Prepping 101

Emergency preparedness checklist: Prepping for beginners

Whether you’re worried about a sudden layoff, home invasions, car accidents, the power going out for a week, natural disasters, or long term economic and societal decline, it’s critical that you start getting prepared now. By definition, if you wait until you need it, it’s already too late.

You’re not alone: Millions of rational people from all walks of life are taking preparedness seriously — and the movement is growing as more people realize they can’t depend on others to save them in our changing world.

The whole point of prepping is to reduce the chances of major life disruptions and to better recover from disruptions when they do happen. That’s it!

Even something as simple and common as a fire extinguisher in your kitchen counts — the vast majority of prepping has nothing to do with bunkers and bullets!

Step 1: Get your health and finances in order

Medical issues and financial difficulties are the most likely disruptions you’ll face in your lifetime, and since you’re a sane prepper, you prioritize the most likely emergencies first. You should not spend any money on gear/supplies beyond the essentials (eg. two weeks of water in your home) without first having core financial preps such as a rainy day fund, debt-reduction plan, and retirement savings.

We’re getting sicker and less capable of handling the physical demands that are inherent in an emergency. It’ll be hard to survive at all if you struggle to walk up stairs, have addictions, or can’t keep your mind clear while your body goes through extreme stress.

Step 2: Get your home ready for two weeks of self-reliance

We start with the home because it’s where you spend most of your time and is usually the best place to make it through an emergency. Which is why governments give the standard “stay in your home!” advice during a crisis.

Until recently, emergency preparedness guides, including The Department of Homeland Security’s Ready.gov site, typically recommended having 72 hours worth of supplies. But modern experts believe you should be prepared for at least two weeks in order to handle the majority of likely events.

Some groups, like the Red Cross, have updated their suggestions; their site now says, “3-day supply for evacuation, 2-week supply for home.”

Glenn Beck covered the necessities in this program:

Your goal is to be able to survive in your home for at least two weeks without any outside help — whether from people or the grid. That means you can’t assume you’ll have electricity, water, cooking or heating gas, communication, internet, 911, ambulances, and so on.

Home checklist summary:

• Water: store 15 gallons of potable water per person (roughly 1 gallon per day) and have ways to treat dirty water via either a portable water filter or countertop water filter
• Food: at least 23,000 calories per person (roughly 1,500 calories per day) of shelf-stable food that’s ready to eat or only needs boiling water to make; usually one or a mix of extra supermarket food you normally eat anyway or special prepper food that lasts forever
• Fire: lighters, matches, and backup fire starters
• Light: headlamps, flashlights, candles, lanterns
• Heating and cooling: indoor-safe heaters, extra blankets, USB-powered fan
• Shelter: a tarp (even a cheap one you find at a local store) comes in handy for improvised shelter, plugging holes in the house, and clearing debris
• Medical: list of 145 prioritized home medical supplies
• Hygiene: wet wipes, hand sanitizer, camp soap
• Communication: either a one-way NOAA radio or a two-way ham radio (if you know how to use it)
• Power: spare batteries and rechargers (your bug out bag will have a solar charger, but you can also get a second one for home)
• Tools: axe, shovel, work gloves, wrench for your gas lines, zip ties, duct tape, etc.
• Self defense: depends on personal views, may include body armor, firearms, pepper spray etc.
• Cash: as much as you can reasonably afford to stash
• Mental health: board games, favorite books, headphones, movies downloaded to a tablet, etc.
• Documents: copy of deeds/titles, insurance policies, birth certificates, maps, pictures of family members, etc. in both physical and USB thumb drive forms
• Local & emergency info: write down important contact numbers, know the location of the nearest hospitals, etc.