Emergency Kits and Why You Need One

Jan 14, 2021 Update.

Oh Hi.  Here we are again.  Ford has declared a State of Emergency last week whereby stay-at-home orders have become law, and police now have the right to question where you are going and why.  I am not here for political commentary, but this seems to have gone from bad to worse.  We had a brief period of resolve in the summer where we were at least able to have “social circles” and some things like restaurants opened up again.  There is also this Covid 21 mutated strain of Covid 19, which is far more contagious and lethal, apparently.

There is also a newly developed vaccine but trials were rushed and businesses remain closed, so some people are skeptical.  Something like 1/3 of small businesses will not be able to weather the 2nd lockdown, so I dunno, but I’d say its safe to say the end times are near.  Just kidding.  But my predictions see this ongoing for the next 10 years or so, while my eternally optimistic husband sees it all ending by the end of the year.  I hope he is right and I am wrong.  In light of the more clear emergency we have on our hands – a global pandemic and restricted mobility/freedoms, I’ve updated this list to reflect added things you will need for your Emergency Kit.

Home Things:

Incase power goes out, as has been happening in various US cities, the entire country of Pakistan and the Vatican, you may want to consider:

Keeping a physical local map around the house (and learn how to read it).

A manual can opener will do the trick in emergencies (how hard is it to open a tin can without an opener!)

A wrench or pliers are handy if you need to turn off utilities.

Paper plates, cups, utensils will be useful if you don’t have water and cant wash plates.

Paper and pencil, or games, puzzles and activities for children will keep everyone somewhat functioning normally rather than sitting idle.

Fire extinguisher! I missed it earlier but its one of the DuH! things.

Body Cleansing (non prescription):

Besides Hand sanitizer you may want to consider the following. Note also, numerous companies making hand sanitzer have been recalled, so instead of using what the grocery store gives you, carry your own around.  Stock up on the following lesser known and more effective products to keep your body at its best.

100% Pure Argan Oil.  I am bias here as I do sell pure argan oil here.  I truly believe in it and have found many uses.  It is high in linolic acid which helps treat skin conditions such as acne, psoriosis and excema.  It helps prevent hair fall and rejuvinates split ends.  It can be used on the cuticles for healthy nails, and it truly is for everyone.  Humans of all ages or genetic makeup, and fur babies alike.  Massage it into baby or prevent diaper rash with a bit of oil after a bath.  Pure Argan oil is safe for the whole body, and if you buy any brand, read the ingredients to ensure the only one you see is “Argania Spinosa Seed Oil”.  Anything else is filler and totally obliterates the medicinal uses its been known to have for millennia’s.  More on that in other posts.

Hydrogen Peroxide.  This is a mild anticeptic that can be used on skin to prevent infection, and clean minor cuts, scrapes and burns.

70 % Isopropyl (Rubbing Alcohol).  The best disinfectant there is, and can be further diluted with water to last longer.  Helps with muscle stiffness and excessive perspiration too, so if you have a fever, massage it into your entire back and you will wake up feeling refreshed.  Old Eastern Euro cure there.

Topical Lidocaine.  Excellent for sunburns and acts as a local anesthetic, or numbing medication.  It blocks nerve signals to your body so if you had an insect bite, poison ivy, minor cuts and scratches, its good to use this first before going to the emergency room.

Ingestible Iodine.  This promotes thyroid health, aids against cancer, and improves cognitive function.  People are hugely deficient in iodine so if you can get your hands on a good brand, stock up.  Excellent also for neurodevelopment during pregnancy, so if a food shortage actually does happen, iodine will keep you going at least a little bit.

Colloidal Silver.  Liquid silver is best absorbed by the body and are much preferred to pill supplements.  The internets claims that it is potentially unsafe so use your own judegement or consult your doctor.  Some believe it can help with the common cold, is antiviral, anti fungal and anti bacterial. It was used instead of antibiotics prior to its development as a cure all for ailements.  If you don’t feel safe going to the doctor to get antibiotics, silver may help in the interim.

Other pain relievers such as Advil/Ibuprofen, is good to stock up on, and dont forget the children’s Tylenol! Antacids or laxatives, contact lens solutions and feminine hygiene products are totally necessary and often overlooked for simple toilet paper.

Food:

Eat Good food:  Nutrient dense and cooked at home is going to be better than ordering out.  There are so many online bloggers now, as well home delivery meal kits that learning to cook at least a little bit should not be a major issue.  Besides, it will give you something to do.  Think about home delivery food services like Mama Earth Organics, Tru local, Hello Fresh etc. I have no affiliations to the aforementioned.

Food Stock up.  I predict a food shortage by mid summer (and probably WW3 starting between the US with China).  I’m semi kidding. But sadly this isn’t a movie script and is rather playing out before our very eyes.  In Canada, Bulk barn is great for stock up foods which will last months.  Think Oats, granola, flours, snacky foods, pastas, and anything else related to a pantry.  There are also whole emergency kits you can order online from Costco but they probably taste dreadful.

Mental Agility, Fortitude and Resilience:

I will pre amble this by saying it is a highly subjective set of guidelines and I in no way claim to be a mental health expert.  However, seeing as how the something like 45% of people have stated that there has been a decline in their state of mind since the pandemic began last March, maybe it can’t hurt to at least glance at some of these subjective, personal opinions on how to be more at peace, if not happy.

Exercise.  Preferably outside, which you are still allowed to do for now.  Vitamin D is critical in regulating the whole body.  If you prefer to work out at home, there are many gyms which have moved classes online.  And developing your home gym for self guided workouts is not a bad idea.  There are many exercises you can do with body weight nonetheless, the key here being that it is imperative to give your body a fighting chance by keeping it fit.  Let those endorphins flow!

Read Physical Books.  I dont know about you but glaring at a screen, be it the laptop for work, or having Netflix marathons makes me more tired.  Reading physical books is a good way to keep your mind agile without dipping into the online world.

Keep your body clean.  Again, not here for political commentary but I find it odd that substances such as alcohol and weed remain an essential service, and available to people in the same way food is accessible.  That’s just me.  Im not anti any of these things (even own shares of a few dwindling weed stocks), but its striking me as odd.  Anywho, in order to stay sane, I found its easier to not put in excess poison into our systems, which requires cleansing and takes away from fighting potential viruses. Not drinking helps to not binge eat carbs next day as well keeps us in a normal temperament. At least think about minimizing substance use, especially the depressants. The uppers that mess with your seratonin, dopamine and norepinephrine levels from your doctor are also not a magic cure to symptoms.  All I’m saying is, if possible reduce the amount of toxin your body has to clean out and don’t message me about how you need your prescription pills.  That’s great.  I don’t care. #intj.

Get a hobby.  Prevent mental decline and just do something you like.  DIY home renos, painting, crafts, puzzle, snowshoeing, knitting, whatever! This can fall under self care as it has remarkable ability to keep you at your best. Create goals like “I will run just a little further each day”, or focus on a specific diet.  Learn to play cards, chess or checkers. Build a computer if you’re good with that.  Sow a dress from scratch, write a book, blog or journal entry, learn to bake or reorganize your entire home.  I’ve done this last one and it feel SO good.  Keep busy and stay compartmentalized.  I just gave you so many ideas, so pick one. Also, this train of thought leads into my next, similar but different point…

Start an online business.  This is clearly the future and if you had a physical small business, you need to fully integrate it online, fast.  You may also consider an online business as I don’t predict we will ever go back to how it used to be.  Even when there was some leniency in the summer, masks were required everywhere.  The internet and online platforms will only increase in necessity and usage, so do you have a business idea you can maximize online?  If yes, do it now. What else are you doing? Watching netflix for 50 million hours straight?  Just DO IT!

PS. Yes I know its quadruple hard now to get anything done especially if you have young children, and are working from home, teaching them from home, doing it single, or having a hard time with partners.  Its just a suggestion if and when you can do it, to avoid further covid fatigue and be able to say, hey, I got it done, during a pandemic with my tots a home! Yay me!  I’ll do a separate blog post on how to cope during this unprecedented time.

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April 2020 update.

Amazingly, since I posted this we have as a collective experienced a global pandemic of unprecedented proportions: the novel Coronavirus (Covid-19)  outbreak. My husband thought I was being pretty extra at the time, but LOOK WHAT HAPPENED!  This has put the entire world on hold, all restaurants, businesses and borders are closed, we are told to quarantine and self isolate for months and have entered a world where the new norm requires us to wear masks when we exit our homes.  WOW. Just wow.  Who is extra now?  Am I ever glad I got us started with our emergency kits.

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(Original post from November 2018)

Its boring and you likely won’t need to use it, much like insurance, but if you find yourself in need of these products you really feel the burn of not having it in the worst of all possible times – an unexpected emergency.

Maybe I don’t need to even sell you on the importance of having these products, or maybe I’m just getting old and appreciate things like security and comfort far more than I used to when I was just taking life day by day.  But an emergency is not as unlikely to happen as we fathom in our heads ie. there was that 3 day power outage about a decade back, and the icestorms two years in a row, though which I missed, I heard cut out power all over the city.

You need to have an emergency kit, one for your car, one for your home.  I’ve started with the basics, then listed the often-overlooked items.  From here, we go further and get into things like  2 way radios and solar powered generators, and gas masks, which will all be mentioned but aren’t total necessities.  Gas masks are important incase of fire, as most people die of smoke inhalation rather than actual flames.  And don’t think you’ll never ever use it otherwise, for gas masks can be used in all kinds of scenario including if you’re handling hazardous material or painting of any kind, especially spray painting.  Some even convert into scuba masks.  More on that later.

Basics:

Backpack/Go bag.  Store some emergency items in this backpack.

Lights.  Candles and a quality flashlight, as well as some cheap flashlights that you can store as back up.

Water Storage & Filtration.  This can be one of those straws that filters rainwater, or a larger standalone canister with a filter built in.  A good brand is propur.

Freeze dried foods and Cooking (in outage).  Some storable food can last 15 years but if you dont want to buy emergency specific food, think Kraft dinner and Mr. Noodle.

Chargers.  Back ups for all your devices that you use on a regular basis.  Make sure you have a generator too though.

AM/FM Radio.  To catch important news in the event of an emergency and power outage.

Sanitation.  Seems to be the most overlooked item but it would be wise to prepare a potty and other sanitation methods for daily needs.  Hand sanitizers, hand wipes, pure alcohol, handsoap, and household cleaning like lysol can fall in this category.

Intermediate:

HFT 2 way phone for city (kenwood/Motorola) 300sqrft.  Upon extensive research i’ve discovered there is a big difference between hand held radio frequency phones and how far they can research.  If you live in the city you will want one that works well between buildings and if you live outside of the city, a further range phone would be best.

VHF floating, waterproof walkie talkie for country (cobra).  This is great if you live near water and out in the country.

Handheld satellite phone (garmin).  Will basically work anywhere but can get quite costly, as well you need a plan for the device.

Burner Phone without GPS.  Again, you need a monthly plan but will serve you well if you need to go somewhere and not be tracked in the event of an emergency.  You can get a prepaid SIM without your contact details registered from those standalone phone shops.

Solar Powered Generators (Phoenix or Yeti). These are great if you live in a condo and cant have a gas powered generator.  You can get more panels to increase how well it works, but at the very least you will be able to charge some phones and possibly small cookware.

Gas Powered Generator.  Nothing beats it and it will power more items than most solar powered generators.

Website research.  Canadianpreparedeness.com is a good one.  Start there and expand your search as you see fit.

Advanced:

Gas Masks/Scuba gear.  3M gas masks that firefighters and scuba divers use is the item i’ve most been researching.  My go bag is a work in progress and I didnt want to get too extreme.  But they are compatible with scuba gear and is CBRN certified.

Weapons.  Axes, blades, machete etc. ha.

Radiation detectors.  These can be useful if there is an environmentally catastrophic event.

Hazmat Suits.  Self explanatory and make sure to tape down the arms if there is a chemical or biological issue.

Drone (Phantom 4).  You can see around you and this would certainly come in handy if you start to feel unsafe.  Theyre totally fun to fly too.

Car kit:

Window Breaker.

Jumper cables or battery booster.

Emergency roadside kit.

First Aid Kit.

Crow bar.

Elastic strap with hooks or bungee cords.

Rope.

Blanket.