Apocalypse Mode · Earthquake
There is no warning, so everything here is about what is already in the house.
Earthquakes offer no notice at all, which makes them the clearest argument for keeping a kit rather than a shopping list. The shaking lasts seconds; utilities, glass and blocked routes last much longer.
The list is ordered by what you reach for: first the things beside the bed, then the household kit, then what makes the following days workable.
Reachable in the dark, on broken glass, in seconds.
Anything that damages a building leaves the floor covered in things you should not walk on in trainers. Boots by the bed is a habit, not a purchase.
Why you need it. Anything that damages a building leaves the floor covered in things you should not walk on in trainers. Boots by the bed is a habit, not a purchase.
What to look for. Closed, thick-soled boots you can put on in the dark, ideally with ankle support. Keep socks tucked inside them.
Hands-free light for a pre-dawn start, an unexpected late finish, or finding anything at all inside a tent.
Why you need it. Hands-free light for a pre-dawn start, an unexpected late finish, or finding anything at all inside a tent.
What to look for. A small lamp with a low mode for camp and a bright mode for walking, plus spare batteries or a charged battery pack.
Shouting for help lasts a few minutes; a whistle carries much further and lasts as long as you do.
Why you need it. Shouting for help lasts a few minutes; a whistle carries much further and lasts as long as you do.
What to look for. A pealess plastic whistle on a lanyard, attached to a bag or kept with your keys so it is on you rather than in a cupboard.
Broken glass, splintered wood and hot metal are the ordinary hazards of any clean-up, and hands are what you need working for everything else.
Why you need it. Broken glass, splintered wood and hot metal are the ordinary hazards of any clean-up, and hands are what you need working for everything else.
What to look for. Tough leather or coated gloves that fit properly. Cheap thin gloves tear on the first sharp edge, which is the edge that mattered.
Kept together, in one place everyone knows.
Water is the first thing to run short and the hardest to improvise. Three litres per person per day covers drinking and basic cooking, and having it already in the house means you never join the queue for it.
Why you need it. Water is the first thing to run short and the hardest to improvise. Three litres per person per day covers drinking and basic cooking, and having it already in the house means you never join the queue for it.
What to look for. Sealed bottles or food-grade containers holding three days' worth per person, kept somewhere cool and dark. Write the date on them and swap the stock out twice a year.
Three days of food that needs no fridge and little or no cooking removes the pressure to shop during exactly the week everyone else is shopping.
Why you need it. Three days of food that needs no fridge and little or no cooking removes the pressure to shop during exactly the week everyone else is shopping.
What to look for. Tins, dried pasta, rice, nut butter and long-life milk you actually like eating, so the stock quietly rotates through normal meals instead of expiring in a cupboard.
A cupboard of tins and no way into them is the most avoidable failure on this list, and electric openers are useless the moment the power goes.
Why you need it. A cupboard of tins and no way into them is the most avoidable failure on this list, and electric openers are useless the moment the power goes.
What to look for. A simple metal opener with a comfortable handle. Keep it in the same place as the emergency food, not in the general kitchen drawer where it wanders off.
Blisters, grazes and headaches are the everyday injuries, and all of them are far more manageable with a small kit in the bag.
Why you need it. Blisters, grazes and headaches are the everyday injuries, and all of them are far more manageable with a small kit in the bag.
What to look for. Blister plasters, adhesive dressings, antiseptic wipes, painkillers and a bandage. Restock it after every trip rather than before the next one.
When the mobile network is congested or down, local radio is still telling you which roads are closed and where to go. It is the one information source that does not depend on your phone.
Why you need it. When the mobile network is congested or down, local radio is still telling you which roads are closed and where to go. It is the one information source that does not depend on your phone.
What to look for. A wind-up or battery radio with FM and, ideally, weather or emergency bands. A model that also charges a phone earns its shelf space.
Most household fires are small for about ninety seconds. That is the window in which an extinguisher within reach makes the whole difference.
Why you need it. Most household fires are small for about ninety seconds. That is the window in which an extinguisher within reach makes the whole difference.
What to look for. A multi-purpose dry powder or foam extinguisher rated for home use, plus a fire blanket in the kitchen. Check the gauge yearly.
Utilities, damage and getting hold of each other.
Knowing where your water stopcock, gas valve and fuse box are — and being able to reach them in the dark — prevents a bad day from becoming a flooded or burning one.
Why you need it. Knowing where your water stopcock, gas valve and fuse box are — and being able to reach them in the dark — prevents a bad day from becoming a flooded or burning one.
What to look for. The right spanner beside the valve, a label on the fuse box, and a photo of each one on your phone. Practise finding them with the lights off.
Doors warp, frames shift and debris lands where you need to walk. A short bar gives you the leverage a pair of hands does not have.
Why you need it. Doors warp, frames shift and debris lands where you need to walk. A short bar gives you the leverage a pair of hands does not have.
What to look for. A 40–60 cm flat pry bar in steel, stored with your gloves. Long enough for leverage, short enough to carry.
A sheet of waterproof material covers a damaged roof, keeps belongings dry, becomes shade, or becomes shelter. Few things are this flexible.
Why you need it. A sheet of waterproof material covers a damaged roof, keeps belongings dry, becomes shade, or becomes shelter. Few things are this flexible.
What to look for. A reinforced tarp with eyelets, around 3 x 4 m, plus a length of paracord to tie it with.
Broken windows, split bags, cracked pipes and taped-up boxes. It is the least glamorous and most reused thing in any kit.
Why you need it. Broken windows, split bags, cracked pipes and taped-up boxes. It is the least glamorous and most reused thing in any kit.
What to look for. One good-quality wide roll — cheap tape peels off exactly when the repair matters.
Insurance, identity and medical paperwork are what make the recovery possible, and they are exactly what nobody remembers while leaving in a hurry.
Why you need it. Insurance, identity and medical paperwork are what make the recovery possible, and they are exactly what nobody remembers while leaving in a hurry.
What to look for. Copies of ID, insurance, prescriptions and property documents in a waterproof wallet, plus the same set encrypted somewhere online.
The part people skip and later wish they had not: who collects whom, where you meet if you cannot get home, and which out-of-area contact everyone calls.
Why you need it. The part people skip and later wish they had not: who collects whom, where you meet if you cannot get home, and which out-of-area contact everyone calls.
What to look for. One page, printed, in every bag and on the fridge. Agree it out loud with everyone, including the children, and revisit it once a year.
