Keep in mind, I'm no prepping expert, nor do I feel the world is ending. I just prepare for an emergency hurricane. When I lived in the North I prepared for winter storms. (That was used quite often,)
The BASIC list of items you may need to be semi comfortable during an emergency situation consist of things that address basic human needs. Instead of keeping things in different spots in the house, I have a bin that can be picked up and moved IF we are told to leave the area.
An easy way to organize a bin is to write down what you would do and need if power was out.
FOOD and WATER
How can you warm up food? Do you have food that can be eaten cold? Do you have one gallon of water per person per day?
WARMTH
blankets and a small kerosene heater. (or) use fragrance free candles in a closed room. Leave a window opened just a bit so the fumes don't disable you.
Clean clothes, shoes and undies
LIGHT
Flashlights (My daughter got me five small ones at WM for 1.00 apiece)
Candles
Batteries for flashlight
MEDICAL
Any medicines taken daily
Bandages
Tape
Antibiotic cream
Scissors
Pain reliever
CASH
Small denominations in case ATMs are down and you can get to a store after the disaster or during recovery period.
These will provide basic needs in an emergency.
If you want to go beyond basic needs it would be good to have string, scissors or small knife, and a tarp. A tarp can be used to cover holes during a storm to prevent water damage to your home. It also has a number of other uses such as shelter in an extreme case.
This list only provides the basic human needs to survive a short lived event. I have watch videos where people go all out. I do a lot of eye rolling during them. I used them to glean basic information. And, of course, for entertainment purposes!
Great advice! I've lived in many states across the U.S. and each area has its potential emergencies. Those might be blizzards, ice storms, tornadoes, flooding, earthquake or fire. In California now, we need to be prepared in case of earthquake and most of what you've suggested applies. It would be illegal here to bury human bio waste. I'll have to review the state recommendations about how to handle that issue. A generator is a good idea if a family can afford one. Do you need to know where the main gas line is to your house and how to turn it off? In an earthquake, that's important, but I'm not sure otherwise.
ReplyDeleteGreat point about gas lines. This most likely is not a problem with hurricanes, but I will ask my son in law to make sure. I know I've been through ice storms and snow storms and there was no problem with gas lines during those emergencies. I would think about finding out if the law concerning burying 'material' is set aside during an earthquake event. Burying it would alleviate quite a bit of diseases popping up. I'd be the one to use my head and bury it anyway to prevent illnesses. I'm not suggesting this for anyone else, just me.
DeleteYes, an important theme. And at least ONE flashlight should always be on the same place,
ReplyDeleteso everybody knows and there is no searching.
I should have mentioned checking the flashlights on a regular schedule to make sure the batteries are good. I recently found one of mine with dead batteries.
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