In honor of Washington Disaster Preparedness Month, we’re continuing to publish day-by-day instructions on making the “Go Bag” that you want to have in case of disaster (big earthquake, longrunning power outage, etc.). Some of the items on the list so far are things you might well already have around the house. This one probably is not. From West Seattle Be Prepared:

It’s Saturday, so hopefully you should have time to shop for this item; a hand-crank AM/FM radio with NOAA weather radio channel. If it also has a USB charger, that’s even better.

In Seattle there are several commercial radio stations that would become official emergency-channel radio stations: KIRO-AM 710 and/or FM 100.7, KOMO-AM 1000, KNWX-AM 770, and KVI-AM 570. But to hear directly from the National Weather Service, a NOAA Weather Radio is best. It also has a warning alarm feature, and site-specific and event-select capabilities. It serves as Washington’s “all-hazards” warning system, including tsunamis, volcanoes, and hazardous releases. Lots of detailed information about weather Radios and the spotter system we have in Washington can be found here.

You can look for this type of radio at a variety of stores – hardware and electronics, among them. If you can’t find one at a store, order it online and put it in the bag as soon as it arrives. We found them on websites including Radio Shack (here) and Amazon (here) – and you can even buy yours from the Red Cross!

Haven’t started the “Go Bag” yet? Don’t feel guilty! Just get GO-ing. Find the suitcase or backpack you’re going to designate (that was Day 1) and scroll through this WSB archive page to find the items for days 2-10.