Build a FEMA Disaster Kit (Federal Emergency Management Agency) 

For those who want to skip, he actually said the items at 3:07 Thank me later

5 years ago I would have thought this dude was going a little overboard but after seeing the clusterfuck that this pandemic made I stand corrected

On "food" at 3:50 - 1) put a manual can opener with the stash 2) definitely buy at least three MRE's, and open up one and eat it so you'll understand it and get familiar with it - it's likely the sort of food FEMA and Military will be bringing to you in the first week or month 3) if you get Mountain House of other dehydrated food then check the water requirements to make it and add that amount to your water stockpile

This is what I'm writing my master's thesis on right now. Grass roots preparedness can have a drastic impact on what the local, county, and state agencies can do after a disaster. Without having to provide food and shelter for evacuees immediately after a disaster they can focus on situations of a more immediate concern. It would also save these agencies huge amounts of money on the tight budgets that they have to work with.

An Omni-directional flashlight? Where I come from, it is called a LANTERN!

About pandemic at 11:15 - have a small module in your vehicle; medical gloves and dish work gloves along with the masks and sanitizing wipes so if the break-out occurs while you're away from home you can minimize your exposure at the gas stations, etc.

Plastic sheeting and duct tape can also be used to make temporary repairs (e.g. hole in the roof)

Overall a good presentation. Missed a few key items however. Food. OK, you have enough canned goods to last you and yours a week or longer. You even remembered to get a can opener. You would be surprised by how many don't. Now, how are you going to cook it? The beanie weenies and pork and beans you can eat right out of the can, other items, not such a good idea. Juniors pasta and meatball A-roni needs to be heated you know. The Ramen noodles can be soaked in room temp water, but sometimes you need a hot meal. Splurged on that 20 pound bag of Navy beans? Going to need water and HOURS to soak them before you cook them. Otherwise you will be biting into a pebble. Invest in a simple camp stove that takes propane bottles. If you have a propane BBQ, you can get an adapter to connect your BBQ bottle to the camp stove. Items needing dairy to prepare, milk, butter and such. Forget them. Leave them on the shelf. Water only items because your milk and such will go bad after two or three days. Wet wipes, great idea, really. If the power goes out and the water pressure follows it, forget jumping in the shower. Use the baby wipes for the essentials, face, pits, privates, and piddies[feet]. Keep those parts clean and you will not only feel better, but the risk of getting sick drops greatly. If you intend on taking a bucket bath, do not use straight rainwater or roof run off. Filter the water to avoid any contaminants. Bad water getting into a cut or scratch can cause infection. "But I used soap to kill bacteria", sure did, then you rinsed with the bad water didn't you. Toilet paper. Figure a roll per person for five days. Might seem like a lot, but if someone gets the runs, it may not be enough. Hand the wife the Walmart flyer you're likely to get smacked with it, hopefully before it's used. Bury the waste far enough from home that it won't' leak back into your area. A simple hand shovel will allow them to dig deep enough, but a post hole digger works even better. Less to shovel back on top. Let your neighbor across the street that ran wonder why his roses and grass came back so fast. Feminine hygiene products. Best to have and not need, than tell momma and the baby girl you don't have any. Now I'm no expert on the subject, but I have heard that stress can trigger that time of the month, early. Guys, do you want to be the one they blame for it NOT being there? No need to add that to the ever growing list of "Your Fault". Pets. Fluffy and Da Hound gotta eat too ya know. Dried will do just fine, even the pickiest will eat it if they get hungry enough. Flashlights. Gotta have them. Lantern, nice but there are ways to light up a room without one. Tape a flashlight to a full gallon jug of water, light beam pointing into the jug, and turn it on. The water will diffuse the light beam enough to give you a weak lantern. Power generator. Great idea, if you want everybody to know about it. First aid kit. Get one. Learn what's in it and how to use it. Take a Red Cross course. Nobody will expect you to know how to do open heart surgery, but being able to wrap a sprain or immobilize a break will come in handy. Not to mention how to dress a cut or burn. Should you have a cut bad enough to need stitches, there are certain band aids for that. Or, if your bad ass enough, non waxed dental floss and a curved needle. Sun Glasses. Sound silly, but you will need them. Entertainment. If you got kids, get an UNO deck. Keeps them occupied for a while.

Flashlight wise I'd suggest saving some space, assuming that you're not at home such as a car kit where space is at a premium, a headlamp. They're available from Cabela's and a number of other places, use LCDs for light so the batteries last forever, and they use AAAs, so you can pack an extra set while using up minimal space. Just a thought for the car or get home bag that everyone should have and it should be maintained in the car.

Appreciate the common sense approach to preparedness and good solid advice. Thanks for making this video. Keep up the good efforts.

Good vid. Re: sealing off a room with duct tape and plastic sheeting: there is a case on record of a family suffocating after doing this. Use with caution.

I would add a detailed, local map, maybe a Backroads Map Book. No guarantee you'll be in a vehicle when you bug out, so you won't be making it long distances necessarily. In that situation you'll want details of the local walking trails and back roads.

One thing I do, is to take a can of calorically dense Soup for example, Mix in a Ramen packet. And I have just fed my wife and I a meal for less than Two Bucks!

You are very correct . it is a very good idea keep nourishing food. You can also use vitamins and my favorite is Super-Greens drink mix. For sanitation a seal-able 5 gal bucket and some blue water treatment to help with the smell/cleanliness.

thanks for the heads up, each to its own on what to stock up on, but the concept Is well received.

A note on Ramen noodles . . . . A friend and I actually experimented with living on nothing but Ramen noodles for extended periods of time. There were no hunger problems, and most of the noodles were eaten raw without seasoning to further simulate "bad times" situations. There WERE "health" problems. . . . Ramen noodles contain an incredible amount of sodium and after a couple of weeks of this Ramen only diet, this resulted in water retention, "swelling" almost like gout, and elevated blood pressure. Keep this in mind as you buy those flats of Ramen noodles. As for the plastic sheeting . . . You are in error about the use of plastic and duct tape for nuclear fallout. It takes 3 feet of dirt to protect you from radiation and fallout . . . do you really think a few mils of plastic will do anything? The FEMA list is false security . . . just like all the TSA "agents" at the airport.

great video, just a heads up have you ever actually tried to charve your phone from dead with your crank radio i have an eton radio red cross edition , and for an expieriment i let my phone die abd it took me about 10 minutes of cranking to get enough juice to make about a 1-2 minute phone call, id add a solar charger works much better. thanks for the videos man

..."try to make your room as airtight as possible..." ....I can't breef.....😔

The KA500 radio can also use a AC adapter for power one is not included though. It's a great emergency radio for the house

WOW HE REALLY HIT IT 5 YEARS AGO. WHEN HE SAID A VIRUS BREAK OUT NOW WE HAVE COVID-19😭😭😭

EMT here: Those masks only provide really basic protection against biohazardous stuff since it's only meant to protect you from dust. For protection against some viruses you'll need FFP2 or FFP3 masks since those viruses are quite small and they will pass other masks without any trouble. That's why they're called dustmasks. Oh and btw awesome videos keep going!

Great video and thank you for sharing this very important message about emergency preparedness with the natural disasters that we face in life.

I am surprised you mentioned a manual can opener. I have been through several hurricanes, tornadoes, and even a few earthquakes and you would be surprised by how many people DON'T have a can opener. It doesn't have to be a large one, like you used as an example, it can be as small as a P-51 "John Wayne" on your key ring. Another reason for turning off the gas is due to the fact that there might be a break in the line upstream of you. If that happens then your gas will be shut off or interrupted. Not a major deal to most I understand, but if that does occur then your pilot lights on your heater and stove will go out until service is restored. If you haven't turned it off before then, then you will have gas flowing into your home when it is turned back on. If this happens and it goes on for a while, it will not only displace the oxygen in your home, but if someone strikes a match then you have the risk of an explosion. One thing you didn't mention that needs to be addressed, turn off the power at your main circuit breaker too. If your power goes out during a flood, then water will get into your outlets. If your power goes comes on before you have completely dried everything out, you risk a short and possibly a fire. Remember, electricity and water don't mix. Kind of like a Packer Backer and a Bears fan. Hope for the best yet plan for the worst. Better to have and NOT need, than NEED and not have. One other thing. If you have children, pack some coloring books, board games, and reading material for them to entertain themselves with. In this age of video games and computer simulations, they will get bored fast without them. Might want to consider doing the same thing for yourself and 'Da Wife/Hubby". A bored and cranky kid is bad enough, but toss in a bored and cranky spouse? It won't be pretty man. Also, get ready for the never ending no matter how many times you answer it question, "When will the power/internet/TV be back on?". Best of luck and we'll see you on the other side.

great video! I would add a USB with important information on it like insurance and other documents, etc. Also, since water is almost the most important thing for these cases, I would add a small water firter in case you cannot carry the bottleled water; a blanket; a lighter; an edible plants book from your area; maybe a survival skills book; and even if it sounds crazy, a little bag with vegetables and grains seeds , which is one of the most precious things on the planet for humans in case something bigger happens and we need to start over...just saying, it doen't hurt! Also, always have your car at least 1/2 full of gas and designate a meet up point with your family/friends for every city around you. cheers!

Completely sealing a room could cause asphyxiation if the air supply is not refreshed from time. The more people in the room, the more quickly the air requires refreshing. I thought I'd mention it 'cause I'm pretty sure your readers don't want to wakeup dead.

great things also add is one of those clamshells phone from the late 90s to early 2000s there battery life lasts a lot longer can use it as a backup to your smartphone you can add all your important phone numbers and up-to-date pictures on them

I have reverse osmosis (pure) water. Can I store this longer in a 5 gallon water container longer than tap water and if so do you have any idea how much longer I can store this?

A tarp or shower curtain will be NO GOOD at preventing viruses entering. Plastic sheet is the only thing that will help. Tarp and curtain may look the part but are not going to be effective. The rest of the vid was spot on though.

Thanks for the tip about the FEMA website. I will check it out

As far as tools make sure you have one to shut off the water main to your house. You don’t want a flood either. Also sealing your home do not use a tiny room like a bathroom. If you make it actually air tight you could suffocate from poison air

i promise you that radio will not charge anything. it only has a cordless phone battery in it

I started decades ago in building a collection of the items I would need in an emergency situation and kept adding to it each year. Right now my collection is large and I have two backpacks which is to be used in case of an emergency and I have to leave home and can survive on my own for many days with just what I carry with me. At my home I keep many weapons for self defense only since I don't hunt animals any longer.

This speech by President Obama is what got me into being a pepper years ago as a Canadian. It woke me up to the fact that it's everybody for themselves when shtf. Fortunately I took his advice. Unfortunately SHTF Feb. 24th, 2022.

I recommend BLF D80 flashlights for prepping. Rechargeable 18650 batteries are not too hard to come by. You can rip off 4 out of 6 batteries on average from a broken laptop battery. They're all rechargeable, and on the middle brightness setting the light lasts about 4-8 hours at a time. Imagine that with 4 or more batteries. It throws light for about 150 meters distance or more, in the dark. Furthermore it's at an IPX8 level of waterproofing for 2meters. I always carry my light with me, and it is so damn useful. I live in the Philippines and huge storms are rampant here. Personally, I have 2 batteries in my bag at all times, one spare in my pocket, and one in each of my lights. In my apartment, I have 4 spare batteries, and in my home I also have 2 spare batteries. All for under $100.

Thanks for the tips

If you make a room air tight what's stopping you from suffocating?

Great video man!

contracctor bags better than silver blankets take up same amt room and shower curtain/tarp

What about MRE's.....how long do they last.....can you still use them after expiration date?

I love FEMA. I would work for them. They are saying prep and get ready because they dcans ee they can't do it all and we need to not need help as much as possible

Outstanding video. Identified a few items I don't have

Take CERT training if it's available in your area. Thanks for the great review!

You could buy a compost toilet for emergency sanitation purposes as well.

I’ve seen 4 videos now that have the same small hand crank radio. Seems like it’s popular. Guess I’m gonna have to get me that radio! 👍🏻

hello been doing this for a while. when should I stop preparing? just seems like a waste sometimes my girlfriend thinks I am a nut and unfortunately walked out on me 2 months ago. should I just keep on prepping ? any advice ?

A couple notes. For food you didn't mention food bars. I love The datrex bars, they have a very good taste and one can get bars that have 2400 calories. For flashlights you didn't mention headlamps; these are nice for hands free lighting. I'm surprised they didn't include shelter.

use area lights before directionnal lights task light for medica

1st day dont use up water to rehydrate things have already hydrated stuff first day and cold food

Or you could use leftover milk orange juice containers wash them out and fill them up with water.

what brand is the neon yellow flashlight

I have all those things except for the plastic for windows. And I stepped up the toilet situation with a luggable loo

buying water when you can fill up jugs for free using your sink save that $15,00 for something else

Anyone have issues with gallon jugs leaking? I know I have. Just a word of caution

So when I'm trapped by rubble, I can just reach for my bag and pull out the whistle and start blowing? Doesn't make much sense.

great vid keep going ive watched all your vid and you are one of my favorites. people are quick to insults rather than sugestions but thats how you weed them out love you dont stop

ramen noodles have nutritional content. they might not be the best for you but they have nutritional content. I suggest reading the Label or making a better script for your video. a simple Google search can reveal 5 g protein 390 calories, and several other things. you don't get vitamins but, they are a great light weight option for a bug out or disaster.

I would not rely on that crank and useless tiny solar panel to power any external devices. A portable solar panel like an Anker 21 watt is much better. It can charge 2 devices at once. It costs around $50. Solar technology keeps getting less expensive and more efficient. So in the near future there will be better and cheaper versions available.

What people get to go to these bunkers you mentioned. I've never been contacted. Nor, anybody I know has been contacted. Doesn't look good for me or my friends.

I bring my glock 17 and 100 rounds of ammo for hunting purposes and self defense. I also bring a lot of water, beans, bleach, first aid kit, my knife, lifestraw, and a sleeping bag and a tent, and lots of extra gas. A radio is also very helpful. Clothes and fresh socks are always helpful too. As my grandpa always said “Wet socks will drive the biggest of men insane.” Don’t forget a flashlight and lots of AA batteries too.

15:15 - the map, oh yeah, you hear on the radio that help or a shelter is at so and so - where is that ? Know, don't guess !

*_Awesome video! I like it_*

Good idea for a map. I'm in Maryland too

Nice video!

Let me tell you when you're in a rush to get the heck out of Dodge the last thing you want to do is grab yourself a whole bunch of cans. They're bulky and heavy. Stick to very small bags of rice. Rice that's in a one pound bag or less or make you by getting a machine that sucks out the air and the special bags that come with it and measure half a cup of rice per bag and seal it shut super light super easy doesn't take a lot of room and you can bunk up with it. Ad as well dry beans very light especially if you measure and make your own sealed bags. Use powdered milk and use powdered butter and powdered seasonings and spices to give flavoring to your foods rice and beans is known as a Powerhouse you can thank me later

Does Ramen plus canned chicken count as one emergency prepping meal? I love ramens to much to not pack them!!

Did you survive the 2017 hurricane season ? HELLO, Hello, hello... My go to radio is the La Crosse AM/FM/WB Digital Radio with an earphone jack to increase battery life. Thank you for the video ! tjl

Just one correction to your otherwise excellent presentation; MRE's have roughly 1200 to 1300 calories per pack. (daily requirement is roughly 2000 to 3000). 'First Strike MRE's' have about 2800 calories. Your cost of water estimate is great for normal times, when water supplies are plentiful. But cost of commodities would likely rise exponentially once they become scare. I would suggest getting a bath tub bladder or water bob that can easily hold 80 to 100 gallons for about 30 bucks. That is, it's even cheaper than buying water. Cheers!

Where to buy cheap MRE please?

If you stay in your home after a disaster you have between 25- to 60-gallons if water in your water heater.

Good idea that you learn to survive without the luxuries...yet buy the luxuries to survive. Fancy survival

Your on-screen links don't work for me. Just to let you know.

So wait. Is this a "fema" disaster kit? Or "fema disaster" kit?

I don't know if dust-masks actually works against small chemicals in the air like smoke or pollution.

Obama survival kit 1. Free phone 2. Free housing 3. EBT card

or u can add ramon noodles to other food that u prepare as a filler

So if you cut off all the air/oxygen to your room how do you breathe? You don't you die.

Why would you want to tell FEMA you are a prepper?

the government only wants people to be prepared for 48 to 72 hours maximum, you should be prepared for a year or two, and be self sufficient, without the need of government help, but the government doesn't like that and for them it is illegal to capture water, have your own food supply by having chickens etc. the only way you break the cycle is to have enough knowledge and be prepared for at least 3 years of supply and have enough security accessories such as guns and rifles to defend what you have.

Not sure if it was mentioned in a comment. think about PETS too...

why do people hate preppers

Interesting, informative video. It would be a lot better if you remade this video using gear NOT made in China because that stuff is unreliable and breaks when you need it the most. Also, I'm sure others have mentioned that dust masks will not help when it comes to anything besides dust. You'll need special gear for smoke, chemical, biological, or radioactive contaminants.

Stuff 😎 happens 😀💕❤️💜

Good video with practical information. Thanks!

ace wrapt and sam splint with all first aid

I live in VA

Brains the zombie behind you is trying to add to your list and he wants brains lol

at least he is trying

First of all, despite the good efforts by the people at FEMA and the Red Cross, they're guides are good, but lack the benefit of enough research or input by experienced people. A list is okay if includes everything one might need and there needs to be an explanation of the pros and cons and uses for those items. I tell people they need to plan for at least 1-2 weeks. I happen to live in Orlando in an area that has been barely affected by all the storms and hurricanes to this day, but we often loose power even when it's not hurricane season. In other places people have gone over a month without power. I disagree with the notion that Obama wanted us to be preppers since he was in office during Katrina when many claimed that their guns were confiscated and people who prepared were labelled as hoarders or basically summed up to be possible terrorists. Remember the snitch hotline? Where was Obama then? Why didn't he go on TV and warn people not to be overly paranoid and suspicious? Why didn't he differentiate between terrorists activities and citizens practicing emergency preparedness. That resulted in resentment from preppers. Sorry, but he doesn't care nor does he deserve to be credited with supporting or furthering the prepper movement.

Funny im watchingvthis as hurricane Dorine is stalled over the Bahamas.

Two notes on the particulate masks, for any of those who might not be already aware: 1) if you have a beard, mustache, or even thick stubble -- any facial hair like I do or the guy in the video have -- that will reduce the effectiveness tremendously, as the air will come in through the space between the facial hair and your mask; 2) particulate or carpenters masks will NOT filter out airborne microbes in the case of an epidemic. They'll probably stop macroparticles like sneeze droplets, so they're better than nothing for sure, but they're not like surgical masks, which _will_ filter germs effectively. And neither of those masks are up to snuff compared to high grade gas masks, but those are pretty heavy to trudge around, so I'll probably never get one, or I'll get _only_ one to keep at home.

Start with one day, then increase to three then seven then fourteen then twenty eight then ninety then a year

EMP is one of the things that aren't covered.

This video aged very well during COVID lol. Especially the part on masks and pandemics.

Thumbnail picture from Hurricane sandy?

13 gallo swater first day

you need 30 days of food not 3 days

Is that beard in regs?

If you survive a nuclear bomb, unfold the handy dandy bomb cloth...more cleaner gooder air.

I will bet anything that desperation kit does not include a gun.

"In case of a virus pandemic" o_o- 2022 @ 12:19