gets stuck. Chocolate, crisps and bottled water. He has a sleeping bad and a shovel. having spent a night stuck in the snow years ago we know just how important being prepared is !

[doganjo]

We've touched on this before. 
Last night hundreds of vehicles and the people inside them, were stuck on the M74, just to the west of us, for the entire night. There seems to have been a great tangle of jack-knifed lorries and badly driven, crashed cars which made it impossible for snowploughs and gritters to get in.  They are just now being cleared.  The local Moffat Mountain Rescue team was called in to help, by checking everyone was safe.  However, in other circumstances you could find yourself stuck on your own, or off the road in a ditch, so you need to be self sufficient.


So how about we make a list of the things we can do to keep ourselves safe 


My first suggestion is to listen to the warnings by the weather forecasters and the police.  They are not issued for fun, but from a genuine fear for people's safety. I get the impression that a proportion of the car drivers in the M74 chaos had ignored the warnings because they saw themselves and their journeys as too important to be stopped by mere weather, and were driving pushily and dangerously.  Or maybe they just don't know the M74!!   So, stay at home if you possibly can.


Make sure you have stocks of feed throughout the winter, enough to last your livestock a week or so, and the same for yourselves.


Just in case you really do have to go out, or in case you are caught in sudden bad weather when you are already out, carry a survival kit (your 'go bag') in your car at all times.  This should contain several foil space blankets (pennies online), as well as woollen travel rugs, or sleeping bags for everyone one board.  Always have foul weather clothing in your car such as woolly hat and gloves, big outdoor waterproof and lined coat, waterproof overtrousers and boots.  You will also need bottled water, chocolate and energy bars.  If you can find one of the little solid fuel stoves, they are great for heating a tin mug so you can have hot soup from a dried packet.  Open the window a crack when using it to get rid of the fumes.


Always carry a shovel.  Just google 'folding shovel uk images' and you'll find loads.  They are great for digging yourself out of snow or a ditch, and if you're caught short!  Don't forget some hessian sacks to give you some traction too.


Never go out without a charged mobile phone.


Had Mr F's brother-in-law followed those simple rules (especially the first one of don't undertake non-essential journeys) then he might be with us today.  Remember - snow and floods are serious and killers.


So, my list is a bit scanty and doesn't touch on on-farm cold weather safety - please add your thoughts for all our safety.

All excellent advice if you have to, or insist on, going out in snow, but my car just isn'y big enough for all that stuff.  So my advice is just don't go out in it.  I keep a bag in my car with wellies a hat and gloves.

[pgkevet]

I was asked recently by a delivery ma how we coped in the last snow. Basic answer is don't go anywhere. Having said that the village is 2.5miles and if I really had to in terrible weather then options of wife's 4x4, quad bike or even tractor, but when it's really icy it doesn't matter what you have or how clever the tyres are you won't get up a hill of sheet ice. A few years ago in bad winter weather i met a snow plough that had been stuck overnight after discovering he'd lost the road and been ploughing someone's field in lousy viz.

I quite enjoy a bit of sliding around in snow in my old nissan but the newest sports car I've got with fancy snow button and traction controls etc is hopeless. I did have to abandon it last time and was ready to plod the 1/2 mile home when i got lucky and got a lift in a 4x4.

Mobile phones are uselss around here. If there was reason to have to travel any distance in lousy conditions then , yes, be prepared.  Additional weight in the boot to aid traction, usual precautionary supplies but don't mess about ..take water and dried rations, spare fuel so you can run the car heater longer and a portable stove or one of those plug-in-the-lighter immersion heaters for cups...