Emergency Supplies Blog

It is important to remember to rotate the following items in your emergency kit.

#1.  Check your food and water to see if it has expired.  If your food and water is going to expire within 6 months just use it up and replace it.  Be sure to check your iodine tablets or other methods of water purification to make sure thy have not expired as well.

#3.  Check any medications that you keep in stock.

#4.  Check your batteries and make sure all the things that use batteries are in working order, like flashlights and radios.

#5.  Also, check your activities bag and the activities bag of your children to make sure thy are up to date.

#6.  Make sure you check your emergency contact list and also revise your emergency plans if need be.

#7. Finally, go through all items in your emergency kit adding additional items like solar blankets, etc… as you become better prepared.

If you have a baby or very young children in your family you will need to make sure you include your childs special needs items in your emergency kits.  Food for children may be difficult to find in stores or shelters, so you will want to make sure that you have plenty of these supplies available to you.  If you need bottles and nipples the ones with the liner are especially nice to use.  If your baby has just started on baby food you will want to include a variety of foods and snacks too. 

Also, you will need to include a good supply of diapers and some garbage bags.  You should also consider using a Wag Bag to help decompose these waste products.  Don’t forget to include any medications that your baby might need.  These include infant Tylenol, etc… that have not expired.  If you have properly prepared for your baby it will make the emergency that much easier to deal with.  It should be fairly simple to gather these supplies and a few toys as well and put them in a seperate bag.  If you kids are older consider getting them their own childrens emergency kit that they can customize.

When you have toddlers and young children and they are in the walking stage, it can be very easy for them to get into things that they should not be getting into.  However, in spite of that, there are ways that parents can prevent their children from getting in harm’s way.

Toddlers and young children are naturally curious.  Something would be wrong with them if they weren’t.  One thing that they like to do is open cabinet doors and look inside.  They will go so far as to take things out, not knowing the dangers that await them.

Since they are only of a certain size, they will try to open the cabinets that are closest to the floor.  For this reason, child safety cabinet latches are needed to keep them out of harm’s way.

Since children like to get to things that are within their height and reach, another thing that should be covered up are electrical outlets.  It’s easy for them to stick their tiny fingers in the holes and possibly get injured or even worse, electrocuted.

The wires and other items inside those outlets are live and if they are tampered with, it can cause some serious consequences.  Using outlet safety plugs can help keep your child’s sticky and curious fingers away from danger.

Since a child’s body is still delicate, when they bump into things, such as sharp corners, it can hurt them.  Just think about how much pain adults feel when they bump into a sharp corner.  For toddlers and small children, it can be twice as painful.  Using safety corner bumpers can help them not to feel that excruciating pain as they cut around the corner and hit that pointed area.

Using doorknob grips can prevent your toddler or young child from going into rooms that they should not be in.  Rooms such as entry to a basement or a bedroom should be off limits.  Those are rooms that should be kept under lock and key.

Using doorknob grips can help to keep them from entering.  This will prevent them from going into dangerous territory or experiencing serious injury.

It’s important that you child-proof your home as much as possible.  The more you set up barriers and precautions, the better chance you have of your child being safe.  You  won’t have to concern yourself about your child getting hurt or seriously injured.  You will have made your home a safe haven for them.  Also, with a child safety kit, you will be the better parent.

An emergency kit in a 5 gallon bucket that can serve as an emergency toilet is a great idea.  We were able to put additional emergency supplies in our bucket and we use a backpack were we could add additional supplies.  The toilet lid keeps everything covered, clean and dry.  The kit is ready to go, portable, and everything is nicely assembled should the need arise to fully evacuate. 

Whether for natural disasters like earthquake, hurricane, tornado or El Nino, every family should invest and keep disaster medical kits on hand. Being prepared for an emergency will make a big difference in how you react and act in the event. Having a proper emergency kit will help you have the tools you need and you will find that you are much calmer knowing that you are prepared to handle the event.

Medical kits are very important during any unexpected emergencies. Having one allows you to administer necessary medical attention, while professional medical help is on the way. That is why it is recommended that you know how to use your medical kit. It is more than just putting iodine on a scraped knee. If you purchase a medical kit, you will also receive a manual on how to use the products in it.

It goes without saying that it is important to have emergency evacuation supplies and plans for both your home and your office. One never knows when an emergency may strike and it is best to have a clearly planned evacuation scenario in place. After all, what if the emergency struck in the middle of the night? Would you be at your sharpest, thinking clearly, being woken from a deep slumber to chaos? No. That is why you should think through disaster scenarios during a time of normalcy. What evacuation routes will you take? What precautions need to be in place? What supplies and tools should you have on hand and incorporate into your emergency evacuation plans?

When you sit down with your family to work on your emergency evacuation supplies and plans you should set a number of parameters. Designate a meeting place for everyone to gather once they’ve evacuated the premises. Identify all exits and possible evacuation point available in the structure. Develop different plans for different scenarios. Should a fire break out, certain exits may not be available for escape usage. Part of your emergency plans should involve making sure you have good quality smoke alarms and that their batteries are changed often enough to ensure they are in optimal working condition.  Another helpful alarm system to factor into your emergency evacuation supplies and plans is a carbon monoxide alarm. This silent and scentless gas can be very harmful, and even cause death. An alarm system in your home or office would alert you to the presence of an unhealthy level of carbon monoxide. Other essential emergency evacuation supplies include fire extinguishers, fire escape ladders and fire blankets. Think of it this way, if a fire is literally knocking at your bedroom door, wouldn’t having a fire escape ladder to put outside your window give you a lot of peace of mind? Every home and office should contain multiple fire extinguishers to aid in putting out fires as they start and preventing them from turning into large scale emergencies. In summary, it is prudent to prepare your emergency evacuation supplies and plans in advance. You should have a plan in place for both your home and your office. Make sure all smoke and carbon monoxide alarms are functioning. Equip your residence and office with fire extinguishers. Plan escape routes. Also, update your supplies and review your plans every six months.

A disaster can strike at any time and without warning and that is why you should carry a portable emergency kit with you, have one in your home, workplace,  school, etc…   Make a plan in advance for your unique situation and the individual supplies that you will need.  Its time well spent; it will give you a comfort feeling; and you’ll be prepared should the need arise. 

 Sometime there is no water and foods or electricity for days and weeks.  Local help usally is not there immediately and your emergency kit will get you through the worst part of the disaster.  I recommend a bucket emergency kit as its a great way to make your emegency kit portable if you need to take your kit with you.   You can also haul water and/or use the bucket as an emergency bathroom.

I like the emergency backpack kits the best.  Backpacks make carrying your emergency supplies so easy and it leaves your hands free to do other things.  Like everything else you have to consider your unigue situation and the emergency supplies you need.  A good backpack or emergency bag may work the best for you.