You may have some of these basic emergency kit items already, such as a flashlight, battery-operated radio, food, water and blankets. The key is to make sure they are organized, easy to find and easy to carry (in a suitcase with wheels or in a backpack) in case you need to evacuate your home. Whatever you do, don’t wait for a disaster to happen.
The following are the perfect starting to a 72-hour emergency kit:
- Easy to carry: think of ways that you can pack your kit so that the emergency plan can easily be carried out and take the items with you
- Water: 2 liters of water per person per day
- Food: that won’t spoil, such as canned food, energy bars and dried foods – remember to replace the food and water once a year
- Manual can opener
- Flashlights and batteries: keep the batteries outside the flashlight so that they don’t explode over time
- Battery-powered or wind-up radio
- Extra batteries
- First aid kit
- Special items: these are specific to each family and could include medications, baby formula, equipment for people with disabilities
- Extra keys for your car and house
- Cash: include smaller bills and change for pay phones
- Emergency plan: include a copy of it and ensure it contains in-town and out-of-town contact information
