What Should Be in a Bug-out-Bag for Survival?
Most Important Item: Water
In a bug-out-bag, the most important item to have is clean, drinkable water or the equipment to make water safe to drink. FOR SURVIVAL, YOU MUST HAVE HAVE DRINKABLE WATER !
Again, this is to restate the previous statement: The concept that is the most important to have in the bug-out-bag or get out of dodge emergency bag is to have drinkable WATER !!!!!!!!!!!!.
Water is the main concern of those who have gone through tornadoes, hurricanes, storms, snow, avalanches, floods, car wrecks, those being stranded, being lost, volcanoes and other emergency situations. Plain and simple, without water a person dies.
About one gallon of water is needed per day for a person to survive. When this is multiplied by days and by the people in the family, this becomes a lot of water to have on hand. When water is used for other purposes, the gallons of water can go up to about 25 gallons per person per day.
This is why water is so important. Without water a person dies! If by any chance that a person is in a large city, the water has to be pumped and moved with electric pumps. If the energy grid breaks down, which is very possible with the EMP bombs, Solar Storms, Solar Radiation or terrorism attacks, the water will stop flowing. When there are thousands of people in the city, with limited water supplies, it would not take too long to have civil disorder. Survival becomes instinct of people and animals.
A good drinking water source near the living area, would be awesome, but the bug-out-bag must have enough water to survive to achieve access to the water source to stay alive. Another way of having drinking water during a disaster or electrical breakdown, would to have a water filtration system. Water may still be available in the large cities, but would or could be contaminated. Swimming pools, hot water heaters, water beds, rivers, lakes and streams may have water suitable if properly filtered, boiled or distilled. So maybe instead of lots of water in the bug-out-bag, it might be feasible to have a distillation unit, filtration unit or water sterilization tablets. Weight contributes to the bug out bag, so carrying water, which is about 8 pounds per gallon, the filtration units which vary in weight and the water purification tablets which weigh very little becomes a choice of which to carry for survival.
Going back to the original issue: YOU MUST HAVE WATER TO SURVIVE is the most important issue and you should have WATER in your bug out bag. You should also have some way of making what water you can find, drinkable. If you are near natural springs, you may be in luck, but now, the underground water is becoming polluted and contaminated also. In the large cities, a person might just be out of luck to find usable water. PERIOD!
Could you survive on just one gallon of water a day?
The Bug out Bag
The BUG-OUT-BAG is an emergency bag or back-pack that contains essential items that could get you through 3 to 7 days in case of an emergency situation, get you through a crisis or get you out of a life threatening area. Even in a car or truck, there has been instances of a person running off the road and not being found for days, even months. One never knows what events might happen. Volcanoes, tornadoes, snow storms, wrecks, ice storms, breakdowns, fires, smoke, chemicals, evacuations, floods, attacks, nuclear events are just some of the emergencies that would require you to remove your self from the natural easy live to the life of struggling for survival!
The essential items are different for each person, but there are some common items. Water and food are on the list of ALL bug-out-bags. From there, the lists differ from person and situation. The basics are usually tied to the lists, but the other basic items vary from each person, family and area. In cold areas, more attention might be for warmth, while in the hot areas, special attention might be for dehydration.
Do you have a bug out bag, ready to use?
Second Most Important Item: Food
The second most important item to have in the bug-out-bag or get out of dodge essentials bag is FOOD!!!!!
We must also have food to survive. It is not as critical as water, but without water and food, we will surely die, soon! Humans can survive about a month without food, but this depends the body weight, the amount of water consumed, the health of the person, the activity of the person and the weather.
Usually, food can be put in the bug out bag that do not to be refrigerated and with long shelf lives. Another thing to consider is the food preparation. The food that would go into the bug out bag should not have to have any special preparation, like cooking and should have a high energy content. Some foods can be kept for a long time, but others lose their nutritional content and lose their flavors. Choose foods that you would like and easy to open and eat.
Nuts, dried fruit and granola bars seem to be favorites because of their quick energy, easy to eat and because of the light weight. Some people prefer canned items, that can be easily opened and eaten out of the can. The cans do not withstand the heat and cold very well, leave sanitation trash behind and are bulky, but are highly prized for taste, ease of eating and being comfort foods. Dried beef, turkey and meat jerky are other considerations because it can be eaten on the go, tasty, lightweight and easily kept.
A mixture of nuts, dried fruit, and chocolate makes a great snack and a high energy food for the bug out bag. Handfuls can be eaten from plastic bags that could be pulled out of the bug out bags when needed, giving quick and easy energy.
For the mental status of the people, coffee and tea bags, along with bullion cubes would help in crises situations and during quiet time. Also some sugar or honey would help with sweetening the situation and help with supplying energy and boosting moral.
Salt should be added to the bug out bag to keep the person from dehydrating. MRE's, which are MEALS-READY-TO-EAT also might be considered. These are the same-like packages that are served to the military, on the battle ground, where survival must be practiced. The MRE's usually contain a complete meal, sometimes with a heating device and water all in a complete plastic pouch that is tear resistant and waterproof and has a very long shelf life. Electrolytes should also be included to keep the person's system strong and well balanced.
Have you ever fasted without food?
What Else Should be Included in the BUG-OUT-BAG?
The food and water are essential items, that must be included in the bug-out-bag. Humans can not live without these two items. The rest of the items are debated over and over, but the real key is what is going to be needed to keep YOU alive from 3 to 7 days, long enough to get to a safe place or to get stabilized. If a large crises or disaster hits, there may not be help on the way or any help to be had, so the bug out bag may be the only means of survival until you get help.
Think of survival when you think of putting items into the bug out bag. What would you need for survival? In complete disorder, civilian unrest, disobedience, breakdown of society or the economy, and disruption, this might be more of an issue than just a tornado or hurricane. Almost everyone in the large city would be against the odds for survival.
So think of the options, the situations and your neighbors. Are the neighbors friendly, peace loving and logical? Is there a way out of the town, city or community that would be safe if the power grid would go down? Are there Civil Defense Centers where there has been hoarded full of food, even though it might be decades old and accessible?
OK? Thought about it enough? For survival, you might consider putting together a list like the one below to check off what might be useful to you, in addition to water and food. there are sure to be more to add to your list because each person is different and has different thoughts on survival.
1) WATERPROOF MATCHES
2) BLANKETS
3) FIRE STARTERS
4) TENT
5) TARPS
6) KNIVES /SPOONS / FORKS / PLATES / POTS / CAN OPENER
7) CAMPING STOVE
8) FUEL (for stove)
9) PONCHOS / EXTRA COAT / SWEATS / GLOVES
10) HATCHET
11) AXE
12) EMERGENCY KIT / GAS MASK / CAMPASS
13) ROPE / TWINE
14) FLINT WITH STRIKER
15) COLLAPSABLE WATER CONTAINER/JUG
16) SAW
17) WALKIE TALKIE
18) FLARE / MIRROR
19) WEAPONS (if guns, need ammunition, too)
20) BEAR SPRAY
21) SURVIVAL BLANKET
22) A GOOD SLEEPING BAG
23) CHANGE OF CLOTHING
24) EXTRA FOOTWEAR
25) MULTI-PURPOSE TOOL
26) SPADE
27) IMPORTANT ITEMS!!!!! TOILET PAPER / SANITARY NAPKINS
28) MEDICATIONS / EXTRA GLASSES / EXTRA CONTACTS
29) WATER FILTER
30) WATER PURIFICATION TABLETS
31) THREAD AND NEEDLES / FISHING LINE
32) PENCIL, PEN, PAPER / PLAYING CARDS
33) SILVER COINS FOR TRADE AND BARTER
34) EXTRA CASH
35) SURVIVAL MANUAL
36) CANDLES
37) FIRE TINDER/STARTER
38) SOLAR CHARGER FOR CELL PHONE
39) EMERGENCY RADIO (SOLAR, WINDUP, BATTERY)
40) WIND UP FLASHLIGHT OR BATTERY FLASHLIGHT
41) EXTRA BATTERIES
42) CHLORINE / IODINE
43) DUCT TAPE
44) SOAP / WASH CLOTHS / Q-TIPS / MINERAL OIL
45) TOOTHBRUSHES, LOTS OF FLOSS STRING AND TOOTHPASTE
46) EXTRA UNDERWEAR/ LONG UNDERWEAR ALSO
47) FINE WIRE
48) CLEAR PLASTIC SHEETING
49) ALUMINUM FOIL
50) COOKING AND SERVING UTENSILS
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