While prepping often invokes images of people hording vast quantities of food, running round in fatigues while carrying an array of weaponry, the reality is vastly different. Prepping is so much more than that, with many using their resources in varying degrees of planning, including building prepper kits.
That’s why I thought I’d put together this article and share some ideas on the different types of prepping gear people accumulate. But to begin with, maybe it might be a good opportunity to give you a quick brief on what prepping actually is and why people do it.
If you find yourself watching the news one evening and hearing about the latest earthquake or tsunami or some other natural disaster, the death toll often climbs long after the event. Have you ever wondered why? Is it because there are more events occurring? Maybe. An earthquake often has aftershocks, some of which are almost as powerful as the original.
But many of the deaths that occur in the days that follow a disaster are not just people succumbing to their injuries. Sometimes, the effects of the event cut off many services from people, rendering them isolated and alone. These are the people that often face the daily challenges completely unprepared.
When running water cuts off, electricity supplies fail and emergency aid doesn’t find a way to reach you, your readiness is measured by how well you prepared for the event beforehand. And that’s really what prepping is.
It’s the amount of prepping you do now that will determine how well you will survive the disaster when it happens.
How to Prepare for Disaster
Prepping, like anything else, begins with a single thing. A plan. That is, if you want to successfully survive. A proper plan will set everything else in motion for you. Once you decide to seriously consider prepping for your own survival, the plan swings into action.
There are many sites found on the internet that purport to help with planning for a disaster. But to what extent do you plan? And what disaster do you prepare for? Because not every plan will be the same, just like every family has different needs.
Your job is to devise a plan suitable for you and your family. Only you will know what that exact plan will be because only you know what the needs of your family are.
There’s so much more to prepping than simply throwing a whole heap of emergency water and rations into a hole, burying it and then guarding it with an assault rifle. Prepping isn’t just about food and water. It’s about building a plan of survival for you and your family, whether it be for a day, 3 days, a week, month or years.
And what disaster are you planning for? A natural one like an earthquake, tsunami, tornado, hurricane, volcanic eruption or bushfire? Maybe a man-made disaster like a nuclear attack, radiation spill, viral outbreak, terrorist attack or biological attack? Each type of disaster requires a different response.
While some require immediate evacuation, others require the opposite, requiring you to remain indoors as much as possible. All of these scenarios will determine which plan you choose.
Different Prepper Kits for Different Events
When it comes to creating prepper kits, there really are two basic options to consider. The first is to build the prepper kit yourself. Purchase the individual items for each and stow them away. The second is to purchase premade prepper kits. Some of these are also called bug out bags, as well as numerous other names.
The following list of prepper kits gives you a few ideas to consider when building your own plan for surviving. Each serves a specific purpose, put together to keep you alive during a certain event. They are available as premade, available for purchase online, or also put together by you; through a list of options each includes.
Kit #1: The Bug Out Bag
The first option on our list falls under a few different names, but they all essentially mean the same thing. Whether it’s a GOOD (Get Out of Dodge) kit or bug out bag, they serve the same purpose.
These kits are available as a premade option and hold everything from emergency water and food rations, as well as a plethora of other items to keep you alive. Items such as space blankets, multi tools, bandages, torches, batteries, rope, duct tape and much more.
Kit #2: The Emergency Prepper Kits
This option is all about first aid. Filled with an abundance of bandages, band-aids, creams, clamps, scissors, slings, dressings and so much more. Think of this as your own little paramedic in a bag.
You can buy these already built online; they are also put together with a few simple purchases.
Kit #3: Pet Bug Out Bags
Believe it or not, few people think of their pets when building a survival plan or building prepper kits. But our pets rely on us for their very survival during normal times.
Think how distressed they become during a major event. Bug out bags for dogs, cats, or any other animal exist for those who think ahead. Numerous online options exist, or build your own.
Kit #4: A Car Emergency Kit
Emergencies don’t just happen while you’re sitting in the comfort of your home. Sometimes they happen during your morning commute. Imagine getting stuck in the middle of a freeway during an EMP attack that kills your car.
How will you get home? These kits are small, light and offer enough supplies to keep you going for a couple of days.
Kit #5: Office Prepper Kits
Not everyone will be home during an event. Some of us may be at work, sitting in a high-rise office with dozens of other people. A major event may see us stuck in the office for longer than anticipated.
It may mean having extra supplies of first aid gear, extra rations of water and food just in case.
Kit #6: Multi-use Kit
Then there are those kits that look after everything BUT the emergency food and water rations. These kits hold the kinds of tools you only think of after you need them.
Like hand-held wire saws, survival knives, a compass, saber cards, parachute cord and an assortment of other gadgets.
While these kits are great to hold the kind of items you’ll use sparingly, partner them with a good supply of emergency water rations and some reliable food rations for a complete survival kit.
Final Thoughts
Prepping is more than just a backpack with some water pouches and a few muesli bars. It’s a well-thought out plan that’s been well researched and put together with quality products to give you and your family the best chance of survival.
Disasters are unpredictable and that’s what makes prepping so hard. What might be deemed suitable for one plan will fall flat on it’s face with another. That’s why it’s important to consider all the options and devise a plan of attack to deal with as many scenarios as possible.
Only when you’ve covered all the possibilities can you say that you are ready. Many preppers never reach that stage, always revisiting their options to ensure success.
