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Today on the blog, I’m sharing something that is less glamorous than fashion and travel – but, perhaps, more important: Home emergency preparedness shopping list.
I know that this can be a scary topic for some folks (myself included), as no one wants to think about the worst case scenario. My goal with this list is to help you fel more confident in your own emergency preparedness efforts – without feeling like Chicken Little, running around and yelling, “The sky is falling! The sky is falling!”
This isn’t an exhaustive guide, rather, I’m sharing home emergency items that I’ve recently purchased – as well as a list of things I’m thinking about buying.
Items to Buy for Apartment Emergency Preparedness
Ok, while it’s tempting to build a bunker in my backyard, this isn’t actually useful – as I live in an apartment.
While I have a pretty spacious apartment (with home office and fashion studio), I don’t want to fill it with STUFF.
So, here are items that I’ve made sure to purchase:
Quick Note: I am not an emergency preparedness expert! I’m sharing my own experience in this post, in the hopes of helping other folks get started and do a bit more. For myself, I’ve decided that I can’t wait until I have perfect knowledge (when will that happen, lol?), and it’s better to have something rather than nothing!!!
Also, These emergency prep items for your apartment are also not ranked in order of importance! I have all of these, unless noted!
#1 Item: Fire Extinguishers Set || Apartment Emergency Preparedness ($30)
Fist up on our list of home preparedness items are fire extinguishers!
Notice the plural there?
Apparently, there are different fire extinguishers for kitchen fires and other fires. Who would’ve known?
Did you know that there are different fire extinguishers for grease fires and electric fires?? I sure didn’t!
Not me!
I got this set of fire extinguishers at Lowe’s for $30 a couple of months ago (and I promptly posted all over social media about the white fire extinguisher, lol).
Extra Resources:
- From reading online, it’s a good idea to have a fire extinguisher on every level of your home – which makes sense! FEMA has a whole post on choosing a fire extinguisher here.
Shop fire extinguishers here.
#2 Item: First Aid Kit || Apartment Emergency Preparedness Items
Ok, so I actually have 2 first aid kits, building out my emergency preparedness kit for my apartment!
One first aid kit is a general first aid kit for regular bumps and cuts that happen in day-to-day life.
The other first aid kit is much more in-depth, and its purpose is to be thrown in a bag to get rolling. This is a good example.
I have 2 first aid kits, to make planning easier.
I have two kits because I want one complete kit for emergency preparedness. I don’t want to open it up and find that stuff is missing!
Note: I could go super extreme here, and get a medical kit that EMTs and first responders use (like this one here). Eventually, I might snag one of these as I level up my emergency preparedness. Right now, I’m still at the 101 level.
Shop emergency first aid kits HERE!
#3 Item: Water Storage || Apartment Emergency Preparedness Items
Ok, so this one is a bit more tricky. I have enough water for 2 weeks stored for 2 people.
Various prepping blogs list having minimum 1 gallon a day per person. I started my emergency preparedness with 3 days, and then slowly added to it over time.
I have both gallons of water and bottled water, for easier storage.
Because I don’t have space for 28 gallons of water (lol), I actually do this by purchasing and cycling in and out bottles of water. I store a combination of gallons of water and packs of bottled water.
- Bonus: I also have a week’s supply of these water purification tablets, and this water purifier tool I saw on TikTok (lol).
When it comes to storing water, you might not have room for this much in your place. (I have water tucked away under furniture and odd cupboards). The important thing is to have something onhand. Having something is better than having nothing. Don’t keep yourself from making plans because they can’t be perfect!
#4 Item: Food Storage || Apartment Emergency Preparedness Items
Growing up in the Mormon Church, I learned a lot about food storage. Mormons focus a LOT on disaster and emergency preparedness.
Figuring out how much food to have onhand can be tough. After seeing my best friends try to navigate getting food in New York City during March 2020, I’ve decided to go with 2 weeks of food storage.
Extra tips on food storage:
- Start Slow: Like with almost everything else on this list, I started with 3 days and worked my way up slowly. I added a line item to my food budget each week, and bought items over time.
- Storage: Like water, this stuff can be hard to store if you live in an apartment. I recommend getting creative! I have multiple places I store items like this, utilizing high cupboards, closet shelfs, etc!
I have a collection of canned food and freeze dried food, enough for 2 people for two weeks. When buying canned food, I made sure to choose items I would use in cooking, and swap out over time. A bulk of my food storage is freeze dried, as it’s less heavy to carry!
i have both canned food and freeze dried food.
After doing a lot of research on freeze dried food (similar to MREs), I landed on getting meals from Mountain House. I have friends who use these when camping for fun, and the reviews shared that other brands can burn your hands.
When buying Mountain House, I recommend checking your local CostCo for options, as I found this box of Mountain House meals to be about $50 less expensive at CostCo verses other stores!
#5 Item: Disaster Kit || Apartment Emergency Preparedness Items
Ok, this is where I’m stuck. I know I want a disaster kit, but there are so many dang options for 72 hour kits.
I have NOT bought one.
Here are two I’m considering:
#6 Item: Small Generator & Flashlights || Apartment Emergency Preparedness Items
When I first started preparing my apartment, flashlights were one of the first things I snagged. (I ordered a pack of small flashlights + 1 large flashlight tucked into a closet or cupboard in each room of my apartment. I don’t want to have to dig around for these.)
While I normally use my iPhone as a flashlight, I have actual flashlights for emergencies. This is because I don’t want to drain my precious phone battery in an emergency. I need to preserve that battery to contact folks.
I haven’t snagged a radio//small generator yet, and here are the ones I have my eyes on:
#7 Item: Legal Document Prep || Apartment Emergency Preparedness Items
Replacing legal documents can be a pain the behind, so this is super important. Having scanned and SECURE (not hanging out on your Google Drive) is super dang important.
Having copies makes getting replacements much easier, for, example: deed/lease to your home, passports, birth certificates, insurance policies, etc.
Some folks put these items in a special folder (like these) or a fireproof kit. I’m currently researching to see if there are disaster prep businesses that can scan + secure this information.
In addition, I have the following:
- Printed phone number list of friends and family (after all, who memorizes phone numbers?!)
- Medication list
- Proof of address (bills)
#8 Item: Sleeping Bag & Tent|| Apartment Emergency Preparedness Items
Ok, so I’m not super into camping, but I plan on getting an all weather 4 season tent for disaster preparedness.
Currently, I have 2 sleeping bags that are designed to be used in sub-zero temperatures. (I live in Utah, and it’s cold here in the winter!)
- Geertop 4 person all weather tent. (Have not purchased yet)
- Sleeping bags
Next Steps – Apartment Emergency Preparedness Items
As I was typing up this list, I got super anxious – so kudos if you’ve made it this far.
Something I continually remind myself is that it’s better to have SOMETHING over NOTHING. I will probably never feel 100% prepared, and that’s just the nature of being a human on planet Earth in 2021!
Start somewhere and move up!
More Disaster Prep & Emergency Preparedness Reviews
I’m looking for more disaster prep products and services to review as a blogger in 2022! If you’re a brand looking to partner with a blogger, please reach out to me here!
