Nobody saw COVID-19 coming. Well, Bill Gates did in a Ted Talk, and perhaps the Chinese authorities did – who knows?
The majority of us didn’t see it coming however. Now many of us are taking other threats seriously too; like global disasters or a breakdown of civilization resulting in looting and the like.
It’s good to be prepared, so my Scout leader told me before I got kicked out for laughing during prayers.
This emergency preparedness checklist should give you a good starting point. When you’re done, you’re ready to handle most of what comes your way.
A preparer supply list that not only tells you what to store for future emergencies, but also why.
If an end of the world scenario really unfolds, there is much more you can do to prepare for yourself and your family.
Preparation is not a one-time event, but it will continue especially if you are looking to acquire certain skills or training.
It is highly recommended to have a 4-week supply of food / water and basic essentials.
Things everyone needs to survive (like food and water), but they also cover some lesser-known items.
Some Basic Tips for Prepping
- Build a rainy day fund in terms of personal finance – have a few K in the bank
- Prepare your home for two weeks of self-sufficiency
- Pack some ‘basics-bags’ – so you can get out of your home with just a moment’s notice
Basic Preppers List
Food
When stuff goes west, you will need food and shelter. So we may as well start with the essential food items:
- 2 Weeks Backup of Food. Ideally 4 weeks
food should have a minimum of two weeks of food available for emergencies. This should basically consist of your normal foods – those that you eat daily. Minus the processed rubbish if possible. - Tinned and Canned Long-term food in addition to your regular meals, you should consider your long-term needs. If social disruption is widespread, you may need to have food on hand to live for months
Tinned food should include:
Canned fish
Canned soup
Canned Fruit
Canned Coconut Milk
Evaporated Milk - Salt – a great preservative. Great for hydration in small amounts.
- Honey – has a very long shelf life. Raw honey is also an antibiotic
- Garlic – have some form of garlic on hand if possible. It is also a powerful antibiotic
- Rice. – cheap, high calorie and with a long shelf life
- Beans – high in protein.
- Oats – cheap, high in protein, high in energy, high in fiber.
- Pasta – high in energy.
- Powdered foods – milk and cheese.
- Nut Butter – peanut butter, is very high in energy, protein and is very nutritious
- Beer – just because
Water
In terms of importance, it can easily be number 1. It is not only necessary for safety, but can also be used for many tasks.
- Have a liter of bottled water to hand – ideally more
2. Tablets for purifying water — if you do not have pure water (or not), the tablets can remove chemicals and even viruses.
3. Portable water filter – I bought mine off Aliexpress but there are plenty of ‘survival water filters’ on eBay and Amazon.
4. Hydration Pack: This can be a complement to most backpacks and is very convenient when you are on the go.
5. Drinking Containers: If your water is not bottled, you will need a separate container for drinking water.
6. Thermal Bottle: Ideal because it is portable and allows cold and hot temperatures.
Self defense / Home defense
Learn what you will use to protect your family if a looter & his mates ‘knocks’ on the door.
Obviously firearms would work well in this situation and may also help with hunting. But then you need to weigh-up the chances of someone stealing the gun or one of your kids getting hold of it during normal day to day life. A happy medium could be a pump action BB rifle. It is very hard to use without adult-strength and would deter one or two introuders without killing anyone.
- Door security-EZ armor door security kit
2. Sandbags: Ideal to protect yourself from water and bullets.
3. Barbed-wire wire
4. Camouflage clothing: this can have several advantages
5. Body armor with soft or hard panels
6. Heavy duty knife
7. Ultra bright flashlight
Clothing
Make sure you have the right clothes for the harsh weather outside. Fashion stops when you have to live out with elements. This applies to children as well.
Layers are key in the winter and absorb clothing in the summer. If you have a lot of camping equipment, you should be prepared.
- Waterproof coat and trousers
- Heavy work boots
- Heavy duty socks: wool blends like Merino are my winter favorites.
- Heavy duty gloves
- Heavy duty hats
Shelter
Obviously a tent would be a good shout. Even a pop up tent would be better than nothing.
- Tent
- Plywood
- Material repair as needed
- Plastic sheets are good for darkening the light or creating a barrier against infection.
- DUCTAPE!
- Cordmas screwdriver
- nails
- Bivvy Bags
Heat & Fire
- Propane Heater
- Flint fire starter or Magnesium Fire Starter
- Kindling
- Waterproof lighter
- Waterproof matches
- Wood burning stove
First Aid Kit
Never finish a first aid kit – keep updating and replacing bits of it. Even in good times, we should have access to first aid kits to help us withstand some of the emergencies. But in catastrophic situations, even small emergency conditions can be a serious health hazard. In fact, a small cut can be fatal when infected.
You should have a good first aid kit available wherever you are. This means they need to be in the bag to get home, in the wrong bag, in the car and at home.
- Plasters
- Antiseptic
- sterile dressings
- Triangular bandages
- Safety Pins
- Tweezers
- Adhesive tape.
- Antiseptic wipes
Click the link below to download the list as a pdf.
preppers-checklist-2020-pdf-included-editedDownload
