We don’t like to think of the home as a place that’s fraught with potential danger. After all, it’s there to keep us and our family safe, right? However, accidents and emergencies do happen so it’s vital to make sure that you’re equipped for just such an event. Here are a few things that you should make sure go into your household emergency kit.
Food and water
You never know what food or water you might have access to during the worst kinds of weather events or blackouts. You can’t assume that you’re going to have a fridge. As such, you should make sure you have a supply of dry and canned food that you can safely eat even if they haven’t been chilled or can’t be cooked (and don’t forget a can opener.) A supply of water is highly recommended, too, but you might also want to keep a portable water filter at the ready if you run out.
A first aid kit
Never underestimate the importance of being able to treat wounds, especially in situations where an injury is more likely due to poor visibility, bad weather conditions, and so on. You can buy full first aid kits quite easily, but you might want to stock up extra on the most vital resources, such as a wound cleanser, which can be vital for preventing things such as infections if you do have to treat a wound. At the very least, you want basic wound treatment supplies, ice packs, and OTC medications to help alleviate pain in the event of an injury.
Access to power
If you’re able to stay in the home, such as during a long blackout, then being able to access all of your appliances are going to be such a relief from the kind of hardships you might go through otherwise. Setting up alternative power sources such as solar energy panels or an emergency generator for the home might be the best solution but they’re not the most affordable. A small portable generator and fuel to keep it running might be enough to keep the essential appliances for your comfort and safety running.
The right numbers
A lot of the time, there are things that you can’t deal with yourself when it comes to household emergencies. Having the right numbers in place for whatever emergency service that you need can make all the difference in the world in helping you get things back to normal as fast as possible.
Stay dry, safe, and warm
If you have to leave the home or it is somehow compromised, then staying dry and warm is crucial for your long-term health. As such, there are fire-starting kits that come with things like waterproof matches. However, you also want to make sure that you have waterproof backpacks, as well as emergency sleeping bags and supplies of dry clothes. If you have the space, you preferably want to pack both warm weather and cold weather clothes to make sure that you’re equipped for any kind of climate you might have to deal with.
You don’t have to be paranoid to have an emergency kit ready to go. Most of us are going to face some kind of emergency, be it an injury, some kind of weather event, or even just a blackout that lasts longer than a couple of hours.
