I don’t know about you, but the idea of putting together an emergency kit is overwhelming for me. Not only is the upfront cost prohibitive for many of us, but the list of items to go out and buy seems endless! Well I was thrilled to hear about a 24-week preparedness calendar (pdf) that helps you build a three- to seven-day disaster kit – one week at a time!
Instead of starting at the top of the list and following this calendar week-by-week, here’s how I’m going to use this document:
- Go through my current stock pile and cross off the emergency supplies on the list that I currently have. Set those items aside.
- I’ll watch the ads each week and watch for items on the list to go on sale. I’m going to buy the items as they are on sale or as I find good deals. The big things to stock up on are: water, water, water and canned meats, fruit and veggies
- I printed a copy to put in my purse, so when I’m out at the store, I can watch for clearance deals and use this as a reference!
The key point here is having a timeline – making progress on a regular basis. Otherwise, it’s just willy nilly and I could find myself taking a year to put this together or procrastinating all together (like I’ve already done)! So I’m hoping we can hold each other accountable – if you find items included in the list on sale, let me know. I’ll share as I find items and we’ll build our emergency kits together. Sound good?
My first stop for supplies? Besides pulling out the items from my stockpile that I have on hand, my goal this week is to go to the Dollar Tree. A lot of these items – like scissors, tweezers, can opener, sewing kit, etc. will probably be there. I’ll let you know how it goes.
Do what works for you! You can use this 24-week preparedness calendar in whatever way you feel most comfortable! I’d love your ideas or suggestions.
- Do you have other emergency resources (planners, how to guides, etc.) you think are good tools?
- Do you have suggestions for items NOT included on this calendar?
- What suggestions do you have for saving on emergency supplies?
This calendar was adapted by Thurston County Emergency Management from the Washington State Chapters of the American Red Cross. Content originally developed by Chevron Real Estate Services, San Francisco, California. Produced by Thurston County Emergency Management, (360) 754-3360.
(Thanks, Nisha & Dusty!)
I am retired now, but used to work for King County. We were required to take classes on emergency preparedness and also to keep a disaster kit in our car. We were called to work to set up shelters if we were not there already when a disaster struck.
I might suggest that you add to your calendar that you make up a kit for your car in case that you cannot return home after a quake or Mt. Rainier decides to get nasty. It is called “shelter in place”. It would require everything you would need to be comfortable if you had to stay at your work location because you could not get home. And be sure to arrange a contact outside of the state for you and your family to use so that you can let each other know that you are okay and where you are.
You feel so much better and can handle emergencies more peacefully when you are prepared. Here are some sites I enjoy going to. On Facebook wwww.facebook.com/TotallyReady Also, http://blog.totallyready.com and http://www.preparednesspro.com
Keeping your car stocked for emergencies is important too!
I love this concept, but…having to rotate the perishables every 6-12 months sounds exhausting, and like it is one more thing I will dread doing or just plain forget to do. I am a huge fan of substituting a few cans or pouches of freeze dried foods. They have up to a 25 year shelf life if unopened, reconstitute with plain water, and are super lightweight. The fruits even make tasty snacks without rehydrating! If I use freeze dried instead of canned food, water purification tablets or pouches instead of bottles and bleach, and make sure I store the batteries outside of the flashlights, the main part of the kit will only need to be rechecked every 4-5 years, and be a lot smaller and lighter. Medications and baby supplies should be stored separately and rotated more often, of course. Check Costco online for a variety of pouches and cans of freeze-dried foods at a price much lower than emergency preparedness sites.
I found you via moneysavingmom.com. I’ve been looking for a resource like this – Thank you!
I love that this includes our pet friends! I might include some misc. dishtowels, plastic coverings or a tarp, and lots of socks! Its super cheesy but any zombie/disaster show is kind of a good way to see what a person might need, terrible I know!
I like the rolling duffle tote idea, especially for clothes/personal/medical supplies. I’m planning on packing food/supplies into containers that will fit into our SUV (and not pack the food one too heavy so I can’t lift it up in there if hubby isn’t around!!) in case we need to evacuate etc.
I’m glad someone commented about cash, I think it was mentioned alot when people were playing for “Y2K” but has since kind of faded into the background, yet just as important as food & water.
Thanks, Heather!! Some great reader tips, as well.
Just wanted to let you know I can’t get the 3rd link to work:http://queenbeetoday.com/2011/03/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Emergency-Prep-26-weeks.pdf
Thanks for the heads up! I’m not sure what’s going on. All links go to the same document. So maybe try closing your browser and re-opening? It’s a PDF. Let me know how it works for you.
Thank you for sharing this! I’ve done some preparing but not very thoroughly. It’s great to have a step-by-step process to do in baby steps…not too overwhelming on our brain or our wallet!
we also have been doing this for some time but you have to remember that your food and even your water have expiration dates so change out and check yearly like it says at the top of your list. and we find it helpful to put in a duffle bag with wheels so it is easy to manage in case of a real emergency i am not going to be walking everywhere with a large garbage can in tote and moving quickly. or keep with your garden tote/wagon if you have small kids too, then everyone fits and your duffle bag. and yes you can fit alot in them!
Thats a great thing to look out for during garage sale season!
Thank you! I don’t have an emergency kit but it’s been on my mind a lot lately, and now this is the motivation to actually put that into action.
We tend to have very little cash on hand since we use our debit and/or credit cards for pretty much everything. In the event of a longer-term emergency or disaster I’m not sure that many stores will be open to purchase supplies from but since banking systems, ATMs and/or store credit card machines may be nonfunctional having some amount of cash stashed in the emergency bins might be a good idea. Thank you for printing this calendar/timeline …super helpful and we will be using it!!
MK – That’s a great tip!
Thanks so much for breaking this into workable pieces (We have a family kit we put together when our first son was still in diapers, and haven’t really had the time/money/energy to update it now that our boys are 7 and 5.) Thanks for the inspiration.