I like to refer to my teeny bit of paranoia as “preparedness”. With three kids and husband, it’s always a good idea to keep your emergency kits up to date. So after a few years of watching Man vs. Wild and MacGyver, I’ve come up with a few kits I hope will help if anything unexpected occurs. Hee hee, maybe I’d better consult the recommendations of www.ready.gov/build-a-kit as opposed to a fictional, albeit awesome TV show.
I have several emergency preparedness kits & locations; the basement tornado kit, the quick kit in my purse, the hubby’s “working man” kit, the emergency pantry, and more. Today, I am going to share with you my on-the-go Family Van Emergency Kit.
Family Van Emergency Kit
I need this kit to be multifaceted. It has to meet the small needs that may arise (hungry kids, headache, etc.), or if necessary become a survival kit.I needed the perfect grab-and-go case, and what works better than a double decker cooler bag? Heh heh, I thought my “brilliant” idea of was one-of a-kind creative until I ran across a couple other bloggers with cooler emergency kits. Well, let’s just go with “great minds think alike”. Lol, it makes me feel less sheepish.
Tips For Filling Your Kit
Shop the camping department of your favorite store to find everything you need. An outdoor store is best, but Walmart is cheaper.
You wouldn’t believe how much stuff you can cram into such a small space! I divided items into like groups by putting them in tiny craft baggies and labeling them, it helps you find things quickly without rummaging through tons of stuff. Baggies are also a good idea for waterproofing, if your kit gets wet or something moisture rich decides to burst, you won’t have drowned your entire kit rendering it a useless mess.
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Van Emergency Kit Contents:
- Non-perishable food items,
- Cup & camper seasonings, paper towels
- Gatorade packets, water packets
- Aspirin, non aspirin, Ibuprofen, antacid
- Bandages, & adhesive tape, neosporin
- Alcohol swabs, disposable gloves
- Children’s Tylenol
- Activated charcoal
- Thermometer
- Cough drops, zinc tablets, Emergen-C
- Anti-itch ointment, sun & insect spray
- Feminine products
- Mints, wisp mini brush,
- Chapstick, petroleum jelly tube
- Needles, safety pins, thread, small scissors
- Nail file, clipper, scraper, & tweezers
- Superglue, glasses kit, & spare glasses/contacts
- Clothing stain stick
- Water purification tabs & liquid storage bags
- ¼” x 50’ poly rope
- Emergency poncho’s, windbreakers, & blanket
- Emergency whistles
- Lightstick, flashlight
- Matches, + waterproof, flint
- Multitool, nails
- Compass/whistle/thermometer
- Handwarmers
- Campers toilet paper & paper towel
- Napkins, & plastic utensils
- Plastic bags
- Sharpie, pen, & paper
- Antibacterial wet wipes, & dish soap
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Keep Up Your Wit & Kit
Ok, I have been in enough weird random situations to know that preparedness is half the battle. Keep yourself educated, be well informed in addition to having the necessary tools. Oh, and watching Survivor Man doesn’t count. Review certain basic emergency procedures from time to time; know CPR, know the signs of stroke or heart attack, know what to do in a natural disaster, keep a booklet with emergency basics handy.
The other important thing is to keep all your emergency kits up to date. Change out medications that may expire, restock used items immediately, etc.
My philosophy, better to be safe than sorry!
Looking to be more emergency prepared? Check out my post on a very neat product that will help you always be prepared without any effort!
I’m terrible with dimensions just looking at pictures. What size is your cooler and where did you find it? Thank you so much!!
This is incredible, I adore the rundown you aggregated for what to put in the first aid kit, it has everything and more than I would consider! The main thing is, how would you ensure the temperature touchy items, for example, solutions and wipes and so on from that point handiness getting to be plainly decreased in case of outrageous icy or extraordinary hot climate? Do you have an approach to ensure these things? Likewise, I would envision keeping an extra match of contact focal points would be influenced by outrageous warmth.
Thanks! I try to find items that can outlast overly hot or cold days for a while…then of course I replace these items periodically. For example, I found wipes that never seem to dry out (presumably because of the packaging).
my family was in a horrible deer accident and I updated my medical kit to contain one of the most important things….bottled water. We had glass burns, glass in our mouths, bleeding where you couldn’t see the cuts. Water. Water.water, helped us the most (at first). In fact I couldn’t even speak to the 911 dispatcher until I swirled water in my mouth to get the glass out. Here in Michigan it gets cold and the water would freeze, so this year I am going to make sure I have a jug of unfrozen water with me all the time.
Oh no! I’m so sorry you experienced that.
I’m so glad you said that! I failed to mention that I also always keep a gallon of water with me in the car! I realized I needed it after my car overheated once. Plus in warmer months I also keep small water bottles in the trunk just in case. 😉
Excellent suggestion!
I live where it gets really cold and where I’m buried under snow most of the year. I have a really basic emergency kit in my car, but it has more items for winter (snow shovel, blankets, AC converter, flashlights) and this might be something to help add to that.
But, you also mentioned you have emergency kits for other things. Do you think you could add some blog posts to those specific kits? Thanks!
Kudos on your winter emergency items! Yes, I may be overly paranoid or something *grin*… I keep those types of items, as well as overnight items in a second bag, which I will be sure to share at some time! I also have a different set of items in my husbands kit, which I will be sure to share here on the blog. Thanks for following along!
I’m glad to see you have kits that use flashlights. I was on another website that did not have it nor batteries. I use the http://www.bestflashlightspot.com/flashlight-type/tactical-flashlight/ by Fenix in all my emergency kits, because they are super bright and last a long time, plus you can use it for S.O.S.
This is great, I love the list you compiled for what to put in the emergency kit, it has everything and more than I would consider! The only thing is, how do you protect the temperature sensitive products such as medications & wipes etc. from there usefulness becoming diminished in the event of extreme cold or extreme hot weather? Do you have a way to protect these things? Also, I would imagine keeping a spare pair of contact lenses would be affected by extreme heat.
I live in Austin, Texas so we get EXTREMELY hot weather (up to 110 F in summer) and during fall winter months we get what I consider to be pretty cold! Nothing in the negative but it gets as low as 28 degrees, enough to mess with certain products!
I really would like to put together this kit for my car, I absolutely love being prepared for anything! If you have any ideas for protecting temperature sensitive products in the kit, please do share!
I am loving your organization posts! I hope you’ll keep em coming!
🙂 Kellie
Thanks Kellie!
That is an excellent question… why didn’t I include that information? The first kit I created had a lotion bottle explode, and my chapstick melt away! LOL! So I learned the hard way. The solution is thankfully pretty simple… shop in the camping gear section of your store. Items commercially packaged for emergency preparedness or camping trips come in sturdy individual packaging that will withstand most extremes thrown at it. I still store items like my chapstick and emergency contacts, but they are reinforced in baggies and get used fairly frequently, plus I rotate them out each season. Sometimes it’s the careful choices, such as a tube of Petroleum jelly rather than a stick of chapstick. Other items require a little bit of attention; store already packaged wipes in an additional baggie or a plastic canister, store non-prepackaged medication in a tin pill vial that contains the reinforced plastic insert (I blogged about my key ring pill vial), and change out before expiration.
You get the idea…
Hope that helps! 😉
I love this! I just found your blog through Pinterest…the organization kit. 🙂 I’m enjoying hopping around on your blog looking at all of your great ideas. Can’t wait to do the menu plan. It’s perfect!! Yay!