RECOMMENDED ITEMS FOR A DISASTER PREPAREDNESS KIT

DURING THE FIRST 72 HOURS

1. Water – (Most Important) You should have one gallon of water per person per day for 3 days for both drinking and sanitation. Most single person emergency kits have enough 5 year pouches of emergency water for the 3 days. If you are making your own kit and want to buy these pouches which gets very expensive to ship because of the weight. One of the easiest and way to store emergency drinking water is to use a few drops of Regular Clorox Bleach (Not Fresh Scent or Lemon Fresh). A good container would be a 5 gallon water bottle. Here are a few steps that can help you disinfect and store water.

• Fill bottle with uncontaminated water.

• With an eye dropper add 16 drops per gallon without touching the plastic bottle.

• For a 5 gallon bottle use 1 teaspoon

• Stir and let stand for 30 minutes. If the water does not have a slight bleach odor, repeat the dosage and let stand another 15 minutes.

• Seal your screw top or snap cap with plastic wrap tied off with a rubber band.

• Date your bottle using a magic marker. (this will be good for 6 months)

• In 6 months you can repeat the treatment (change water and treatment every year)

• To drink we recommend a carbon filter straw that filters for taste and odors.

• There are some drawbacks to the chlorination method. If the household bleach is over six months old, it may not have enough potency to disinfect. Clorox Bleach breaks down to little more than salt and water.

2. Food – Pack non-perishable, high protein items; include energy bars, ready to eat soups, peanut butter, etc. Select foods that require no refrigeration, preparation or cooking, and little or no water. Survival kits have high calorie food bars that have a 5 year shelf life and taste like shortbread cookies but again if you were to order these it would be expensive to ship due to the weight. Wise Foods long term food storage provides dependable, simple and affordable Ready-Made Food Storage Meals for emergency preparedness that last 25 years.

3. Pets - food and extra water for your pets. ½ gallon of water per pet a day. Include leash, litter box or plastic bags, tags, any medications and vaccination information.

4. Medications Prescription or non-Prescription - If you have medications that you have to take on a regular basis, you need to keep at least 3 days worth in your 72 hour kit. Add extra eye glasses or contacts if you use them.

5. Flashlight and battery powered or hand crank radio - Include extra batteries.

6. First Aid kit - with a reference guide. The all purpose kits have all the items for all potential emergencies at home, in the car, outdoors or on the water.

7. Important family documents such as copies of insurance policies, identification, a picture of every member of your family, bank records and out of state phone numbers of family or friends that can be emergency contacts. All these should be kept in a water proof container. Comfort items such as toys, books, games, puzzles and deck of playing cards for entertainment. Don’t forget paper and pencils.

8. Money - Have cash since ATMs and credit cards will not work if the power is out. Note: $30 or $40 in smaller currency like singles, five and tens.

9. Clothing, Blankets and Sleeping Bags- Provide a change of clothes for everyone, including sturdy shoes and gloves. You should either carry clothes for both summer and winter or change the clothing contents of your kit every spring/fall. Shorts won’t help much in the winter and insulated cover-alls won’t help much in the summer.

10. Sanitary supplies - Toilet paper, towelettes, feminine supplies, personal hygiene items and bleach. Toothbrush, toothpaste, wetnaps, bar of soap, shampoo and conditioner, dental floss pick, hand and body lotion, deodorant gel, twin blade razor, black comb, maxipads, shaving cream packet, washcloth and pocket tissue packs.

11. Other items you may want to consider – matches in water proof container, mess kit, paper cups, plates, plastic utensils, utility knife, plastic sheeting, duct tape, dusk mask and garbage bags.

12. Map: Consider making an evacuation route on the map from your local area. Consider a place out of area to meet up if you are separated. 

Most 72 hour kits have everything thrown in the main compartment. Every time you need something, you have to sort through all of the contents. Consider taking some ziplock freezer bags or packing cubes. Make sure to mark everything very plainly. Doing this by writing on a strip of duct tape or athletic tape. One method you can use to separate everything is the following system: Fire, Shelter, Water, Food, Medical (prescriptions, pain, stomach, etc.) Trauma (bandages, splints, tweezers, scisors, wound irrigation, etc.) Security, Tools, Pets and Clothes. Once you have made your kit you will have more confidence and peace of mind since you know that your 72 hour kit will support you and your family in an emergency rather than just guessing and hoping that everything will work out.

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