What is the Family Kit System?
The family kit system is simple. Just as individual grab & go bags serve the individual; family kits serve the entire family and provide an extra layer of optional items that can make having to leave home a bit easier to manage. These kits are unique in that they provide the family with an opportunity to plan for a more extended emergency when you don’t know when you will be returning or perhaps where you will go.
Do You Have Extra Room in Your Car?
If your family can evacuate by car and you have the space available for more supplies, the family kit system offers more than your individual grab & go bags possibly could. Using them together will give you more options, supplies, and comfort in what could be a very difficult situation.
Emergency needs differ and space is always going to be an issue. The following kits are part of the family kit system and are offered as suggestions. Is there something missing that would make your life easier if evacuated? Decide what additional items are important to your family so you can have them ready to go.
Kit Types
- Shelter & Warmth
- Food & Cooking
- Lighting
- Sanitation
- Cleaning
- Communications
- Tool
- First Aid
- Water & Purification
- Battery
- Charging
- Entertainment
Packing Family Kits
Here are some helpful suggestions for putting your family kits together.
- Gather items together and place them in a Ziploc or other type of bag. This becomes a kit. Keep in mind that Ziploc bags come in various sizes including 2- and 3-gallon bags.
- Label each kit so the contents can be easily identified, especially if it is not contained in a clear Ziplog bag.
- Place all kits together inside a manageable tote or container. Depending on what you pack and how many individual kits you include, you may end up with more than one container. Store family kits alongside your grab & go bags.
- Assign this extra tote or container to a responsible adult to make sure it is taken with their own grab & go bag.
The next practical step in emergency preparedness
Once individual grab & go bags are packed and ready to go - the family kit system can be viewed as the next step. It's important to put them in perspective, however, and know what they are and what they are not.
They are
- optional for evacuation
- items the family can share
- a replenishment of items contained in individual grab & go bags – including core essentials, individual-specific needs, and shared essentials.
- an opportunity to take more items than the typical go bag allows
- a way to provide more supplies for an extended emergency
They are not
- necessary for evacuation
- a replacement for an individual’s grab & go bag
- a replacement for the shared essentials bag
- meant to add pressure - include them only if you can afford to and view them as worth the cost
- meant to be taken if there is a house fire – in that situation, focus on safety first
The next practical step in emergency preparedness
Once individual grab & go bags are packed and ready to go - the family kit system can be viewed as the next step. It's important to put them in perspective, however, and know what they are and what they are not.
They are
- optional for evacuation
- items the family can share
a replenishment of items contained in individual grab & go bags – including core essentials, individual-specific needs, and shared essentials.
- an opportunity to take more items than the typical go bag allows
- a way to provide more supplies for an extended emergency
They are not
- necessary for evacuation
- a replacement for an individual’s grab & go bag
- a replacement for the shared essentials bag
- meant to add pressure - include them only if you can afford to and view them as worth the cost
- meant to be taken if there is a house fire – in that situation, focus on safety first