Building an Emergency Kit - Other Staples

Hi, I am Dan Paulette-Chapman with the American Red Cross of the National Capital Area. Today, we are talking about family emergency preparedness. Now, we are talking about more items to put in your family emergency supplies kit.

Among the additional items you will need are sturdy clothing, clothing that you know you can get dirty in, that will last long, want to wear long sleeves, long pants. If you are in an evacuation situation, you are not sure what kind of environment you are getting into. You also want to make sure that you have sturdy gloves so that your hands do not get injured when you are out there in whatever environment it may be. Along with sturdy clothing, you want to make sure you have a full range of first aid and toiletry supplies. Remember, these items are enzyme to keep you alive, safe and well for an indeterminate amount of time. Absolutely, you want to have cloth as well as toothpaste, very important, soap certainly, other tissues as well as a fully stocked first aid kit. Do not forget to become first aid trained so you know how to use the kit, should the need arise. You want to make sure that the first aid kit that you have is adequate to cover your entire family. Other things to consider, if you have infants, remember to always have extra diapers on hand, if you have elderly, make sure that their needs are taken care of in terms of sanitation and make sure that your pets are also covered. Those are the things that you want to make sure are all together in one place, so you know where to go in time of emergency. In the next segment, we are going to talk about tools and other equipment to have in your first aid and emergency supplies kit.