Your Home Safety Kit

I live in Earthquake country-Los Angeles, California – where I  grew up with Earthquake drills in school. We practice ducking under our desks on cue.  Then, thru several quakes, luckily not serious, and many when I did the wrong thing in terms of what the safety experts suggest during the shaking -- including standing in the frame of a sliding glass door with my mom as we watched the pool slosh, and prayed for the shaking to stop.

Unbelievably it wasn’t until recently that I did what everyone should do no matter what Natural Disaster your hometown may be prone to – the Home Safety kit. And not just one in the home, but a second one that is mobile and you can take and run, plus a third in your car. And, to really be safe, a fourth at your workplace, so no matter where you are, you are ready to survive if need be for 5 to 7 days, on your own.

 Emergency Safety Kit Essentials:

1-Water – You need to have one gallon per person, per day for 3 to 5 days. Individual bottles is best. You need to change it out every 6 months to a year.  Note: Alternate sources for water – the toilet tank, and the water heat – not the pool.

 2-Food- enough for 3 to 5 days--we need to rotate them out...every 6 months... -Food for three to 5 days. Consider foods high in calories and protein, low in salt: peanut butter, tuna, chili, fruit and veggies canned . Make sure you have a can opener unless it’s the flip open kind.

 Tip: buy a few extra cans of canned goods or granola bars every time you do a major grocery run to build up  your stock.

3-Portable radio with extra batteries. The hand crank kind are a great option.

4- Extra flashlights. Consider those glow sticks that you see at Halloween time that you snap in  half to glow.

5- Wrenches to turn off gas and water supplies. In fact it’s good to tie it to your gas line, with a label so you are ready and know where it is!

6-Comfortable warm clothing, extra socks and sturdy shoes.

7-Blankets or sleeping bag, maybe a tent. Consider a fold up mylar blanket.

8-Heavy duty plastic bags for tarps, or waste.

9-Consider a portable toilet in a plastic tub with a lid seat you can buy.

10- First Aid Kit and gloves.

11- Toiletries, like wet wipes and sunscreen

12- Medicine, and eye glasses or contacts.

13- For babies – diapers and supplies.

14- For pets- their food and medicine – plus leashes and crate/carriers.

15- Cash and change – 200 dollars.

16-  Fire extinguisher ABC type.

17 - Extra pair of house and car keys

18- Keep an old rotary phone that you can plug into the wall and won’t need power!

19 - Games and distractions!

Then have a smaller version of this kit that you can carry and go in a backpack type bag.

And have yet another version in a backpack or kit in the back of your car. Consider adding a fold up map, with a pen, pencil and sharpee marker you can write on your car window who you are and where you are headed.

You can buy pre-made kits thru the Red Cross and most Home Improvement stores!

Great resource to check: www.redcross.org

Cindy

cindy@homewizards.tv