An emergency can occur at any time. They aren’t always considered when we make plans for things. And they can happen in good times and in bad. Survival gear packed in advance can safe our lives in the most desperate situations.
The types of emergencies that people should prepare for can include things like having no electricity for days because of a power outage. It can mean being prepared if there is a flood or a hurricane. Emergencies might also involve tornadoes, forest fires and sudden blizzards on a highway. But the fact remains that emergencies might also involve a house fire, a tire going flat while four-by-four driving in the mountains, or becoming lost on a camping trip. There are fifteen pieces of survival gear that will help a person in almost any emergency situation.
One of the most important pieces of gear is a map. We should have a map of the campground we’re going to be staying in, of the mountains we intend to hike in, of the caves we’re going diving in. And we should know how to use it. A compass helps with map reading, as does a GPS receiver. Second to a map, we should have a flashlight. Darkness is a danger not because of the boogey man but because we might stumble and fall and injure ourselves. Emergency food rations should also go into the pack we keep our survival gear in. A chocolate bar at the right time can give us needed energy to keep on going, walking towards our rescue.
It is important to include extra clothing in an emergency kit. Socks can double as mittens in a snow storm. Extra clothing can be used to layer under clothing that’s become wet. Rain gear is especially helpful, as it can also serve as a wind barrier in the cold. Sunglasses are the sixth item to be included in an emergency pack. The sunlight reflecting off of snow, fog or water can be damaging to the eyes and make it hard to see how close rescue is. Every piece of survival gear can serve a double purpose, to help build a shelter or signal for help to a passing helicopter.
You might hurt yourself more than you realize when you start to get desperate. Fear sets in and people start making mistakes. Thorns on shrubs we pass could scrape or prick the skin. Be sure you pack a first aid kit in your survival gear, complete with bandages, antiseptic creams and ways of helping cover burns and cuts. What about your multi-purpose tool? It might be a little knife with a corkscrew and a pair of pliers on it but it’s a tool, and you might find yourself in desperate need of one later. You’ll also need the tools to make a fire. Pack a lighter, water proof matches or a ferrous rod that will spark easily onto some sort of fuel like tinder or grass.
Normally people aren’t planning on staying lost forever. It’s better to be safe than sorry when packing an emergency kit of survival gear. Be sure to add some way to make water safe to drink. There are disinfection kits available but there are other methods to use too, like solar methods that turn water into condensation that can be collected safely for drinking and cooking. A whistle is another important piece of the kit. Being able to make noise without much effort, and a noise that will be heard for a long distance, could be critical to being rescued.
Packing a tarp or space blanket that can double as a survival shelter is important when we’re packing our survival gear. Parachute cord is also helpful but so would twenty five feet of rope. And the fourteenth item to add when we are packing our survival gear should be insect repellant. Bug spray can be used as fuel for fire if necessary, but being able to fend off infected ticks and biting insects is a plus all of its own.
Your survival gear is meant to help you survive and endure any emergency. Unexpected weather or disasters can take a toll on the strongest person’s sense of morale. The final tool in your survival kit must be your will to live. In the dark, in the night, in the middle of nowhere, it’s easy to want to give up. But with a strong will to survive, and all the right survival gear packed in your kit, it is also easy to choose to live. Never give up five minutes before the miracle.