Disaster Planning
because the world is ON FIRE and I don’t love it
In Case of Emergency, Break Glass…
Government of Canada Emergency Kit, basic, for at least three days
The items below may need to be rotated- that’s food, water, formula, pet supplies, medication and batteries. Potentially also the supplies in the first aid kit. You should assume water and batteries to have a shelf life of one year. Other items as marked. You should replace the old items with fresh, and use the old items (IN THAT ORDER) within that time frame.
- Water – at least two litres (1/2 gal.) of water per person per day; include small bottles that can be carried easily in case of an evacuation order.
- A water-cooler jug (18.5L/5 gal.) with a manual pump on top is a 3 day supply for three people, but is not easily portable.
- A 12-pack of standard (500ml/16.9 fl. oz.) water bottles is a 3 day supply for one person.
- Food that won’t spoil, such as canned food, energy bars and dried foods. 6000 calories is a 3-day supply for one adult. It may help if this can be eaten without cooking, though it may be less appetizing that way. Aim for at least one year of shelf-life.
- Manual can-opener
- Crank or battery-powered flashlight (and extra batteries).
- Crank, solar, and/or battery-powered radio (and extra batteries) or Weatheradio (this is a specific term for a radio that receives weather and emergency forecasts in North America)
- First aid kit (Remember to open this up and check dates on, and condition of, supplies; for undated medical supplies such as bandages, assume five years)
- Extra keys to your car and house
- Some cash in smaller bills, such as $10 bills and change for payphones
- A copy of your emergency plan and contact information
- If applicable, other items such as prescription medication, infant formula, equipment for people with disabilities, or food, water and medication for your pets or service animal (personalize according to your needs)
GC.CA Extended Emergency Kit
- Two additional litres/quarts of water per person per day for cooking and cleaning
- Candles and matches or lighter (place candles in deep, sturdy containers and do not burn unattended).
- Change of clothing and footwear for each household member
- Sleeping bag or warm blanket for each household member
- Toiletries
- Hand sanitizer
- Utensils
- Garbage bags
- Toilet paper
- Water purifying tablets
- Basic tools
- hammer
- pliers
- wrench
- screwdrivers
- work gloves
- N95 masks
- pocket knife
- A whistle
- Duct tape
Power and Communications
- A power bank, USB-style, kept charged. This can be used to keep a cell phone charged for a couple of days. Don’t forget a charging cable and if needed a set of adapters.
- A car booster battery, 12V, kept charged. Don’t forget the charging cable.
- A set of solar panels, portable, that can charge either or both of the above.
- Cell phones, not that any of us would be likely to get away from these. Don’t forget charging cables.
- Laptop if you have it- don’t forget power cables.
- CB or Amateur Radio, if you can find one, don’t mind the expense, and in the case of the Ham stuff, have a license.
Food and Heat
- A ferrocerium fire rod and tinder for it.
- Jute twine that’s been unravelled into fibres will catch a spark from a fire rod into a flame very easily.
- You can make firestarters by packing dryer lint or sawdust into the cups of a cardboard egg carton and filling them up with melted paraffin wax (available at hardware stores and some grocery stores in the canning supplies).
- If there’s hair in your dryer lint, which there almost always is, this will smell bad, but it will let you start a fire in anything up to light rain if you have dry wood.
- A simple poker in case you do, in fact, want to start a campfire.
- A camp axe or hatchet.
- A campstove or folding stove and fuel for it (gas cylinder, alcohol, candles or fuel tablets).
- Simple cookware, such as a cast iron pan, small cooking pot, etc.