A get home bag will help you reach the safety of your home if a disaster happens, and you are in an unfamiliar location. A disaster can hit anytime and anywhere, and you should be prepared to reach your home and your loved ones.
Here are a few essential items you will be glad you packed in your get home bag!
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Clothing And Footwear
Ensure you get outfits that suit the season, solid and comfortable shoes, hats, gloves, sunglasses, as well as rain gear and some extra pairs of socks.
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Shelter
The shelter is essential for keeping you warm, treating shock, and protecting you from strong winds, rain, and debris. You should also include a fire kit with several fire-starting helpers (matches, lighters, fire steel, and striker). You should also include a generous supply of tinder.
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Water
As hydration is an absolute must to preserve your health, you should have at least one or two liters of water readily available. You also need a stainless steel bottle or a metal pot to boil water in, as well as a water purification device such as LifeStraw and MicroPus tablets. While food isn’t essential at this stage, you should make sure you have some energy bars and trail mix to help you cope with hunger and keep your motivation up.
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First Aid
This isn’t a matter of treating your scrapes and bruises. The minimum you need to have with you is a good personal trauma kit or IFAK. Also, you should include hand sanitizer and duct tape or moleskin for blisters. While toilet paper may be nice to have, you can easily improvise something, as we are only talking about a period of 1-3 days. If you can, add some ibuprofen and Band-Aids.
Read next: Wilderness First Aid Basics
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Personal Items
The personal items category includes glasses, contact lenses, prescription medications, EpiPens, and any other such items you can’t do without. Add everything that keeps you functional on a daily basis. If you can’t survive without coffee, add some by all means!
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Tools
You’ll need tools to get things done as you go. This category may include only the basics, such as a multi-tool and a knife. However, if you are the type that wants to be prepared, you’ll probably want to load up your kit with other survival tools such as flashlight, pry tool, small bolt cutters, fixed-blade knife, hatchet, headlamp, glass breaker, rope, bandanas, work gloves, and an N95 mask. Always remember that you shouldn’t carry too much weight, as it might prevent you from moving as easily as you need.
Even if you know your surroundings, you’ll still need a GPS or maps and compass to find alternative routes to your point of destination. Such tools will allow you to keep the right way and prevent you from wandering around and wasting valuable time. Also, you may want to add a Sharpie or chalk to mark your routes, and a whistle or a signal mirror to communicate with your peers.
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Communications Equipment
You should be able to send and receive messages at any given time, as this could prove to be vital to your survival. A portable emergency radio and a cell phone should be part of your GHB.
Recommended article: HAM Radio – A Critical Piece Of Equipment For Survival Communications
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Self-Rescue Support Equipment
You should be able to support yourself in harsh conditions. This is why your bag should also include some cash, spare batteries, and even a prepaid card to help you buy some essential stuff along the way.
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Self-Defense
Most of you might choose one or two firearms and perhaps some non-lethal alternative weapons. Make sure you carry only weapons you know how to use. If you don’t have tens of hours of training behind the weapon you carry, you might end up hurting anyone but your attacker.
Other Useful Resources:
25 projects for your quarantined homestead
Learn how to Safeguard your Home against Looters
Knowledge to survive any medical crisis situation during a major disaster
The vital self-sufficiency lessons our great grand-fathers left us