If I can save on gas at this point for later when it is critically needed I will save it. Going after my room mate is an option that should be put on hold until the storm has subsided.
But... in a real life situation I’d attempt to dig my vehicle out. I have chains. If I can move enough snow I can get out. If you sit you risk being covered with snow. If I couldn’t dig out I’d run the engine for a short time for warmth cut it off for a while then run it again and do this until I got rescued or morning came.
If I went to get my room mate, she’s been stuck for a while, our chance of survival would be slim because you wouldn’t be able to move that vehicle. We’d both be out in the snow storm. My vehicle would be buried by the time we reached it.
this option gives you the best option for survival in a cold snow storm / blizzard. I live in Canada and it seems like every year you hear of a death or two because someone got their vehicle stuck in a snow storm. To leave the car is death because in a snow storm you have no orientation, and lose body heat and a lot of energy fast trying to go somewhere in the storm and in the snow. Maybe they will find your body in a ditch somewhere next spring after the snow has melted
Best to bundle up, stay warm and dry and wait in the vehicle with the windows rolled down a crack until the snow stops falling and the storm passes. You can start and idle the car for a few minutes each hour to conserve gas for later. Having the windows open a crack helps to avoid carbon monoxide poisoning, lets in some fresh air and lets out some of the warm moist air escape from the car. Thee is a good reason why Eskimo's had vent holes in their igloos.
To stay in the car with the engine running and the windows rolled up risks running out of gas if the storm lasts and to risk death by carbon monoxide poisoning if the exhaust pipe plugs as the snow accumulates around the car, or if there is a leak in the exhaust pipe or muffler, or if you backed into snow trying to rock the car back and forth to get it unstuck.
Stay in the car, stay warm and dry, be sure to have a supply of fresh air, wait out the storm and pray that your friend is okay.
Three bad options here IMHO. Running the car means CO is a threat again. If the weather is turning bad, going out into a snowstorm is not smart, and while this is early in the emergency, there is always the chance of people using violence against anyone who looks better prepared.
Least bad is probably staying put for now. I have warm clothing, food, and water. I can always start the truck intermittently rather than wasting fuel by keeping it running. I can open the window that lets in the least snow for ventilation. It'll be uncomfortable, but I'll be fine.
Question, though: Why don't I even have a folding shovel, much less a full-size shovel, in the pickup?
You did bring a shovel, but you tried digging out. You tried everything. There was an unprecedented level of snow dropped the first day, and it is storming again. You are absolutely stuck.
If I can save on gas at this point for later when it is critically needed I will save it. Going after my room mate is an option that should be put on hold until the storm has subsided.
The test taker in me says this is the safest.
But... in a real life situation I’d attempt to dig my vehicle out. I have chains. If I can move enough snow I can get out. If you sit you risk being covered with snow. If I couldn’t dig out I’d run the engine for a short time for warmth cut it off for a while then run it again and do this until I got rescued or morning came.
If I went to get my room mate, she’s been stuck for a while, our chance of survival would be slim because you wouldn’t be able to move that vehicle. We’d both be out in the snow storm. My vehicle would be buried by the time we reached it.
this option gives you the best option for survival in a cold snow storm / blizzard. I live in Canada and it seems like every year you hear of a death or two because someone got their vehicle stuck in a snow storm. To leave the car is death because in a snow storm you have no orientation, and lose body heat and a lot of energy fast trying to go somewhere in the storm and in the snow. Maybe they will find your body in a ditch somewhere next spring after the snow has melted
Best to bundle up, stay warm and dry and wait in the vehicle with the windows rolled down a crack until the snow stops falling and the storm passes. You can start and idle the car for a few minutes each hour to conserve gas for later. Having the windows open a crack helps to avoid carbon monoxide poisoning, lets in some fresh air and lets out some of the warm moist air escape from the car. Thee is a good reason why Eskimo's had vent holes in their igloos.
To stay in the car with the engine running and the windows rolled up risks running out of gas if the storm lasts and to risk death by carbon monoxide poisoning if the exhaust pipe plugs as the snow accumulates around the car, or if there is a leak in the exhaust pipe or muffler, or if you backed into snow trying to rock the car back and forth to get it unstuck.
Stay in the car, stay warm and dry, be sure to have a supply of fresh air, wait out the storm and pray that your friend is okay.
Three bad options here IMHO. Running the car means CO is a threat again. If the weather is turning bad, going out into a snowstorm is not smart, and while this is early in the emergency, there is always the chance of people using violence against anyone who looks better prepared.
Least bad is probably staying put for now. I have warm clothing, food, and water. I can always start the truck intermittently rather than wasting fuel by keeping it running. I can open the window that lets in the least snow for ventilation. It'll be uncomfortable, but I'll be fine.
Question, though: Why don't I even have a folding shovel, much less a full-size shovel, in the pickup?
You did bring a shovel, but you tried digging out. You tried everything. There was an unprecedented level of snow dropped the first day, and it is storming again. You are absolutely stuck.