Emergency Preparedness & Survival Guide

Survival is important is the city or the wilderness.

Emergency preparedness and wilderness survival are not just Boy Scout merit badges. These are important issues that can affect everyone from the most ardent and experienced outdoorsman to the urban dweller who has never set foot outside a city. It is important to be knowledgeable and prepared for any situation so that if an emergency or disaster hits, you will be prepared to handle it. Anyone who has thought and prepared for an emergency or a survival situation has a much better chance of coming out alive than someone who doesn't.

Mentality

One of the most important aspects of any emergency or survival situation is mentality. There are countless stories of people who didn't know what they were doing, but survived simply because they refused to die. Emergency training or even the best survival kit won't do any good if you can't stay calm, focused and mentally tough during a crisis situation.

First Aid Kit & Training

While a wilderness survival situation and an urban emergency are often going to be very different, first-aid training is always a good idea. Good first-aid kits are cheap, lightweight, and easy to keep in a purse, car or desk. Training is still important because you want to know exactly how to bandage a wound, create a splint or sling, or use any tool in the kit to its full potential when an emergency arises.

Wilderness Survival

Wilderness survival kits require a special group of tools to deal with the natural dangers and difficulties that are going to arise from being completely cut off from civilization. Some of the keys to remember are core temperature, water and signal. A flint and steel, and waterproof matches are always good. An emergency thermal blanket can be folded down to napkin size. Iodine tablets and water purification is always a must, as is a signal mirror or alert whistle. All this forms the base of a wilderness survival kit.

Urban Emergency

An urban emergency can be tricky. A huge natural disaster, like the flooding after Hurricane Katrina, offers an entirely different set of problems than, say, a major ice storm or a terrorist attack. For urban situations, the best you can do is have emergency supplies at your home, at your office or place of work (as much as you are able to store safely), and plan on the possible contingencies. Ensure you have more than one route to get to your home, and if you need to get out of the city, know the back-road route as well as the regular one. Plan ahead of time and be prepared for anything.

Helpful Skills

There are many skills that can be helpful in any type of an emergency. First-aid skills are critical for almost any situation. Train yourself to be a leader, as well. Even the most confident individuals often fall apart in a survival or emergency situation. If you can bark orders and get people out of their shock and even helping other victims, you will be able to save lives and increase everyone's chance of survival. Take a wilderness-survival course. Even if you live in a city, the confidence gained from these skills gives you the mentality you need to deal with almost any situation.

The Pocket Kit

While pocket kits are more synonymous with wilderness survival, just having one can boost many people's confidence. Items that fit in a pocket kit can include iodine tablets for water, matches, fishing line, a whistle and an unlubricated condom (for water gathering or for keeping matches dry). Allergy medicine is another item to fit into the kit with gauze to treat potential wounds.

References

• Basic Survival Kits Blog: Information on Survival Kits
• Captain Dave's Survival Guide: Plan Ahead
• Popular Mechanics: 6 Key Emergency Survival Tips from Wilderness Experts
• Boy Scouts of America: Emergency Prepardness