Hardware
Latex gloves are good for handling bio-hazardous materials and for treating wounds. Safety goggles will protect your eyes during bad storms or while working. An Exacto knife makes a good emergency scalpel if it is properly sterilized. In fact, medical grade scalpels can be purchased at many plant stores. Tweezers are needed for removing splinters and thorns as well as for removing debris from open wounds. Small syringes with needles make it easy to drain infected wounds without reopening them. A thermometer is especially handy if you have kids.
Emergency Foods
Fluids and Drinks
Again, try to guesstimate one gallon of water per day per person. Adding five drops of bleach per one gallon will preserve the water for up to six months. Store canned juices - not frozen. Frozen juices require water, whereas canned ones do not. They are bulky and some times heavy to carry around, but water may be impossible to find. Furthermore, they will spoil if not kept frozen. Again, think of drinks with electrolytes, powdered milk, instant coffee, and teas of your preference.
Canned foods
Look for protein rich foods such as canned and potted meats. Tuna, chicken, and beef can all be bought in cans. Canned vegetables of all kinds come packed in their own water so you wont have to use your drinking water for cooking. Canned beans such as kidney, garbanzos, black beans, and refried beans are also good sources of protein. Canned soups are a good idea if they are not the kinds that require adding water. Chile and beans are good camping food, and so is peanut butter. The downside, of course, is the weight should you need to leave your shelter.
Dry and Dehydrated Foods
Top Ramen is the ultimate urban survival C-ration. It is cheap, last for a loooooong time and it isn't that bad if you are starving. It does require water, but the noodles are precooked, and can be eaten raw in a pinch.
Minute rice is good in emergencies provided that there is water. Beans, pasta, couscous, dehydrated vegetables; barley, wheat and bouillon can be combined dry into easy to use zip-lock bags. You just toss the contents into some boiling water and you have soup. If you have no water, toss in a can of vegetables and used the fluid as the base for your soup. If you have an inexpensive food dehydrator, you can dry vegetables before they spoil in your fridge for this purpose.
Nuts, cereal, crackers and dehydrated fruits make for good in between meals if you are in the move and unable to stop to eat right away. Chocolate is a natural laxative, and if you have ever been in the field for longer than a week you will know how valuable having chocolate can be.
Flower and yeast can be used for making bread provided you are at home. Try to avoid anything in glass since it can break. Plastic containers work best, are lighter than glass and float.
Fire
Matches and waterproof matches. You can make your own emergency waterproof matches by dipping the tips of striker anywhere matches into wax a couple of times until the wax covers the match head. Keep in mind that there is no such thing as a completely waterproof match. If the stick is exposed to the elements moisture will travel up through the wood ruining your match, so keep them in a waterproof container. Also, don't think that you can get around the moisture problem by dipping the entire match. If you do that, the entire thing will catch fire when you light it and you will burn yourself. Make them, and stick them into a waterproof container - such as a film container.
Sterno is a wonderful survival product. Comes in an aluminum can, it is light and burns for a long time. Charcoal briquettes are good to have around if you are surviving at home with a small BBQ. If not, you will want to have some lighting fuel. In a pinch you could use your rubbing alcohol from your First Aid Kit. A thing to keep in mind about fire is that it will almost always disclose your location, and this might not be desirable if crime is an issue.
Light
Flash Lights (3), extra batteries, and citronella candles. You can make your own candles from the left over wax of old candles you have now. Better yet, you can buy battery-less flashlights which just require a few shakes to charge up for a few bucks.
Communications/Information
Have a battery-operated radio, extra batteries, and CB radio. Before you laugh at the idea of a CB radio, you should know that the letters CB stand for "Citizen's Band" radio, and they were designed specifically with emergencies in mind. They cost about $40 and you can run them in your car or at home with an adaptor. They have a range of about 5 miles. Handheld units can be purchased to keep track of the family. Cell phones do not always work during an emergency. Ask anyone that survived Katrina.
Sleeping Gear
All weather sleeping bags, blankets, and pillows. Emergency blankets are a must. They are light, fit in your pocket and really do work. They can be stored in those vacuum-sealed storage bags in advance. Shove them in the bag and use a vacuum cleaner to suck the air out. They are waterproof, easy to carry, they float and will hold a surprisingly amount of material.
Other Essentials
Nylon tarps make good shelters, but they can be seen at a distance which may or may not be desirable depending on the circumstances. Nylon rope is indispensable.
Silverware, pots and pans, and dishes are extremely important: don't use throwaway eating utensils. They take up too much room. Use a good set of metal ones that you can reuse. You would be surprised how easy it is to clean with dry dirt. Don't forget the dammed can opener! You can pick up a serious military one called the P-38 for under a buck. It gets sharper the more you use it. I have had mine since 1983 and have used it intensively. It is still with me today.
Pocketknife: get one of the cheap ones with the serrated blades. They are very, very sharp and provide good protection. You can do without bulky tools if you get yourself a utility knife and Leatherman Tool.
Water containers. Plastic is good when you are on in the move. Glass is best for storing water at home.
Bleach is indispensable for cleaning, disinfecting and preserving water. Bleach can also be used to decontaminate biological and chemical agents from ones containers and cans. You can even use it in water to get rid of many chemicals, such as pesticides, from vegetables and fruits.
Toothpaste and toothbrushes: Remember, the length of ones ability to survive is proportional to ones comfort. Use hydrogen peroxide to avoid trench mouth.
Air and watertight containers for storage: use your imagination. Think of items you throw away without even thinking about it. How handy is an empty 2-liter soda pop container (empties can be used as floats), or a jar of baby food? A film container will easily hold your waterproof matches. Zip-Lock Baggies can store pre-made dry meals such as soups, and they can hold bandages and other things that should be kept dry. Trash bags will serve as an emergency seal to prevent body heat from escaping in the cold. Punch holes for your head and arms and wear it under your jacket. Worn outside of your jacket it can help keep you dry in the rain. Gloves for working and for keeping warm. You can make your own custom-made containers by using 4" PVC pipe in whatever length you may need, capping of one end and gluing an O-ring sealed lid on the other.
Many, many things can be repaired or created on the fly with rubber cement, Crazy Glue and duct tape. Dish washing soap can be used on anything from your hair to your skin. It can also help separate pollutants floating on water sources. Anti bacterial soap will come in very handy should you need to sterilize your hands. A folding shovel, sewing kit, thread and extra buttons, safety glasses, and respirators are a huge plus.
Some Tips Which Might Come In Handy
If your house runs on natural gas or propane: TURN THE GAS OFF RIGHT AWAY!
Do NOT flush your house toilet. The water in the tank may be used for emergency purposes. It is the same water that comes out of your tap.
Your water heater contains many gallons of life-saving water. The water may be emptied from the water heater by opening the valve at the bottom of the tank. BEFORE YOU DO THIS turn off your gas at the meter, or shut off the power to your water heater to prevent serious damage. After the emergency is over, and water service has been restored, make sure that your water heater is full of water before restoring power to it.
Panty liners can be used as bandages in an emergency.
If you have solar powered lights outside to mark the driveway at night, bring them inside or take them with you. These will provide some light during the night and they don't require batteries.
Lining a bucket with a trash bags can make a simple emergency toilet. After each use, you can reduce odors by liberally sprinkling carpet cleaner, baking soda, or lime, over solid waste and closing the lid. Use dirt if nothing else is available. Change the bag when the bucket is 25% full to prevent bag from breaking or leaking. Take bag to an outside location until emergency is over and then dispose of properly. If possible, only use the house toilets for liquid waste and the emergency toilet for solid waste. This will reduce the chances of leakage while changing liners.
Dogs
Dogs are incredible resources during an emergency. They provide an early warning system, are good scavengers for food and will protect you against others. It is smart to prepare a small backpack for your dog. You can even buy commercially made ones, but there are two things to remember: make sure that the backpack is waterproof, and don't weight down the dog unnecessarily. With a good fitting backpack a dog can carry his own food rations, and/or a first aid kit. What your dog can realistically hold will depend on the size and breed of the dog.
The Last Word
My first aid/survival kit is waterproof for several obvious reasons. The least obvious reason is that if the disaster occurs far away from my kit, or in the event that I have to abandon the kit because it is no longer practical for me to carry it, I want others to be able to use it. This may be a radical notion these days where we have learned to embraced the ethics of "looking out for number 1," but during these difficult times we will only have one another, and will likely have to rely on the kindness of others to watch our backs. We can all do our part to help one another, and if your kit is of no good use to you, then perhaps it may help some person you don't know and will likely never meet to survive rather than rotting under several feet of unclean water.
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