When a natural disaster strikes, you will most likely be caught off guard because you never know exactly when it will happen. You may expect it if you live in an area that is prone to natural disasters or if you have been following the news and there is a tornado headed your way. But you will never know the exact hour or even day that you will need your natural disaster survival kit or when you need to go through the emergency routine that you have already rehearsed a few times. The best course of action is to be ready and prepared at all times. This means that you should have an emergency exit in your home and you should also have an emergency kit ready to grab when you are in an emergency situation. It is important to include some very important things that will come in handy when you find yourself in a dangerous situation. Since you will not have a lot of room in your bag or pack to bring everything that you would like to, there are some essential items that serve a dual purpose and that are absolutely necessary for you to have.
You should always have a first aid kit because it’s likely that you will get injured or come across someone who is injured. You first aid kit should include items such as bandages, ointment, and a surgical scalpel in the event that you need to perform a simple surgery in order to help someone until they can get to the hospital. You also need to have a flashlight because in the event of a natural disaster you may not have power. Better yet, a solar-powered flashlight is ideal. You will need a supply of nonperishable food such as freeze-dried packs of food that can be prepared with water or foods that keep for a very long time such as jerky or nuts that offer a lot of protein and fat in a small amount of food.
You also need to have a supply of water that will keep you going for at least two weeks in your home, and that works out to about one gallon of water per person each day. In the event that you do not have the use of a cell phone because a tower is down or some reason you should also have a battery-powered radio. You can use it to stay informed about the present situation and how long you can expect the situation to last. You can never have enough batteries even on a normal day so be sure to pack extras for your radio and flashlight.
A multi-purpose tool is one of those items that are like having many items, but you only need one, so it will do the job of many different useful tools but without taking up all the space. A good multi-purpose tool will have scissors, a knife, saw, screwdriver, and much more on it so that you can do plenty of things with it. You should keep some cash on hand in case you are able to get to a store for extra supplies. If there is no power, there will be no card machine, and you will not be able to use your credit card. Cash is accepted everywhere. You should have matches and candles so that you can start a fire to keep warm if needed. You can also use it for light when it gets dark out. You will want blankest or a sleeping bag so that you can stay warm.
Everyone should have an emergency kit but what you keep in your emergency kit will also depend on what part of the world that you live in. If you live in an area where you have rattlesnakes, you will want to include a snake bite kit in your first aid kit. If you live in a cold area or in an area of the word that gets certain months of the year that are cold you will want to pack extra warm clothes, mittens, hats, and other items that will keep you warm and alive. Have food storage and be sure to keep adding to it so that it is enough to keep you going when you need it.