As hurricane season bears down on Florida once again I’m inspired to revive a very old post about 72-hour kits. About a million years ago (or twelve) I lived down in Alabama on the intersection of Hurricane Alley and Tornado Way. We got some fierce weather much of the year and I was one of the city’s emergency preparedness instructors. My job at the time was to attend city-run events and teach people how to prep for emergencies. It’s been a minute, but with the rise of dangerous storms it seems like a good time to dust this off for anyone who hasn’t been taught how to handle really bad weather.
Below are the basics of what you need in a 72-hour Kit.
Why seventy-two hours? Because the first three days of any emergency you need to assume you’re going to be on your own. It takes time for help to get there. It takes time for the rescue teams to navigate damaged streets and bridges. It takes time for the storm to pass.
During that time, you need to take care of you and yours. And that’s overwhelming for a lot of people. How do you sort that? How do you plan for an emergency? How do you handle a catastrophe?
The best answer is to prepare ahead of time. Below the cut I have a quick list of things to put into a 72-hour kit so you can prep for emergencies. I recommend sorting through the kit every six months. In the USA the easy option is to check it with the daylight savings change, or early March and early October if you’re in an area with extreme weather changes. During the warmer months you need different gear than in the colder months. And checking the kits every six months means you can also rotate food, make sure clothes fit, and ensure your gear is ready for an emergency.
If you have very small children, keep an extra diaper bag packed and ready. Infants grow so fast that you need to change their extra supply of diapers and clothes more than every six months. Plan for that by having a well-stocked diaper bag.
And what do you do if a real 72-hour kit would break the bank?
You do what you can. Store water in old juice or pop bottles (not milk cartons). Eat up food from the freezer before the storm hits or keep the freezer closed throughout if possible. Keep one serving of kibble in a bag for your pets. If you know a hurricane is headed your way talk to your doctor about getting a supply of emergency meds so you have some extras to pack or carry in case of an evacuation or getting stuck at home.
There are times when a disaster hits with no warning. Those are times that having a 72-hour kit ready to go means you can evacuate if possible. And it gives you a better chance of survival if you get hit.
There is an up front expense, but once you have the 72-hour kit you can eat out of it when you refill it. So put some candy you like in there, and if you save more water than you need to drink, rotate the water by watering some local plants.
Prep ahead whenever possible.
This is a very basic checklist for a simple 72-Hour Kit (sometimes called a Bug Out Bag). It has supplies to last your for three days, which is the estimated time needed for relief organizations to arrive in your area and start handing out food and water after a major disaster.
VITAL RECORDS – ID, proof that your children are yours, proof of medical insurance, vaccine records, marriage records, and insurance records for your house and car. If possible, make copies of records for everyone in your household so that there are multiple copies. It’s also worth keeping photos of things like birth certificates either in the cloud (there’s a debate here) or with friends or family who live in another area.
FOR THE KIT:
– Protein/granola bars
– Can opener (not electric)
– Trail mix/dried fruit
– Dishes/utensils
– Crackers/cereals (for munching)
– Shovel
– Canned tuna, beans, meat, Vienna sausages, etc. (“pop-top” cans might leak/explode)
– Radio (with batteries)
– Pen and paper
– Axe
– Canned juice
– Pocket knife
– Candy/gum (jolly ranchers or chocolate can melt and mint gum might “flavor” other items so be careful what you pick)
– Rope
– Duct tape
– Water (1 gallon per person/day)
– First Aid Supplies
– Change of clothing (short & long-sleeved shirts, pants, socks, jackets, ect)
– Toiletries
– Roll of toilet paper
– Undergarments (water- proofed in a zip lock bag)
– Rain coat/poncho (lg black trash bags work well for this also)
– Feminine hygiene/deodorant
– Soaps – hand/dish
– Blankets & emergency heat blankets
– Shampoo/hand sanitizer
– Cloth sheet
– Immunization card
– Plastic sheet
– OTC medication (Tylenol, Ibuprofen, TUMS)
– Prescription medications (enough for 3 days)
– Battery lighting (flashlight, lamp)
– Extra batteries (BE CAREFUL NOT TO MIX THESE ITEMS WITH FOOD ITEMS)
– Flares
– Candles (or crayons – a crayon can be lit and used as a candle for up to 15 minutes)
– Lighter
– Water-proof matches
– Infant needs (if applicable)
– Birth/marriage certificates (also a copy of your insurance with numbers, pictures of your house and valuables, your car info, ect)
– Pet needs (if applicable)
– Insurance policies
– Comfort items (stuffed animals, pictures)
– Cash
– Credit card
FOR KIDS:
– picture album with pictures of family and contact information
– a couple small toys (even new ones)
– extra clothes
– a small surprise that you know they’ll like (this makes the emergency so much easier)
FOR PETS:
– food
– travel food and watering bowls
– pet pads if applicable
– pictures of the pets and contact info so you can share if separated
– medicine
– medical records
(PLACE THESE ITEMS IN A WATER-PROOF CONTAINER!)
| Treating Water with a 5-6 Percent Liquid Chlorine Bleach Solution | ||
| Volume of Water to be Treated | Treating Clear/Cloudy Water: Bleach Solution to Add |
Treating Cloudy, Very Cold, or Surface Water: Bleach Solution to Add |
| 1 quart/1 liter | 3 drops | 5 drops |
| 1/2 gallon/2 quarts/2 liters | 5 drops | 10 drops |
| 1 gallon | 1/8 teaspoon | 1/4 teaspoon |
| 5 gallons | 1/2 teaspoon | 1 teaspoon |
| 10 gallons | 1 teaspoon | 2 teaspoons |
Cheap 72-hour kit menu:
DAY ONE
Breakfast – oatmeal, hot cocoa
Lunch – ramen noodles, granola bar, gum
Supper – granola bar, 1 jerky, hot cocoa
Snack – raisins, 10 tootsie rolls
DAY TWO
Breakfast – oatmeal, hot cocoa
Lunch – peanut butter crackers, raisins, juice
Supper – ramen noodles, granola bar, gum
Snack – 1 jerky, 10 tootsie rolls
DAY THREE
Breakfast – oatmeal, hot cocoa
Lunch – trail mix, fruit snack, juice
Supper – granola bar, 1 jerky, hot cocoa
Snack – 10 tootsie rolls, gum