How to Make a Disaster Kit

Do you want to know how to make a disaster kit? This eHow will guide you through the process and offer insight into what you need in that disaster kit. A disaster kit can help in emergencies both natural and not so natural.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Water MREs Hand Crank Radio First Aid Kit Flashlight with Extra Batteries Cell Phone

1. 
   Water Bottle

   Gather the water. You will need at least one gallon of water per day for ever person covered by the disaster kit. Water will only stay fresh for a few months so keep some bleach on hand to sterilize the water or replace the supply every three to four months.

2. Collect the MREs. MREs are meals ready to eat. The disaster kit will need enough food for the people you are supporting for three days. Dried fruits, nuts and grains are great choices. If you pack canned foods, make sure to pack a hand crank can opener.

3. Stay connected. With a hand crank radio and a cell phone you will be able to stay connected to the outside world. If you have an extra cell phone battery, it is a great idea to keep that charged at all times.

4. 
   LED Flashlight

   Keep your area lit. The flashlight you pack in your disaster kit can be either hand cranked or battery operated. If you choose the battery operated flashlight, make sure to pack LOTS of extra batteries.

5. Protect your disaster kit. All of the items you collected for your disaster kit should be placed in a long, water proof box. The box needs to be kept in a place that is easy to get to and from where the box can easily be moved. The box should not allow sunlight to permeate and the storage area needs to be dry. Every member of the family should know where the disaster kit is located.

6. Keep the kit to yourself. The supplies in the disaster kit will keep your family alive and well for three or more days. It is important to keep the location of the kit between families members only. During a disaster, looting and theft may climb and these supplies may be your only hope of survival.

Tips & Warnings

• You could add a small box of prescription medications if needed.

Resources

• All Photos are Courtesy of sxc.hu

[survivalist]

on 6/25/2009 Great article. I would also add a product called "LifeCaps" to your emergency preparedness kit. They are a survival pill designed to sustain life in an emergency situation. You can find them at http://LifeCaps.net. I found that if you use coupon code GOCAPS at check out, you will save 33%.

[thomasfence]

on 3/31/2009 How to Make a Disaster Kit is a must do for every one both home and car. thank you for writing this article. 5* and a recommend

[apalmer]

on 2/1/2009 We just had a winter power outage and were days without electric. I never thought about a hand-cranked flashlight and radio! Thanks for writing about this, I plan to get me these supplies. The batteries didn't last as long as we hoped! 5*

[angelanyc]

on 1/29/2009 Thank you for writing this article! I need to do this myself.

[jjkadaba]

on 1/29/2009 Great tips! I've prepared the mre's for my family and have included extra for the ones I care about that didn't prepare.