The best emergency kits tend to be specific to the owner. This kit belongs to a woman with a young child and includes a toy along with more standard items such as a flashlight and nonperishable food. (PHOTO: Mackenzie Allen/MEDILL)
In an emergency, sometimes just counting on the Federal Emergency Management Agency or the Red Cross to take care of you isn’t enough. Sometimes you need to be able to take care of yourself —and an effective way to do that is with an emergency preparedness kit.
“You have to be able to care of yourself and your family in the case of a disaster because first responders might not be able to get there,” Mary Rhedin of FEMA Region V said. “In an emergency, you, yourself are your own first responder.”
Some experts say that many people aren’t prepared because they don’t think that they need to be.
Rhedin compared having an emergency kit to the no-brainer of owning a fire extinguisher or putting a seatbelt on when getting into a car.
“We witnessed it a couple weeks ago, starting the morning of April 17. That’s when the rain started falling and it didn’t stop for days…and a lot of people had to leave their homes,” said Patricia Kemp of the Chicago Red Cross, referencing the floods that caused a state of emergency declaration in Illinois.
“We don’t live on the banks of the Mississippi but these rains can come and just completely annihilate homes and turn lives upside-down,” Kemp added.
Weeks after the flood, the Red Cross and other organizations were still working to get people back into their homes and on their feet.
Sometimes called go-bags, emergency kits can also be used when the only option is sheltering in place, like with a blizzard or tornado.
The National Weather Service was only able to give Oklahoma residents a 16-minute advance warning that a tornado had touched down before it hit. Residents had minutes to grab what they needed and get to shelter. Even then, that 16 minutes was three better than the weather service average.
In some of the harder hit areas, if you didn’t have it on you it was long gone.
“Yes, hopefully, if you don’t need [a kit] that’s great,” Rhedin said. “But if you do need it and you don’t have it then it’s going to be a personal tragedy for you.”
Former Marine Cpl. Jermaine Sheppard recently became involved with the Chicago Community Emergency Response Team, a FEMA-run organization that trains everyday people in emergency preparedness.
Sheppard, 28, has owned several emergency kits since his time with the military, but has begun putting even more effort into maintaining them in the last year.
“I’m constantly upgrading, I’m constantly adding to it,” Sheppard said. “You know, it’s something where you always want to renew certain things. I’m always making sure that I’m looking at things that might expire, like hand-warmers.”
More than just bandages and enough food and water to last for three days, an emergency kit should contain some not-so-obvious items as well.
“Everyone thinks food, water and appropriately so, but you also have to think, if I have to be gone 24 to 48 hours what do I need? A lot of times people forget prescription medication,” Rhedin said, adding that other oft forgotten items include eyeglasses and pet supplies.
“Ever since Hurricane Katrina…taking your pet with you is more of an accepted practice,” Rhedin said.
Nearly every agency has a recommended list of items for an emergency kit, so knowing where to start and how to stay within budget is sometimes the biggest challenge.
The Red Cross sells emergency kits online, but buying a premade kit isn’t always the best option, according to experts.
Kemp says that many people already have most of the items they need and that the trick is taking the time to put it all together.
“If you have the time to prepare for it…then when the time comes that you need it, you don’t even need to think about it, you can just grab it and go,” Kemp said.
Sheppard said that his multiple kits have cost him about $500, acknowledging that most people don’t need to spend anywhere near that.
“I estimate that the average person should spend about $70 to $100 for the essentials,” Sheppard said.
Do 1 Thing, a nonprofit based out of Lansing, Mich., suggests putting together kits piece-by-piece to make them more affordable. The organization recommends checking one item off the list each month.
“For instance, in the month of January, you get a couple bottles of water,” Rhedin said. “In the month of February, maybe when you go to the store you get a couple cans of beans. In this way, this whole Do 1 Thing is a program that helps people put aside the basics that they might need… to not have it be a burden financially.”
One of the ways to save money is to put a kit together well in advance so you can pay attention to when things will go on sale and shop around for some of the pricier items.
Even with a premade kit, most will still need to make some additions because they tend to be very standardized and the most effective kits are tailored to the owner’s specific needs.
Have young kids? Toss in a few coloring books or games to keep them entertained. Are you a light sleeper? Pack some earplugs in case you need to stay at a shelter overnight.
According to experts, what matters most isn’t how much a kit costs, or even the specific item it contains, but that an individual has what they need to take care of themselves.
