Survival Kits Checklist
Survival Kits Checklist
Recent tragic events have gone a long way to highlighting the need for survival kits. The need for a survival kit might have seemed like the ravings of paranoia a few years back but I hope this has changed. When the earthquake hit Japan the devistation was horrific, and while these are a people trained and drilled to deal with both earthquakes and tsunami's the loss of human life was much higher then it needed to be. Evacuations were not as fast as they should have been and with a survival kit evacuation can be sped up by a huge amount.
When watching the news coming out of Japan the one thing I noticed where these villages where folks had been told to evacuate who were not actualy evacuating. I assume they were not really prepared for a disaster of the magnitude they were experiencing and didn't have survival kits ready to grab and run with. I do strongly believe that some of the deaths could have been prevented if people had acted faster then they did.
In this article I hope to help you plan out and pack all the vital items you need in your survival kit so that in the event of a disaster you can grab your kit and head for safty in short order. The very act of being prepared can make the difference between life and death and so I hope you will read this and take some action, buy yourself a survival kit, and/or add items to a survival kit you may already have. I would also welcome you to add any tips you may have to the comments section at the bottom of this article.
- Water/Water Purifier
- Food/tin opener
- Emergency blanket/bivy
- Shrill Whistle/Survival Whistle
- Hand crank AM/FM radio
- Emergency blankets/Mylar sleeping bags
- Waterproof matches/lighter and firestarter material
- Small portable stove with fuel tablets
- Candles
- Flashlight
- First aid kit
Survival Kit Checklist Basics
The first two basicis in any survival kit is water and food. Your Survival kit checklist must include either water or water purifiers and well preserved foods (the sort of thing you can leave in a bag for a number of years and will still be safe to eat). Pre-made survival kits do come with water pouches and good ones will also include water purifiers. This is my personal preferance, to have a water purifier. Food can be just about anything that can be stored for long periods of time and are calorie rich. In my survival kit I have a few tins of tuna as tinned food lasts, doesn't need cooking and meat is a great source of protein and calories. Be sure to remember a tin opener! They are cheap and chances are, you have a few you can spare for a survival kit.
Basic survival kit items on your checklist should include, a shrill whistle (just in case being rescued is part of your survival needs). A great whistle is the 5 in 1 survival whistle that includes a whistle, compass, match holder, mirror and lanyard. The compact nature of this item makes it a brilliant item to include in your survival kit checklist.
A hand crank am/fm radio is a great way to keep updated on any emergency advice being issued, as it needs cranking not batteries. Mylar sleeping bags can be a better option then a foil blanket and will be replacing my foil blankets at the first oppertunity.
A reliable way to start a fire is a must. Waterproof matches are one option to include as well as a waterproof lighter. One problem you can encounter when surviving inn dire conditions is in finding something to catch a flame. One surviveralist who I highly admire suggested using old bicycle tire inners as a great kindling for catching alight. I have not yet tried it myself but the demenstration given was impressive, moisture in wood can make lighting a fire very hard and the rubber seemed to light fast and very little was required. A pre-made survival kit is likely to have fire starter material already but if you are building your own this one tip might be worth considering.
One last thing to consider for your survival kit che cklist is a small stove with protable fuel. I have a small portable stove for camping that spends the rest of the year in my survival kit bag along with 2 bottles of fuel. A large and bulky stove is not worth bothering with, as it will be to heavy and difficult to grab on the run but a small and lightweight stove will allow you to make hot drinks and heat food, all of which could come in handy in cold tempretures.
First Aid Kit for your Survival Kit Checklist
In every survival kit there should be a first aid kit. First aid kits are easy enough to buy for all price ranges so buying one pre-made is the best way to go. The thing to consider with your fist aid kit are those things specific to you and your family.
Does anyone in your family have a condition like diabeties or breathing problems that require an inhaller? Nothing is worse or scarrier then forgetting some vital medicine for your child or other loved one. A first aid kit will come with many first aid supplies but it will not contain insulin injections or inhalers, making sure to have items like this in your survival kit can save lives faster then anything else in your kit. Don't put yourself in a situation where you have to go back into a dangerous situation just to retrieve medicines that should have been in your survival kit or first aid kit.
