Are You Prepared for an Emergency?

Emergencies happen. Sometimes we anticipate them. Sometimes we don’t,,, the pandemic being a perfect example. We may not be fully ready for these types of situations as they come, but we can always prepare ahead.

There have been reports about a second wave of COVID-19 in certain areas of the world, and I foresee a repeat of the panic buying that happened earlier this year. We saw how bad that went. It caused a major shortage of items that no one wants to run out of. The good news for you? You can prevent that from happening again.

Prep the Necessities

You should always have a stockpile of basic necessities in your home. Furthermore, you should have access to these items at ALL times in the event of an emergency. Better safe than sorry, right? But when people were stockpiling toilet paper, is that really what they should have been buying?

Emergency situations also pose the risk of you having to evacuate your home. With basic necessities handy, it makes it easier to prepare survival kits that you and your family members can travel with. The American Red Cross suggests that you have emergency kits ready for instances like this.

Do you have an emergency stockpile yet? If not, I wouldn’t wait too long to build one. The sooner, the better. Here are just a few of the items that you can start stocking up on today.

Back-Up Power & Communication

Some people lose power when emergencies (like natural disasters) happen. A power outage can easily last for days at a time–depending on the severity of the emergency.

When the lights go out, you not only want access to other sources of power as a form of backup, but you’ll also want reliable communication so you can hear what’s going on and stay in contact with loved ones.

Investing in the following items can save you from a long-term blackout and keep you connected.

Water

The Center for Disease Control (CDC) encourages households to store one gallon of water a day, per person (and per pet) over a two-week period. This ensures that you have enough emergency water to last your household for 14 days.

It’s best to stock up on bottled water, as the experts say that this is safest. As an alternative, you can also boil tap water and store it in empty containers for future use. If your water supply is more than six months old, or it reaches its expiration date prior to consumption, the CDC suggests that you replace it with a new supply.

Non-Perishable Foods

The two things you don’t want to run out of in an emergency situation, are water and food. Food is THE necessary means for survival. Without it, you’re up the creek. One thing to keep in mind is the fact that not all foods have a long shelf life. That’s why canned goods and dry foods are the way to go when building an emergency stockpile of food.

Even if you do have a back-up power supply, there’s still a chance that your freezer and refrigerator can give out on you. This is one of those instances where you’ll want to prepare for the worst.

You should also make sure that these items are tucked away for urgent matters and aren’t mixed in with your regular groceries.

Staple emergency foods include:

Cleaning Supplies

Germs are everywhere, including our own homes. When stuck at the house, the last thing you want is for harmful bacteria to spread and affect everyone there. The way to avoid this is to rack up on cleaning supplies that can kill the bacteria. This especially includes Lysol and chlorine bleach.

First-Aid Kit

First-aid kits come in handy when medical supplies are needed. An all-inclusive kit should the following items:

You can either buy a first-aid kit from the store, or you can make one yourself. It’s more convenient to just snag one that’s available for purchase.

Personal Hygiene Items

The pandemic taught us a valuable lesson about panic buying: Personal hygiene items are one of the first things to go out of stock.

From toilet paper to hand sanitizer, a lot of people couldn’t get their hands on these basic necessities for weeks. That’s why I recommend that you purchase the following items in bulk while you can.