emergency_preparedness
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Emergency Preparedness – What’s in Your Emergency Kit?

November 23, 2018 - By 

This post is sponsored which means I received product or compensation.

Emergency preparedness is something every family should give some thought to periodically. From severe thunderstorms in the spring to heavy snowstorms in the winter, we’re all at risk for emergency situations. To be honest I didn’t really ever worry much about being prepared for natural disasters or weather incidents until recently.

The tornado we had in Ottawa this year really hit home for me. As I watched and worried about several good friends in the Ottawa region, I realized my family isn’t prepared enough for emergencies in general. That got me thinking about preparing an emergency kit and supplies just in case something should happen. I’ve done a bit of research into this lately and I have prepared most of the items on this list to keep my family comfortable during emergency situations that would otherwise be miserable and potentially unsafe.

emergency_preparedness

Emergency Preparedness Supplies

It’s important to have all the essentials on hand and ready to go in your home in case of an emergency. These essential supplies keep your family safe and healthy, allowing you to better ride out the emergency situation until things like power and water can be restored – or in an extreme emergency, until rescue arrives. While all emergency preparedness kits will be a little different based on where you live, I’ve put together the core supplies that everyone should have in their homes for emergency situations.

Bottled Water

In case of flooding or lack of running water, having bottled water on hand is key. Bottled water keeps you hydrated in the face of lack of water or contaminated water. Keep a few cases in the home to give you enough clean drinking water to last about a week.

Non-Perishable Food

It’s important to keep a supply of non-perishable foods in the home, as well. Canned, boxed, and bagged ready to eat food items are an essential part of any emergency preparedness plan.

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Batteries

Keep a healthy supply of batteries in your emergency area, as well. These will be used to power radios and flashlights.

Portable Phone Chargers

In addition to batteries, keep a few fully-charged portable phone charger banks in your kit, as well. In case of a power outage, you’ll need those to help you stay in touch with family, friends, and possibly rescue officials.

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A Home Generator

One of the best emergency preparedness items to have for your home is a generator. In addition to stocking up on emergency supplies, we now have a Champion power generator, and I already feel so much safer. Depending on the size of the generator you have, you may not have to worry about many of the problems families face in emergency situations. For example, with our generator, I know that I won’t have to worry about food going bad or any of the other problems that come with a full-on power outage.

Champion Power Generator

We have a Champion power generator. Champion has a great reputation, and they made it easy to find the right size for us. Generators come in a variety of sizes, from small to power specific items to large enough to power an entire home. For example, according to their website, the smallest recommended size for home use is 3000 to 4000 watts, and that’s only for powering smaller appliances. For larger appliances or whole-house use, the sizes go up. 5000 to 9000 watts is recommended for powering air conditioning or several appliances at once, for example. We used the Champion generator size calculator to determine the size right for us, and it was super easy.

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Emergency Preparedness is Easier with a Generator

We have a fully stocked emergency preparedness kit in our home now. It’s complete with batteries, non-perishable food, water, and more. What really gives me peace of mind, though, is our Champion power generator. With the generator in place, I know we’ll be able to power everything we need in case of a power outage, which means I don’t have to worry about food going bad, not having light, or any of the other difficulties that go with being without power.

Surprise Giveaway!

Guess what? In addition to these great tips on emergency preparedness, I’m also bringing you a giveaway! One lucky reader will win a $50 Canadian Tire gift card. Surprise!

Mom of two beautiful active girls, traveller, fitness junkie, social media consultant, and keeper of the sanity.

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201 Comments on “Emergency Preparedness – What’s in Your Emergency Kit?”

  1. I have won a 72 hour emergency kit so I have that, but this gift card would be great to stock up on batteries and candles

  2. I have a good first aid kit, an emergency blanket, whistle, etc. But I wouldn’t call it a proper emergency kit.

  4. We have the basics but should probably expand on it. We have batteries, matches, water, and a first aid kit.

  5. I do have a kit with first aid box,can opener,radio,flash lights, batteries and blankets and water.

  6. I don’t exactly have an emergency kit, but I have a spot in my basement with some of what would be in it sitting together.

  11. We have flashlights,candles,matches.Water and dry food dry food emergency preparedness kit plus a first aid kit

  12. We have a small kit with a flashlight, batteries, candles and matches. I know I need a better one though.

  17. We have a kit with a flashlight, crank radio, candles, blanket, granola bars and bottles water.

  19. I have most everything for an emergency but not in in a kit. I need to get my act together.

  23. I have a really big emergency kit with food, water, medical supplies, clothing and a lot more

  25. We have water, canned food, radio , candle and matches. We also have a Champion generator, fortunately since we bought it, we haven’t had to use it.

  26. With all the unpredictable weather happening everywhere we really need to prepare ourselves for at least 72 hours.We have a kit and update when needed!

    1. I agree with that very much! The weather is extremely unpredictable and that’s a whole other post for sure.

  30. I don’t have one but I keep extra canned/non-perishable goods in the cupboards at all times, bottled water on hand, and I have an emergency lantern plus a couple emergency candles that are in waterproof tins with matches and a metal portion that attaches to make them into little stoves.

  31. Yes! We have ready to go bags for each person in the family. Our in house emergency supplies could be grouped a bit better, but a lot of it comes from our camping equipment. Our kit includes a crank radio, but I’d like to add a crank cellphone charger, they sell one at Lee Valley.

    A couple tips.. if you are planning to use dried food, make sure you have enough potable water for that too, not just drinking. Have a supply of any medications your family members would need in your kit. Think about pets! The City of Ottawa has great checklists for this purpose available in multiple languages. ottawa.ca/areyouready

  32. I know what I would like to have in it, but, no, I do not have one yet. I would like some shelf stable food, water, thermal blankets, etc

  36. WE do have one with a first aid kit. can opener, portable radio, batteries and blankets and water

  37. We actually do not have an emergency preparedness kit. I’ve never eeally thought about making one but with all the environmental disasters happening lately, I guess I should get on it.

  39. I don’t have one but given all that is happening in the world I probably should get one together.

  40. The power goes out here on a regular basis, so we have candles but thats about it. Not much you can do if its -40C outside and you have no fireplace…in that temp, the pipes will freeze and you had better hope you have some decent insurance for that.

  42. We don’t have an emergency preparedness kit. We’ve talked about putting one together, but just keep putting it off.

  43. I have an emergency kit for my cat and dog with food, blankets, carriers, treats, litter with a box and everything else they might need.

  47. I have an outdated one in my car but I don’t have one in the house. I should get a new one for both places

  50. I actually don’t have a kit at all. Especially with kids in the house I should have one, it’s so important.

  62. My emergency kit is not as good as it could be! I have a windup flashlight, batteries, candles and first-aid supplies, but it would be great to expand it with the gift certificate. 😀

  70. We don’t have a kit but I always have lots of canned goods, batteries, bottled water and flashlights.

  71. We do have a kit and it contains flashlights, heat pads, propane for our cooker, bandaid and disinfectants.

  72. I have an emergency kit but there is always room for improvement as I think of other things we would need.

  73. I need to to put a kit together for the truck, you never know what might happen out there on the road!

  79. we do have a “go bag” with all sorts of things from candles, flashlights, toilet paper, water packets, some dry food, tarps, etc.
    Good reminder to go through it and update it though, thank you!

  80. I have flashlights, a blanket and water purification pills in my kit, and many other things besides.

  81. I don`t have an emergency kit!! I should definitely get on that! I do have lots of candles and flashlights around.

  84. We do have an emergency preparedness kit but in particular we have trouble making sure it is supplied with water.

  85. Sadly we do not have one, and I know we should have one but I keep forgetting to pick one up.

  87. our kit needs updating, as far as the food items and fresh batteries. we have our basic first aid kit

  95. We have a First Aid Kit, flashlight and batteries, blankets, water, wind-up radio, matches and candles. My hubby is in charge of keeping us up to date!

  96. We keep a flashlight with extra batteries , a pen and paper , some canned goods , first aid kit ,things like that

  97. I need to get one. I keep saying that but never do so I really need to get my but in gear and get one.

  99. We do have a preparedness kit but I think we can do better with what is on it (flashlight, water, canned good and first aid kit).

  101. one in the truck and one in the house … things like flashlights, candles, waterproof matches,bottles of water, dried goods, medical supplies, extra medications

  103. I love reading the comments because they give me ideas on items I should add to my kit and ne I see today is a can opener,which I will add !

  106. we do have a first aid and a basic quake kit, however, our food one needs updating, also we need fresh batteries for our flashlights and radio

  108. I need to check dates on my emergency kit items to make sure none have expired. Some of the first aid creams and the granola bars do have best before dates.

  113. I don’t have an emergency preparedness kit but do keep bottled water, lots of non-perishable food items and candles/flashlights on hand.

  116. I do not have an emergency kit made but I do have flashlights, candles and lots of batteries

  117. we live in a region accessible only by ferry so we really need an emergency kit. Ours has a lot of food and water, alcohol, a shotgun, a generator, gas, first aid supplies and more food.

  124. Because we live in the country we always have an emergency kit with all of the basics and a generator especially during the winter! I just need to get new portable phone chargers and new batteries.

  126. I think that we have a fairly solid emergency kit but I am sure that we need to revisit it and check and make sure.

  132. It’s so important for everyone to have an emergency kit or two! I need to really update mine

  140. I have a mini one in my car but it’s very old and should be updated and I have a first aid box in the house but that’s it.

  146. We always have a small stockpile of non perishable food items on hand just in case we needed it.

  152. My kit has water, tinned food, manual can opener, utility knife, lights that attach to our heads (so they come with us)

  153. We have a kit with essentials like water, food and candles. Other stuff we might need such as blankets, sleeping bags, propane and camp stove is all easy to grab as camping stuff is in one spot.

  161. Quite honestly, had a spring flood in our basement. Had to rip up all the carpet and clean the walls. The flashlight, batteries and other essentials were used and not replenished. Time to restock the Emergency Kit that we assembled. Not at the bells and whistles, time to revisit.

  168. I do not have a kit prepared but I do have flashlights, candles and batteries and first aid kits

  169. We do not have an emergency preparedness kit but one of our kitchen cabinet is dedicated to storing first aid kits, candles, batteries and matches.

  180. I do have flashlights, candles, batteries and wooden matches but they are not in a kit

  182. I know that we have one but your post has me wanting my hubby to review it. I think that it has been a while…

  183. Miss R is busy building the emergency preparedness kit and making sure it ready for Christmas!

  184. I have one started and slowly getting what I need, so far we have a emergency tent, water drinks , batteries for head amps, compass, paracorde bracelet , some emergency stuff like bandaids etc, some tea lights , fire starters,bunch of other stuff lo

  189. We have a small amount of cash in our kit for emergencies. No power means no bank machines.

  197. I don’t actually have a kit but have a flashlight, candles, batteries. This is a good reminder.

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