Emergency preparedness is essential in this day and age.Being prepared and having your personal survival kit is the cornerstone of survival. A good Survival kit contains all the products an individual or a family would need in a disastrous situation. During an Emergency is not the time to think about what to put in your survival kits. Be Prepared! The items for Survival kits are outlined on preparednesstools.com and can be purchased in many styles and varieties.

Survival kits are designed for small offices and work groups, for families and individuals. Your survival kit will be your life line. Your kit needs to be designed to fit your needs. Some Survival kits are packaged in durable plastic containers for many survival advantages. Some kits are compact and can fit into a backpack.

Your survival kit if your plan includes leaving your home or office is a backpack that has all the supplies that you will need to survive. You need to prepare for at least 3 days and nights. You should have a backpack for each member of your family and if you have small children you will need to put their provisions in your pack also.

Your emergency items are of no use if they are not accessible and in a safe place. Store your survival kit(s) in a place that you think will be safe and that you can get to easily and rapidly. That should also be the place where you can take shelter. If you can shelter where you are or in place that’s the best option. Searchers’ will look there first. They will go to the hardest hit areas first and then spread out.

If you are buried in place or on the outskirts of the incident you will be on your own. We can't rely on the Government to be there the minute a disaster happens. Remember it took 3 days to get water to the Metro Dome. They will mobilize but it takes time. You need to be prepared to survive a disaster on your own. It may take rescue crews 72 hrs or longer to get to your emergency. With a properly supplied Survival Kit you and your family will be able to survive.

Remember to have family and office drills for a disaster, just like you would for a fire. It takes practice to make your head act in an emergency instead of react. Every emergency team that works for your safety practices so that their response is automatic. You should do the same.

Take time and develop a plan and then practice it with the family or group. Make assignments so that everybody knows who is taking what. Also make sure that they know how to use what they take. When a disaster happens you will be ready and act instead of react

Jerry Black is a retired Fire Captain and Emergency Medical Technician. He has spent 31 years in the emergency response business. He lives in Southern Utah with his wife and family.