Just read a short sidebar article in Consumer Reports on emergency preparations. They polled 1000+ adults, 82% of whom stated they were prepared for a situation where they would be holed up for two weeks at home. Only 1% had all sixteen items considered by CU to be essential - the average individual had less than 10 of the items. Best prepared were non renters, 30 and older. I suspect most of those on this forum would do pretty well. Here is the "sweet sixteen items," listed from most commonly possessed (90%) to least (14%)

flashlight
nonprescription pain reliever
manual can opener
sanitation and personal hygiene items
FAK
two week supply of prescription drugs
extra batteries
thermometer (presumably medical)
hand sanitizer w/60% alcohol
portable radio (hand cranked or batt operated)
two weeks supply of non-perishable food
nonprescription diarrhea meds
two week supply of potable water for each family member
chemical cold packs
electrolyte drinks
surgical masks - N-95 or higher

Your thoughts, please......

No knife, no tools, no means of warmth or water purification. No mention of fuel. Their list looses. I'd fail their list, because I don't feel the need for two weeks of water. I've got 5+ days, and means to purify a month's worth.

And I love the 82% number. Uhm, no.

except for the water which i could get from a spring,a big one..or a local lake i could walk to in a few minutes i have all those things,plus,and i did not plan it that way i just do..however..this all smacks of 1950's cold war hid in the basement thinking.unless you live in a earthquake or storm zone no one needs a two week supply of anything.fear mongering is a good way to sell stuff and i'm old enough to have see several waves of this sort of thing pass thru several times since the 1950's.

Chemical Cold Packs? I have 1-2, but I can't see them being on the "esentials" list, ditto N-95s

on second look this seems like a very odd list of stuff..the medical items like thermometers,electrolyte drinks,hand sanitizer and meds,OC and scrips looks like a prep for a flu outbreak so bad that you can't leave home,but items like a battery radio move the list over to a earthquake,storm,national disaster sort of prep items..i would say it was put together by someone handed a assignment for a magazine article and they just threw this out.

flashlight - A good and reliable flashlight is pretty much preparedness 101. I would avoid the cheap incandescent models if your not absolutely sure that they are sturdy and reliable. Any flashlight that is in danger of failure if dropped and/or needs to be slapped around to work is suspect. LED flashlights are often more durable, reliable and make batteries last longer.

nonprescription pain reliever - IMHO every kit should have one or two single-doses of aspirin. It is generally useful and is so profoundly beneficial in the case of a heart attack that it justified its existence in any kit. For general use I like Ibuprofen.

manual can opener - A P-38 is good but an easier way to cover this is to have a SAK or multi-tool, either of which have a lot of other uses, in your kit. It is a pain but most any knife can be used to open a can.

sanitation and personal hygiene items - Humans can go a long time if need be between a full-on scrub. People can usually get by for days just cleaning their hands so they don't get sick. But a wipe down of the face, neck, pits and rump makes just about everyone feel more civilized and makes being around them more pleasant. This can be done with baby wipes but over longer periods of time a washcloth, sliver of soap, and splash of water can save weight and trouble. Depends on how dear clean water is.

FAK - A simple kit with a collection of general use items is better than more narrowly focused supplies. Triangular bandages, sports tape, a couple of elastic bandages, and large amounts of gauze pads make a good base. A few bandaids are handy but by definition if it can be treated with a bandaid it isn't very serious. A couple of combination pressure/pad/tourniquet type field dressings are grand for immediate use with serious injuries.

two week supply of prescription drugs - Naturally. Consider a much larger supply of vital medications. Repackage as necessary but keep a copy of the label handy for legal reasons and be sure to keep it all well, and clearly labeled, and dry.

extra batteries - generally necessary but there is some chance that if the devices you select are efficient enough, highly efficient LED flashlights versus incandescent, and the batteries good enough, lithium cells instead of alkaline cells, you could limit the numbers of replacements needed. Possibly eliminating them entirely.

thermometer (presumably medical) - I guess if hypothermia is a concern and your otherwise equipped to deal with it, beyond your normal warming procedure, or where the possible presence of a fever causing disease might determine treatment, it might be useful. That said I have never seen much use for one. If weight is critical, I'm carrying all may supplies, it would be in my kit. If weigh isn't critical I might have one.

hand sanitizer w/60% alcohol - a small bottle or two. I prefer soap and water.

portable radio (hand cranked or batt operated) - very tiny and efficient ear-bud models work fine for one or two people. With lithium batteries they can run for a very long time. Larger parties will want a radio with a speaker and will pay a greater premium in bulk and/or batteries. Hand-crank radios save on batteries but they are usually heavier and often bulky. Hand crank mechanisms are prone to taking a lot of abuse so if you go that way go for quality and give them a good workout before placing your trust in them.

two weeks supply of non-perishable food - simple foods that can be eaten without heating and preparation if necessary are best. But including a few familiar and favorite items. Particularly if there are children.

nonprescription diarrhea meds - Digestion is likely to get uneven as stress, strange food, less than perfect water, lack of sleep work against you. I really think that you need three things; a calcium carbonate bases antacid like Tums; a general purpose stomach/diarrhea medicine like Pepto-Bismol, tablets or liquid; a dedicated anti-diarrheal, Imodium or generic equivalent. Carrying all three gives you options to handle sour stomachs, mild indigestion and diarrhea, and your full-bore case of trots.

two week supply of potable water for each family member - Carrying even a minimum weeks supply is a weighty proposition. Fourteen pounds per person, plus whatever the container/s weigh, at a very minimalist quart a day. Half a gallon is more realistic but that means over 28 pounds per person. Which, if you carrying all this on your back, is a pretty substantial load all by itself. Either your going to have to depend on some mechanical assistance in carrying supplies, motor vehicle or a cart of some type, or you are going to have to carry less and plan on resupplying, and possibly treating, water.


chemical cold packs - I have never had much use for them. They are bulky and heavy, and they degrade in time and can cause corrosion if they leak while in storage. If you have room to spare and weight isn't an issue they might be useful.


electrolyte drinks - Redundant if you carry water and rehydration mix with you. If your in a hot climate the premixed drinks might be convenient but most people get along pretty well with water and water has many more uses.

surgical masks - N-95 or higher - A bit of a contradiction. Surgical masks typically don't carry any designation. There is precious little evidence that masks, any non-respirator, really accomplish much in real-life use. Even less that the 'or higher', N-99 or N-100, are any more effective in use. If you do buy masks consider buying ones with an exhalation valve. They don't necessarily work better but they are far more comfortable. A huge difference in warm weather. If its important enough that you really need such a mask your probably better off getting a respirator with replaceable filters.

Your thoughts, please......

The list looks to me like it was thrown together by someone that didn't do any research, didn't put any effort into the article, and has never lived in an area where there are serious storms.

I saw an editorial cartoon years ago that showed a person identified as a journalist spinning a giant roulette wheel, with many different subjects listed on the wheel: farming, economy, environment, biology, etc. The sign above the wheel said "Today I'm going to pretend to be an expert in:". I'm surprised the newspaper printed it, and sorry that I didn't keep a copy.

To the specifics of the list, no source of heat, no tools or repair supplies of any kind except FAK, no mention of cooking methods that work if the utilities are out, no mention of extra water to clean dishes and cookware, no mention of any type of kit to take with you if you had to evacuate, no mention of any documentation of any kind. I don't understand the purpose of the cold packs and masks in a kit that's designed solely for being bottled up at home. It's not like you're going to sprain your arm fixing something with the tools you don't have.

Given the quality of the list, and the 82% number, I personally don't believe that a survey was taken.

Also just my opinion - anybody that claims to be able to give you expert advice about everything, is usually qualified to give you advice on nothing.

I wondered if they meant tampons etc. Over a 2-week crisis there's a 50:50 chance you'll need them, if you are an appropriately-aged woman. It came fairly high on the list, so I guess most people don't have a "just in time" stocking policy for these.

Um, the survey is about sheltering in place - it mentions being "holed up for two weeks at home". So you don't have to carry it.

Being self-contained for 2 weeks is one of my goals. I wouldn't want to rely on getting water from a spring or whatever that was outside of the house.

I've read many times that in the Middle Ages Europeans took baths twice a year or so.

Trying to stay reasonably clean has merit in terms of infection control, etc. In hurricane or earthquake aftermath scenarios you're likely to be constantly getting small scratches & such while clearing debris and other recovery efforts. Allocating some resources for sponge-baths is prudent where possible.

Unfortunately those kinds of water supply aren't necessarily reliable. During Hurricane Ike the Seabrook sewage treatment plant was submerged and spilled who-knows-how-much of who-knows-what. No surface water supply anywhere nearby was trustworthy for a while. Not to mention the chemical plants in Pasadena and Baytown.


A large percentage of the US population lives in one or the other: all of California and all of Florida alone is a lot of people...


No, *everyone* needs a two week supply of water. *Always*. It's just a matter of where it comes from normally, where it comes from in abnormal situations, etc.

It's mainly a matter of contingency planning and personal choice. Some people don't refill their car's gas tank until the 20-miles-to-go light come on - I doubt any of these people have any drinking water, extra blankets, etc. Some people top off their gas tank at about the halfway mark - these people probably buy their next roll of toilet paper *before* running out, etc.

PLBs, fancy survival tents & bivvy sacks etc may not get to the cost/benefit threshold for most people, but the things on that list seem cheap & reasonable to me. (not sufficient! just no extravagance). Water especially meets the cost/benefit threshold pretty easily...