Preparing for Emergencies {the simple way}

The idea of preparing for an emergency is a bit of misnomer because, by definition, emergencies happen without much, if any, warning. Also there are so many kinds of emergencies there is no way to be 100% prepared for all emergencies that could possibly happen. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be somewhat prepared for emergencies that have a good chance of happening.

Here are some easy things you can do to be prepared for most emergencies…

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Family Lock Box
A fireproof lock box is essential for every family. This is a great place to store birth certificates, social security cards, insurance policies, copies of driver’s licenses, family photos (on disks), and cash. Every adult in the family should know were the box is kept and what is inside. We also share the contents of the family lock box with our teens. Patrick from Survival at Home has a great free resource to get your information in order.

First Aid Kits
Every home needs a stocked first aid kit or drawer. You also need a first aid kit in each vehicle. Nothing fancy, just some band-aids, antibiotic cream, bandana, and few other items. Also, you should consider putting enough cash to get a tank of gas in your first aid kit or somewhere in your car. If cell towers are down, debit cards won’t work. The Busy B Homemaker has a comprehensive list of what to put in a home first aid kit.   If you have animals you’ll want to check out this post from Timber Creek Farm on a first aid kit for farm animals. Here is a list of herbal things to stock in your first aid kit from The Untrained Housewife.   Also, Hybrid Rasta Mama has a post on putting together a really good all natural first aid kit. And if this is all too overwhelming for you and you just want to have these kits done, here is a large first aid kit you can purchase, and here is a small first aid kit for the car.

Water
Many natural disaster type emergencies leave people without water. Also, if you are on well water, power outage can leave you without water. We have a pretty simple way of storing and rotating our water supply to prepare for hurricane season but it also means we have water available for things like power outages.

Finances
Sometimes the emergency isn’t a natural disaster; sometimes, it’s a personal disaster like a job loss. We have experienced more personal disasters through job losses than we have natural disasters. I think this may be true for most people. It is much easier to go through any kind of emergency or disaster when you have your finances in order.

If you need help getting your finances in order or if you are unemployed or underemployed we have a great resource for you, Hope-Thriving While Unemployed.  

How are some of the ways you prepare for emergencies?

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