Today I rely on radios for information as well as entertainment. Television (or maybe sitting down to watch it) puts me to sleep. But my portable radio can come out in the yard or go on a walk with me. Sure, you can use some modern smart-thing to get information when the power goes out, but a small radio may cost only $10 or $15. The Walkman takes only one AAA battery. You can't get more economical than that.
I was able to get weather reports and storm advisories throughout the emergency and even heard President Obama's victory speech, which TV viewers missed when the power was out.
The only missing link was local news. I had no luck pulling in Harvest Radio at 1070 AM. The studio is in the same building at 120 West Seventh Street where WERA used to be, but the transmitter is in Stirling. It made me think about the days when Barbara Ballard was on the air and there was a lot of local coverage, even school closings and emergency advisories in real time.
If you do not have a small, battery-operated radio, pick one up at Radio Shack along with some batteries. It might turn out to be a life-line to vital information when the next storm hits.
--Bernice
Also a good idea is to have a standard telephone. Cordless phones won't work when the power goes out so as long as the telephone lines remain in service, you will still be able to use the phone.
ReplyDeleteHi Bernice,
ReplyDeleteI also love the radio. Try station 101.5 FM for NJ news. I had them on all through the storm.
We used a hand-crank radio/light, which works without batteries. You can get them inexpensively on Amazon. It's supposed to charge your phone also, but I've never wound it enough to get a meaningful charge for that.
ReplyDeleteBernice, you should be able to hear a familiar voice intermixed with weather reports at 1630 on the high end of the AM dial. It is North Plainfield's 10-watt Information Station, audible in Plainfield, too - nothing fancy, but on the air 24-7! Thanks for listening!
ReplyDeleteBernice, try listening to 1630 on the high end of the AM radio band. It's North Plainfield's 10-watt information station on the air 24-7 with weather and community advisory mixed together. Local information is read by a familiar voice.
ReplyDelete