Weather-related and other types of disasters can happen at any time, so it is essential to be prepared in advance. To survive during the days and weeks after disaster strikes, you must be equipped with specific supplies to help mitigate emergencies and maintain your family’s health. A critical component of disaster preparedness is to keep vital life-saving and life-sustaining supplies in a portable emergency preparedness kit. Your emergency preparedness kit can be used at home or go with you if you must evacuate. 

While you may think you can quickly gather necessary emergency items when disaster strikes, that is only sometimes the case. You will need more than just flashlights and batteries to safely navigate the aftermath of a weather event or other disaster. The following is a list of the basic supplies you should include in your emergency preparedness kit. 

Minimum Basic Supplies for Emergency Preparedness Kit

These are the basic, essential items that should be included in your emergency preparedness kit. 

1. Water: You need a minimum of one gallon per person and a 3-day supply for evacuation and 2-week supply for sheltering in place. 
2. Food: Food items should be non-perishable, easy-to-prepare items enough for a 3-day supply for evacuation and two weeks for sheltering in place. 
3. Flashlight
4. Extra batteries 
5. Hand-crank or battery-powered radio.
6. Multi-purpose tool
7. First aid kit- Ensure the kit contains enough supplies for your family.
8. Medications, including prescriptions, for a 7-day supply.
9. Personal hygiene and sanitation items.
10. Cell phone with charger
11. Copies of essential documents: birth certificates, deeds/leases for home, insurance policies, medical information, passwords, proof of address, passports, vehicle registration, and other essential documents.
12. List of family and emergency contact numbers and information.
13. Extra cash
14. Map of your local area and state.
15. Emergency blanket
16. Manual can opener

Additional Emergency Preparedness Kit Items To Be Considered

You should tailor your emergency preparedness kit to suit your specific needs. Family, geographical location, medical and physical requirements, and other aspects should be considered when creating your survival kit. The following is a list of items that may also need to be included. 

• Health supplies like glasses, contact lenses, hearing aids, etc.
• Baby supplies
• Pet supplies
• Extra sets of vehicle and house keys
• Work gloves
• Duct tape
• Scizzors

Tips For Making Your Disaster Preparedness Kit

A disaster preparedness and emergency kit should be compact enough to take with you if you evacuate your home. Once you’ve gathered all the items to put in your kit, choose a plastic bin with a lid to hold all of the things. Your container should be water-resistant and a manageable size. A separate refillable portable water storage container can be used to hold water. It is a good idea to have several portable water storage containers for extra water or dry-good storage. 

Once you’ve filled your plastic bin with the necessary items, store it in an easy-to-reach location such as your garage or closet so you can access it quickly and safely when needed.