Ready for Anything: 4 Emergency-Preparedness Tips to Live By

Emergencies may be a rare occurrence, but when one strikes, you can’t retroactively prepare for it. If you haven’t prepared for this type of situation, you’ll be one of the many people scrambling to get supplies and figure out what to do. Fortunately, by following a few simple emergency-preparedness tips, you’ll be ready for anything.

Pack an Emergency Kit

You never know where you’ll be in an emergency, which is why you need an emergency kit that goes wherever you go. Since this can’t be too large, you’ll need to stick to the essentials, including a first-aid kit, flashlight, radio and water. If you typically drive places, you can store this in your car. Otherwise, you can store it in a backpack or bag. Another benefit of having an emergency kit is you won’t need to pack anything if an emergency forces you to leave your home.

Keep and Maintain a Water Pump

Being able to pump your own water is a huge benefit in an emergency. You won’t be reliant on a water company, which could go down in certain situations. Even if you don’t use your water pump regularly, make sure you work with a company like Quad Fluid Dynamics Inc. or someone similar to check it out on occasion to ensure that it’s in good working order.

Store Extra Food and Water at Home

You don’t want to be one of the people waiting in line for hours to buy water before a natural disaster strikes or immediately after. It’s a major hassle and there’s the risk that stores will run out of the supplies you need. You don’t need much space to store a few extra cases of water and cans of food, both of which will keep for years.

Have Emergency Plans Ready and Committed to Memory

All the preparation in the world can go to waste if you haven’t considered what you’ll do in an emergency. You’ll need to make up plans on the fly in a stressful situation. Instead, have plans ready for exactly what you’ll do in different emergency scenarios. You should have one plan for an emergency that strikes when you’re away from home and two plans for an emergency that strikes when you’re at home—one where you remain in your home and ride it out, and another when you’re forced to leave.

You don’t need to devote your life to prepping to be ready for an emergency. The tips above are easy to implement and will keep you safe in a variety of situations.