Setting Up a Home Emergency Kit and Winter Supplies

Home emergency kits contain items designed to support your household for several days in case of evacuation or disaster.

Build emergency kits for your home, work and vehicle. When considering supplies to keep on hand in case of an emergency situation, take into account any family specific needs as you create and review them periodically.

Keep a three-day supply of nonperishable food stored in your kit, choosing items which require no preparation, refrigeration or water to consume.

Water

Your emergency supply kit must include water as it is essential for human survival, with only three days worth of survival without it being available for drinking, washing and cooking. Natural disasters like flooding, hurricanes, earthquakes or wildfire can easily drain or pollute local supplies of drinking water leaving your family exposed without access to adequate sources. By having water available when natural disaster strikes your family can remain healthy while they wait for help to arrive.

Water needs may differ depending on your family size, health status, diet and climate. Most households should plan to provide each member of their household with at least a gallon per day; children, nursing mothers and the elderly may require more. Be sure to also have ways of purifying additional water if necessary such as bleach and coffee filters.

Have an extra container of water available if your pet must evacuate with you, along with any supplies they might require, like food, collars and leashes or medication for their wellbeing.

Your emergency supplies should be stored in an easily accessible area such as a hall closet, spare room or garage. In addition, make grab-and-go kits for each member of your household as well as one to keep in your car in case an unexpected situation arises that requires quick evacuation.

Be sure to regularly inspect and rotate out your emergency supplies, especially food, water and medications that expire. A checklist can help ensure you don’t forget any essentials; remember, disaster can strike at any moment – better to be ready than not!

Food

Food supplies can often be essential during emergencies; therefore, planning and stockpiling food supplies is vitally important.

Your home emergency kit should contain nonperishable food that will last multiple days in case of an emergency situation, preferably choosing something your family enjoys so they are happy during a time of hardship. Be mindful of dietary needs or allergies in addition to diabetic requirements or regular medication use; make sure extra supplies are available if needed.

As part of any emergency evacuation plan, it is a good idea to create a Go bag to store in an easily transportable backpack or container and ensure everyone in your family knows where it can be found. When packing this emergency kit for yourself or others in an evacuation situation, include food and personal items for at least three days as well as bottled water and any essentials like first aid kits that may come in handy during an evacuation situation. Make sure everyone in the household knows its location!

Be ready for both scenarios by stockpiling food at home, in your car and at work or daycare for emergencies that arise by having emergency kits ready in these places.

Disaster services and supplies may take hours or days to arrive at your location. When stocking your emergency kit, remember to rotate items regularly in your storage so they remain fresh. Virginia offers some incredible tax-free weekend discounts that make finding items for home emergency kits even easier!

First Aid

As soon as a disaster strikes, emergency responders may not be able to quickly reach you – this means you may have to stay at home for an extended period and provide first aid for injured family members yourself. Therefore it’s essential that a comprehensive first aid kit contains items like burn cream, eye drops, thermometers, and medical kits in its contents.

As you create your kit, take into account any specific needs for your family such as special medication, infant formula or equipment for elderly members of the household. Store these supplies in containers that are easy to carry such as plastic bins or duffel bags so that when disaster or evacuation strikes quickly you have access to what you need.

Should a disaster or sudden emergency require you to leave home unexpectedly, make sure that each vehicle and workplace have emergency supply kits prepared with basic necessities that will last each member of your household for at least three days – adding more supplies if you have pets or someone with medical needs in the household is also recommended.

Winter Emergency Supplies It is wise to maintain and replenish your winter emergency supplies regularly so that when a blizzard watch or warning is issued you are prepared to either remain home safely or quickly evacuate with your family to safety.

Medication

An emergency medication go bag can help keep you and your loved ones healthy in case of any disaster. Your stash should include antihistamines such as diphenhydramine (Benadryl Allergy and generic) or loratadine (Claritin and generic); pain relievers like Acetaminophen (Tylenol and generic), Ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin IB and generic), naproxen (Aleve and generic); heartburn/ stomach soothing medications like Loperamide (Imodium and generic), bismuth subsalicylate (Pepto-Bismol and generic), Maalox or Maalox; and Antacids such as simethicone (Maalox and generic).

An emergency first aid kit containing bandages and gauze pads, aspirin/ibuprofen, cold compress, blanket or poncho are essential items to have on hand in an emergency. An extra pair of eyeglasses and contact solution should also be on hand, along with flashlight batteries and radio for power outages or evacuation scenarios.

Your family should also prepare a stay-at-home emergency kit, including a watertight container to store key documents such as homeowner’s insurance policies, deeds and birth certificates; manual can opener for opening canned food; nonperishable foods and granola bars for consumption during an emergency; as well as prescription and over-the-counter medication for each family member and supplies for pets or service animals if applicable.

Keep your kits in a secure location, and ensure you update them at least every six months or as needed. By regularly reviewing them, this will help to ensure they remain complete and accessible in an emergency situation. Make it a habit to stock up during sales; or consider making emergency kits one of your gift-giving priorities on birthdays and holidays; it is much simpler to put these together before being confronted by an immediate crisis situation!

Shelter

Locate and stockpile supplies in your house’s safest room in case officials advise people to shelter-in-place. Close and lock all doors and windows; switch off fans, air conditioning units and forced-air heating systems; cover vents with plastic sheeting or duct tape and listen for instructions from local radio or TV broadcasts. Keep a separate emergency kit ready at home as well as creating kits for work, school and the car as a precaution – including special needs items for infants, elderly adults or those with disabilities.

Make a Disaster Supply Kit for every family member – including pets! Include enough food and water for several days as well as personal hygiene items in a large plastic bin, suitcase, duffle bag or backpack that can easily be carried if evacuated on foot. Add flashlight, battery-operated radio, cell phone charger as well as blanket or sleeping bags per family member as well as emergency reflective blankets (often called Mylar blankets), which reflect 90% of body heat back toward you during emergencies.

If an evacuation order is issued, make arrangements to stay with friends or relatives near where you live, or ask if anyone would be willing to open their homes up to you. Learn which hotels in your evacuation route allow pets and pack a “go” bag for each member of your party including animals.