Home Matters: Emergency Kit Preparation

Natural disasters—like hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, and earthquakes—can strike with little or no warning. To ensure that you and your family are prepared, it’s important to create multiple emergency kits—one for use if you need to evacuate your home and one for use if you get trapped inside your home for an extended period.

Evacuation Emergency Kit

To help you evacuate quickly, keep the following items in a grab-and-go emergency kit:

First-aid kit
A gallon of water per family member and nonperishable foods
Can opener, plastic cups and eating utensils
Flashlight and extra batteries
Battery-operated radio
Change of clothing and personal identification cards for each family member
Personal hygiene items and hand sanitizer
Daily medications

Home Emergency Kit

Keep these items in an at-home kit to be ready for an emergency that prevents you from evacuating:

First-aid kit
Three gallons of water per family member
Canned food (and pet food, if applicable) for at least three days and a can opener
Toilet paper and extra personal hygiene items
Books, games, and other forms of entertainment
Flashlight and extra batteries
Battery-operated radio
Daily medications

The Value of an Emergency Kit

By having these kits in place, you and your family can focus on remaining safe during a disaster and keeping each other calm. Consider preparing these kits together as a family so that kids understand the importance of being prepared. For more home safety guidance and homeowners insurance solutions, contact us today.