Have you ever really thought about what you might do if a super-storm, earthquake, fire, pandemic, or flood were to force you to leave your home suddenly?
What would you do that first day away, the third, or even two weeks later?
What would you able to grab and take with you??
What important things would you be forced to leave behind?
The Basic Bug Out Bag aka Go-Bag
Lets start with the primary items needed for survival. Shelter, Clothing, Food and Water. Below is a list of the essentials you need to have ready should you have to leave your house in an emergency, and can only grab a Bug Out Bag before you go.
It provides you with the most basic of provisions to get you through 72-hours away from home. You probably already have most of these things already:
Print out this checklist if it helps you to have a paper copy of the items below.
Backpack Bottle(s) of water Flashlight Pen and notepad Snack bars Cash Emergency Blanket Change of clothes Toothbrush, toothpaste, soap, deodorant Beach Towel Dust Mask Pocket Knife First Aid Kit (band aids, alcohol wipes) Chap-Stick Work Gloves Deck of cards and/or a book Cell phone charging cable Poncho or umbrella Street Map of Local Area Sturdy Plastic Cup Fork and SpoonKeep it handy, and easy to find should you need it. If you have a family, have a pack for each person. We will get more in detail with the articles which follow and we will introduce you to The Bug Out Bag Builder Four Part Emergency System.
NOTE: If you only own one of something, and you put it into your emergency kit you will ultimately wind up taking it out of your bag to use elsewhere. This means you should have a second item dedicated for your kit itself. You won't remember to grab it on the way out (or have time to).
If you want to get something TODAY RIGHT NOW that at least gets you some coverage, head over to The Red Cross store and grab their basic Go-Bag. Its $55 and gives you a platform to build on.
This isn't our first choice because think its better to build your own from the ground up, but its better than nothing. You will still need to add to it though.
The next most important step - and the one that will really save your life:
Staying informed
You MUST to know what is going on in the world around you. You may only have a few days notice that a hurricane is going to hit your home, can you get you and your family ready in less than 48 hours?
How much time will you have if you receive a tornado or earthquake warning?
If cell phone service is down do you have other equipment which will help you communicate with the outside world?
You have to have some way to get information delivered to you quickly about local events - especially when a catastrophic one is heading your way. Local TV, AM radio, Emergency officials, are the most obvious, but we've added some below which will also help you get timely and accurate information:
Wireless Emergency Alert System
For those of us in the US with a smart phone made after 2012 the Wireless Emergency Alert (WEA) system automatically sends severe weather, AMBER, and Presidential alerts to your mobile device.
There's nothing you need to do to enable it, its part of all phones made in the last few years. You will hear an alert sound from the phone and see a message on the screen. You can disable the weather and Amber alerts it if you'd like but not the Presidential alerts.
