5 Tips to Preparing Your Family for a Catastrophic Event

Catastrophic events can come in many forms. From earthquakes and tornadoes to violence and acts of terrorism, your world can become shaken up and unstable. The only thing you can do is prepare for it. In 2012, a survey was done at Adelphi University Center for Health Innovation and it revealed that less than 50% of the people in the U.S. were prepared for an emergency. The last thing you want is to find yourself in a situation that puts your family at risk for dehydration, starvation, or worse. The following are five tips that you can use to help prepare your family for a catastrophic event:

Water

The most important item in your survival kit is water. Without an adequate supply, your catastrophe could turn fatal. Storing one gallon of water per person for each day you expect to be without is essential for your preparedness. A thirty day supply for a family of four would equal to one hundred twenty gallons of water.

Food

In the event of a disaster, you will not be able to go to a store to buy food. Prepare your family by stockpiling as much food as possible. If you do not have space to garden or raise animals, canned foods, such as soups and beans, have a long shelf life. Other items to stockpile include sugar, flour, rice, and canned meats. You may want to stock your freezer full, but if the catastrophe takes out the power, it may all go to waste.

Shelter

Most people plan to stay where they are in the event of an emergency, but you may need to take shelter elsewhere. Most are not financially able to purchase a second property, so if this is the case, you will need to stockpile camping supplies. Tents, bedding, and a cooking mechanism should be your top priority. With the right equipment, you can take shelter anywhere.

Defense

In difficult times, people will do whatever it takes to take care of their families. You must do the same and create a defense system to protect yours. You may have prepared by stockpiling water and food that will last your family a year. What happens when someone else comes to take it from you to feed their own family? Without a decent defense system, your family could come to harm.

Survival Skills

It is also imperative for you and family members to learn a wide variety of survival skills. In a catastrophic event, you may not have food, heat, or medicines available. Learning how to start a fire, which plants are edible, and which plants are used as medicine could make the difference on whether your family survives in disastrous situations.

The above tips are just a few things you can do to prepare your family for a major catastrophic event. From assembling a survival kit, to learn survival skills, each one is vital to survival. You may not be able to prepare for every single type of event that could happen, but you are guaranteed that if you start preparing now, you and your family will have a much better chance for survival.