Appearance
9.2 — The Kit, Finalised
One list, assembled from the whole volume, with the reason each item is on it.
Four tiers, and each is a complete stopping point.
Buy tier one this week. Tier two this month. Tiers three and four if they apply to where you live.
Tier one: the things that matter most
About the cost of a nice dinner, and it covers most of what actually happens.
A head torch, and spare batteries. Hands free, and not your phone (1.4).
A power bank, charged, and cables.
A whistle, on your keyring. Carries far further than a voice for a fraction of the energy, and it is what rescuers listen for (6.5, 7.3).
Nine litres of water per person, in ordinary bottles, rotated yearly (5.11).
A basic first aid kit (below).
Two weeks of any prescription medication, arranged with your doctor.
Cash, in small denominations (8.3).
Copies of documents, stored somewhere reachable without your phone (1.4).
Six phone numbers on paper, in your wallet.
And a smoke alarm on every floor, and a carbon monoxide alarm (6.1, 6.2). These two are the highest-value objects in the entire volume.
Tier two: the go-bag
One per adult, packed, by the door.
The test: can you pick it up and be out in sixty seconds?
Water for a day, and a means of treating more — tablets or a small filter.
Food for two days that needs no cooking.
The torch, the power bank, the whistle.
First aid kit and medication.
Documents, cash, phone numbers.
A well-fitting particulate mask — covers smoke, ash and dust (5.7, 5.9).
Change of clothing, sturdy shoes, warm layer, waterproof.
Work gloves.
An emergency blanket.
A lighter.
A multi-tool or a knife.
And the specific items: baby formula and nappies, pet food and carrier, spare spectacles, hearing aid batteries, a spare inhaler or autoinjector.
Tier three: the stay-kit
In a cupboard. Not portable.
Water for three days minimum, two weeks if you can.
Food for two weeks — of things you actually eat, rotated (5.11).
A means of cooking without electricity, used only where ventilated.
A battery or wind-up radio. The information channel when everything else fails (5.1).
Battery lanterns rather than candles. Open flames after an earthquake or gas leak are a hazard (6.1).
A wrench or key for the gas valve, kept beside it.
Sanitation: a lined bucket with a tight lid, absorbent material — sawdust, ash, soil or cat litter — and hand sanitiser (5.11). The item nobody prepares and the one that prevents illness.
Bleach or water purification tablets.
Blankets and warm clothing.
Tools: knife, tape, rope, plastic sheeting, a wrench.
A fire extinguisher and a fire blanket in the kitchen (6.1).
And a manual tin opener.
Tier four: location-specific
Only if it applies.
Earthquake zone: shoes and a torch under every bed; straps or brackets to secure heavy furniture and water heaters (5.2). The straps are the single highest-value earthquake preparation there is.
Flood zone: documents and kit stored high; something to make an opening onto the roof (5.4).
Cyclone coast: shutters or boards; knowledge of the nearest shelter (5.5).
Wildfire interface: hoses reaching all sides; a water supply not dependent on mains pressure; natural-fibre clothing (5.9).
Snow or cold: vehicle kit with blanket, shovel, extra water and warm layers (7.5).
Volcano: proper masks and goggles — ordinary cloth is not adequate for ash (5.7).
Mountains in winter: transceiver, probe and shovel — all three, practised, or they are decoration (5.8).
And a vehicle, anywhere: first aid kit, torch, warning triangle, high-visibility vest, water, blanket, phone charger, and an escape tool within reach of the driver (6.3).
The first aid kit
Specifically, because generic kits are usually inadequate.
Gloves. **Several pairs. The item most often missing.
A large trauma dressing or two, capable of firm pressure (3.4). Not a box of small plasters.
Gauze, roller bandages, triangular bandage, adhesive tape.
Scissors — sturdy enough to cut clothing.
Antiseptic.
Plasters in a range of sizes.
A thermometer.
Paracetamol, and an anti-diarrhoeal.
Oral rehydration salts. Cheap, light, and genuinely lifesaving in heat and in gastrointestinal illness.
Tweezers.
A foil emergency blanket.
And the household-specific: adrenaline autoinjectors, inhaler, glucose source, any regular medication.
Plus a small card listing everybody's conditions, medications and allergies (9.1).
Rotation
Because a kit that has expired is not a kit.
Attach it to something annual. A birthday, a festival, the start of a season.
Check: water, food dates, medication dates, battery dates, and whether the clothing still fits the children.
Ten minutes a year.
What not to buy
Because a great deal of money is spent on the wrong things.
Anything for one specific dramatic scenario. Buy capabilities — light, water, warmth, communication, medical — not scenarios.
Expensive specialised food. **You will not eat it and it will expire. Store what you already eat.
Weapons. Not what this volume is about, and in every real disaster the useful capability is medical, logistical and social.
And more of what you already have. A second torch is worth less than a first radio.
The honest priority order
If you can only do a few things.
Smoke alarm and carbon monoxide alarm.
Learn CPR (3.2).
Water, torch, power bank, cash, document copies.
The one-page plan (9.1).
And know three neighbours.
That list is most of the value in this volume, it costs very little, and it takes an afternoon.
What to do with this page
Tier one this week. It is cheap and it covers most of what happens.
The go-bag test: sixty seconds to the door.
Sanitation supplies. Nobody has them and they are what prevents illness.
Buy capabilities, not scenarios.
And the two alarms are the highest-value objects in this book.
Next: 9.3 — the skills, which matter more than any of the above.