Emergency Kit for your Workplace | Office EPK | Basic Supplies 

I am proud to say that I already had every single thing in this video, and then some! 👍🏻

A few wet wipes may also be a good addition to an office kit

I would bump up the dollars to $20 in singles along with the quarters because some vending machines are expensive.

We have nearly everything in the video in various places around the office, but good idea to at least pull some items into a central location. Thanks for the reminder on the shoes. During the shutdown, I've gotten lazy and went to wearing flip flops to work every day. Not a bad idea to keep a pair of shoes and socks in my desk just in case.

In my office, I keep an exercise mat and camp pillow (for exercise, stretching, lunch naps, and occasional “stuck in the office” scenarios). Personal hygiene items are essential for comfort., I keep travel sized hygiene items in my desk drawer. Baby wipes and dry shampoo are great if you are stuck for more than a day. A dry change of clothes and a rain poncho are a good idea, especially in the gulf coast.

My stored electronics that include batteries, always have a piece of plastic between the battery and the contact, so that they don't drain while no in use. And when you need it, you just pull out the slip of plastic and have contact

You made me remember a trick we use to use when i was in the military. We would tape a mini light stick to a tree to mark the route during the night. You can leave as much showing as you want. I would rather use these instead of my 6 inch lightsticks. Especially if you might need to mark several doors or a long route out of a building.

Watching again 😊 as I'll probably be going back to the office at some point and I know I'll have to update my desk kit.

When I heard EPK for the office I was envisioning helmets, armor, swords, shields, blunt weapons. Things to survive the next meeting with the shareholders. Was not what I expected... Great Video as always sir!

Great video, might I suggest keeping a two way radio or a portable short wave battery operated radio. It could be used to communicate with e.m.s. in case you can't leave building and also let e.m.s. know of dangers, fires, medical injuries on a certain floor of your building. 😀😀😀

Thanks! Great video and ideas. For someone on-call 24/7 and never knowing when I would go home, the food items and H20 are a must have.

Love this! Can’t wait for more office prep videos 😁

Do you get a royalty for recommending CLIF bars. :) As always, great video, kit and pdf.

Dried apricots, beef jerky, peppermint stars.

I would recommend adding safety goggles to your kit. You should also ditch the junk food & replace with Epic bars (or similar protein bars), unsalted nuts & seeds (like pumpkin). It's a good kit otherwise. Thank you for sharing.

No Multitool?

Do your office vending machines take paper money? I've never seen one that did.

Thanks so much, Cliff. You always create informative videos. Thank you for the PDF file, too.

The first step is to get training. Training is always more important that having a bunch of supplies but not knowing what to actually do to rescue yourself or others. You can usually get free first aid training and CPR training and fire extinguisher training from your local Red Cross chapter or your local fire station. Sometimes they will send a trainer to your workplace if you have a big enough group of people wanting training. It is also a good idea for at least two people in the workplace to get Citizen Emergency Response Training (CERT) so that someone will know how to safely rescue people if your office building collapses during an earthquake or a domestic terrorist bombing. Remember, it may be a while before any of the professional first responders can show up to rescue anyone. In your personal emergency kit, you will want one or more disposable plastic rain ponchos should you have to evacuate the building and walk several blocks in the rain to get out of the danger zone. Add a headlamp and spare batteries so you can have handsfree light if you have to move around in the dark, especially if you are tending to injured co-workers. Think about how you can evacuate an injured person out of your building should it become unsafe to stay in the building. Do you have a lot of beefy, young guys who can do a fireman's carry? Or should the office have a folding wheelchair or maybe a folding litter to make it easier for middle-aged couch potatoes to help evacuate the injured? Do you have a physically handicapped co-worker? If, so do you have a plan to evacuate him or her from the building if the elevator stops working because the electric power is out?

11:19 Switch your respirator to at least a N95 with exhale valve or, better, N99/N100 with exhale valve. Or even better P100 with exhale valve. In short - exhale valve is a must. They're just a little bit pricier (at least where I live, don't know about US), but you'll be way safer. Respirator you currently use, one without exhale valve, will become useless within 10 minute jog - it'll become wet from your breath, because of that most of the air will avoid going through the mask and instead will go throw holes between the mask and your face. P100 provides better protection from viruses, because it's "oil proof", thus, watery-oily human exhale vapors filled with viruses will have a harder time getting through. And, get few of them, as I stated above, even with exhale valve this kind of mask will eventually get wet and will no longer protect. You'll need to swap them (have at 3-5). Also, add bottle of rubbing alcohol. Even if your local medkit have it, better have more cuz it will run out FAST.

Why would you use that tourniquet versus a CAT or SofT?

1) everything with a battery, including powerbanks needs to be charged and maintaned. 2) there is portable radios with built-in power, LED , and with solarpanel and also a dyno. Cant be that dangerous to have something to do or burn calories charging the device up. Maybe it can help people stay warm and have something to do....removing that cardgame. Everything else seems great! keep it up.

Hi Cliff, now that 2020/2021 has happened, are there any changes that you'd make to this?

Welcome back! How's your health?

Love all you videos!

Keep in mind if you're diabetic - Clif bars and almost *all* so-called "health food bars" or "protein bars" are *loaded* with sugar. Getting a sugar crash in the middle of an emergency is not a good idea. I've only found a few protein bars that *aren't* loaded with sugar. Consider bars intended for paleo and keto diets which sometimes have low sugar and low carbohydrates (both are important for diabetics.) Keep in mind, though, that a lot of bars oriented for paleo and keto diets won't have many carbs - which you might need in an emergency situation where you're not eating enough calories for energy. Better to have a supply of dried meat and fatty foods that will provide protein and a certain amount of calories with low carb content.

Great info! Very useful!

very wise

i reckon everyone, whether they're male or female, should pack a few tampons and pads in their kit. think about it -- they're super absorbent. and in the case of pads, leak-proof to a certain level on the other.

Never clicked so fast

If I tell my colleagues at the office that I keep emergency water near my desk, they will call a shrink...

Most importantly: Have a plan in place on how to use the situation to dispose of coworkers you don't like.

gags on "your most important device in an emergency situation is your cell ohone'

Replace the treats with Jerky. Jerky has been a staple for any kind of situation for 100's of years. No chocolate or junk!.

Just buy a can of beans everytime he says '' Office EPK '' and you're good on food.

Come here because of corona virus.

Great video incredibly practical

I also include an extra pair of underwear. Not just to feel fresh but if you start your period at work or anything it helps to have a backup!

I've worked in office environments for almost 30 years plus being in IT means I've been in the office every hour of every day at some point so see things regular workers don't and I'm the area specialist for evacuations meaning it's my job to act as fire warden for the area as well as know the layout and location of everything to provide info to emergency services should the need arise. So based on my experience here's a couple of observations. 1. Spare comfortable shoes are a great idea but you're not going to have time to put them on in a real evacuation. Grab them and go and change when it's safe to. Alternatively do what one of my coworkers does and wear them all the time. When he needs to leave his desk then he puts on his dress shoes. No one notices what shoes you're wearing sitting at a desk. 2. There is food in the office. Everyone who works in an office has at least some snacks stashed away. The downside is if you keep it on your desk or even a top drawer it likely will go missing. Office food thieves are real. You're better off hiding it as much as possible. 3. While the kit idea and content is good in general, I think something more readily portable would be better though. Bugging in at the office it's fine but if you have to get out now that box is going to be harder to carry without spilling everything than a small backpack or satchel bag etc. Think about how you'd carry it along with your EDC. If you're truly prepared and have a go bag as well or vehicle supplies just outside then it may not be necessary to carry this kit but if this is the extent of your supplies you'll probably want to take it with you.

If you can't take weapons to work, bring a tactical pen. You know the ones I'm talking about. You never know.

Packets of Emergen-C powder or Nuun tablets. Nescafe coffee singles. Sugar, salt, pepper packets. (Ground pepper soothes a cough or sneeze.)

Great video and ideas, especially the older running shoes. I loved all the ideas for the office EPK. I personally prefer to keep my stuff in running 10L backpack. Since I run ultras, no one thinks twice about the shoes and backpack being there. I keep 2k calories of food such as peanut butter crackers, ProBar base protein bar, chocolate sealed protein drink, veggie/fruit pouches, etc because I'd get hangry on only 1,200 calories 😆

My one observation/warning is philosophical and legal: setting yourself up as an authority makes you the de facto if not de jure authority, and opens you up to the responsibilities and liabilities that brings.

I’ve been building a database of food items suitable for hiking and/or prepping, cataloged and sorted by calorie density. I’d suggest different snacks, but I’m not about to tell Cliff not to eat Clif bars!

Another fantastic video TUP! I also include a set of walkie-talkies in my kit and I have an "emergency partner". In this case, it's the receptionist and they keep one and I have the other one, which is always on the charger. This gives us a way to talk to one another in an emergency because we are on opposite sides of the building and we also go to different evacuation points. By doing this we can do a headcount in case there are still people inside the building.

Thanks for watching this video featuring my Office Emergency Preparedness Kit! Here's the PDF download that lists ALL of the items that were featured in this video: bit.ly/2RrjY8Q. This is a basic kit of supplies to help you get by if an emergency situation were to happen while you're at work. Be sure the follow the instructions given by the authorities during an emergency and or evacuation situation. BTW, I have removed the tourniquet seen in this video from the UV plastic storage bag for quicker deployment. Congratulations on being interested in this subject! You are going to be the leader at your workplace when it comes to this topic, because most people have not taken these type of preparedness measures. Stay safe! ~Cliff

In my prior office we lost power due to Super Storm Sandy and the restrooms were down a long dark hallway. I pulled my bag out with my headlamp and everyone wanted to borrow it. I brought out my flashlight and got supplies from my get home bag in my truck and was given employee of the year for all I did that day....Yes we were working because I am in insurance and everyone had to be there to take claims.

Excellent layout and gear. No doubt from there, anyone could tailor their EPK for their particular work scenario and environment. Good going.

0:27 "If you're [watching] this, YOU ARE the Resistance!"

I would suggest adding a "cover/shelter" element to this kit in the form of a lightweight fleece blanket, probably queen sized, but that compacts to a reasonable size. If you work in a large, open plan office, and the power goes out you won't have a heater or A/C and most buildings these days are designed to rely on artificial cooling/heating to keep a constant temp. Having a fleece blanket that you can either use to wrap up with if it starts to get cold, or use to cover sunny windows to insulate against the heat would be a good addition.

WRAP IT IN PLASTIC WRAP SO YOU KNOW IF IT GETS TAMPERED WITH

I like that you include a tourniquet in your kit! However, I would take it out of it's bag and properly fold and stage it for better efficiency. Also, the ability of an emergency radio to have the crank recharge option is a nice back up in case the disposable batteries run out of power. If cell towers go out in an earthquake, the radio might be the only alternative source of external communication, but this is assuming the radio towers were also not taken out. Anyways, great kit you got there! I love it when you post these kinds of videos since you are so organized and thorough.

What I also consider is if you have to trek it out to home or wherever. I try to make my bag good for all seasons and can ditch anything quickly. Being in the UK, 1 day it can be a monsoon, the next dry as a bone to next snow. I haev most of what yo show but also pack a thin poncho and waterproof over trousers, beef jerky, metal water bottle, matches, local street map, wired ear buds for the radio (less battery usage), para cord, spare socks, small knife, tropical/bush hat, balaclava (which can double as a beenie), safety pins, phone charger with USB cables/connectors and a few other bits and bobs.

Lots of great tips here. I have everything (except the water) already, just need to organize it. Thanks for the kick in the pants to get it sorted come Monday!

Just a tiny suggestion, include a short usb charging cable with your powerbank. You can get one with all three usb micro, type-c and apple type charging connectors. Just in case.

I would first get a small lockable meral cashbox like you need for a yardsale. Put your daily change in it and don't advertise you have change. Try to get a reasonable amount $20.00 in change and a few small bills ones and fives. This will allow you to eat and drink from the vending machines. Get a large insulated metal mug fill this with ice every morning and save throughout the day. Get some instant coffee hot chocolate and powered drink mixes. As well as cremer and sweeter. A few candy bare and cookies will ad to some power bars and microwave snacks. Place you money and food items out of sight to both keep down theft and yes it will happen. Next a pack of assorted bandaids. Aruba of antibiotic ointment a bottle of eye water and a tube of Orajel. Now a few small flashlights .to get you and friends outside in an emergency. Combine all this with a small supply of water and for the most part you will be better equipped to survive . take care and have a great day and a better tomorrow remember. Anything is better than nothing.

I would put organic tampons in my med kit for stopping a heavily bleeding wound but as far as monthly needs I would add reusable pads or a menstrual cup for an emergency situation, more often then not you won't know when you are able to resupply and tampons run out quickly and are paired with the risk of TSS if used for an extended period of time. A menstrual cup can last up to 10 years if properly cared for.

Where did you locate the 3 gallon square water bottles as we can only locate 5 or 7 gallon ones? Thx, good video. Also, I will share link & pdf with our CERT group member who next month will be doing a neighborhood workshop on home emergency preparedness since so many neighbors commute to work in offices.

I don't know where you work or what kind of work you do but here in Australia we have a fully laid out team of people for emergency situations. That means Fire Wardens, First aiders etc. Each person has their own vest and hard had in their specific colour. No one wants some random staff member chucking on a vest and thinking they're important. It's great to be prepared but make sure you know the emergency plan for your office and if you want to help speak to the relevant people ahead of time. Don't just chuck a vest on and start giving instructions

Great video, always worth thinking about if you could be in any situation. From my experience, the one thing I would add is some mobility. While I understand this kit is more for a shelter in place, there are instances where some relocation is to take place even if only to gather or move up or down floors. This could be a simple thin nylon backpack or duffle bag where the tennis shoes could be kept along with a few small bottles of water. Sometimes it’s best also not to show everyone all you have. For my personal preference, items that could lead to temptation such as cash, or some candy bars lol, I place in solid white or colored plastic bags. I then use a bag sealer on those. I add hard candies or gum to all my kits no matter how small.

how often do you recharge this particular Anker phone charger, assuming you don't use it?

Awesome Sir always well thought out with great ideas. Will put one together this week I have most of the items already. Thumbs up!!! I

I kept my water locked up in my desk. So many office thieves

Wearing a vest doesn't put you in an "official capacity."

I'm really surprised you haven't included a glass breaker tactical pen in your kit. Smashing a window is a great way to allow you to signal for help and to get clean air into the office should you need it. It doesn't take up any space in your box either.

My office has “hot desking” so we don’t have our own desk, sadly. Have to be creative.

I would say any preparedness kit made by a male or female should include sanitary pads because they are not only good for those who menstruate but as a emergency bandage.

You‘ r the best cliff! Greetings from 🇩🇪

If I had a stash of kitkats in my desk I would be doomed. Diabeetus would be the emergency.

Any suggestion for if you don't have your own desk or office at work? I dont really have any area that is considered "mine" where I can store items.

Are you prepping for the corona virus “heard” it’s in Washington?

Another excellent and well thought out video! I'm definitely inspired to start getting my kit together 😊

DOOD! Pure sugar emergency food? Not a good idea.

Good stuff, I have pretty much all of that either at work, or in my EDC. I have a Swiss Gear laptop bag, which has lots of space for stuff, so it's with me, with me in the car, and the office, but I do leave some stuff permanently at the office. I'd add some large cable ties into that kit, as fire doors fail safe (unlocked) when the fire alarm sounds and their are cases where you'd want to keep people out.

Why do I have a 3 gallon cube of fluid??? It goes with my urine hose of course. Careful with it though it's pretty full..... Quick tip: Already have your TQ opened up and ready for application. A few seconds fiddling with it when you really need it could make the difference.

I would add a small crowbar. Might be handy for getting through a stuck door or window if you need out.

As expected, really well thought out. I’ve always recommended having some extra comfy shoes around, some old shoes is a great idea. Thanks for the work you did on this!

This is a brilliant setup, well done!

Really great video! Wonderful ideas and concepts. I'll adapt these tips to my job and make it works the best I can! Thanks for another great video, Cliff. Have an awesome upcoming week 👍

Again an amazing video!

I'd recommend putting the snacks in a sealed container, not an open tray - that way you won't be sharing your candy bars with mice, etc.

Another great video! I'll be sharing this one with my significant other as she works in an office and we live in an earthquake prone country. Keep up the good work!

I would strongly advise carrying a couple of tampons and pads, in case someone at the office doesn't have any or runs out. They don't take up much space. Plus tampons are flammable in case you need to start a fire

In earthquake prone urban areas, a leather chamois and/or ice cleats are good items to pack. After a big one, the ground will be littered with glass from tall rise buildings and any attempt to walk home will be dangerous without protecting your feet from cuts and infection. Pre-cut the chamois so that it fits the inside of your shoe, acting as an extra sole in case you walk over glass. Ice cleats might also be able to offer you some clearance above broken glass, but a bit of a clunky walk home. Also, if you are trapped a building, it is essential to be able to signal to others that you are inside, so pack redundant items in order to get attention: a compressed air horn, signaling mirror, loud whistle, flashlight and headlamp with strobe features, and of courses, extra batteries. A small portable first aid kit might be useful in case of need once you leave the building en route home. Keep all items in one small backpack to make it as easy as possible to locate and use.

I would recommend not having batteries in electronics and if you can't do rechargeable switch to Lithium over Alkaline Batteries since Alkaline slowly leak over time and corrode. Also maybe have your electronics including any rechargeable batteries in a faraday cage since rechargeable batteries also have electronics in them.

Great video, and thanks for the helpful pdf list!

Great video!!! Looking forward to the 2.0 video. Thanks!

All this for a fire drill at the Office? HahaahhahahhhhahhhahhshshhahHahahhshahshahahshhsjsjs

should i take my wallet with $500 in?

Do a hazmat kit video, the Coronavirus is now in the US!

You have created a $200+ kit, and put it in a $1 shoe box. An upgrade won't break the bank, and you will certainly get what you pay for. At least something with better plastic, and a more secure lid. Latches and a handle are preferred. Even moving within a single room in an emergency, it has to survive a simple fall. Yours wont with the weight you have in it right now. A small tackle box, or sewing kit are roughly the same size but better built. You have a tourniquet and an Israeli bandage, but NO medical gloves? Add some 4x4 gauze and some medical tape, even if its just to supplement your office's supplies...You'll have them out faster than going to get theirs. 50' of paracord is a good length for this kind of kit. You can string up a chem light like a wind chime, or helicopter it around your head. It could also be used to make a simple pulley or handle, to lift something out of the way. You also need some kind of closed water container. That 3 gallon jug is gonna get wasted if your everyday coffee mug is broken in the emergency. I'd also add some hand warmers. If your building's shell is compromised, so is the HVAC system. They are cheap, and take up almost no space.

I would have at least 3000 kCal of food per day. Your nutritional needs skyrocket during an emergency. I would also have 4 days worth of food and another water jug. Eat one food/candy bar per day and drink from one of the jugs. This will help cycle through the food and water. Once 1 day of food and 1 jug is empty then replace them.

As for battery operated products I tend to use all AA size battery powered items, KISS philosophy, keep it simple stupid. Different sizes lead to confusion in an emergency situation. Another note, since the late '70's I have always carried "Texas Bandages" (aka sanitary pads) in my kits. They are more convenient today as they are individually wrapped however I store them in a zipper style freezer bag in my kits. Keeps them dry and clean and they take up little room. Believe it not there was a medic in my unit that used tampons for sealing out bullet wounds in non critical areas, not recommended by me but field expedient. Add a sharpie permanent marker as well if you do not have one of the tourniquets that does not provide a marker for making note when applied to patient. It is highly recommended that one takes some approved first aid courses to learn the proper use of certain supplies. As for the vest, I tend to not use one and become the "incident commander" due to liability issues today. Also if used outside of shelter it could lead to one becoming a target in a terrorist situation. Great video and information.

Careful with the vest. Many larger workplaces will have designated 'fire marshalls' in case of emergencies. They would be the authority best trained for what your workplace has planned for emergencies. Make sure you give them the space and ability to do their jobs. If there isn't one make sure you actually know what you're doing before claiming the authority for yourself. Having a kit is great but it doesn't automatically mean you know best. You don't want a mix of arrogance and ignorance to make a bad situation worse.

I think a good idea on a lot of kits....that one should just pack the batteries to go w the flashlight or whatever device....as opposed to just having batteries in the device. My main concern or problem w It is that corrosion could occur. Then, u could be SOL w that device

I would add ear plugs and goggles. Just because watching people escaping in dust and water spray makes me concerned about protecting eyes, ears, nose, mouth, hands. You already have mask and gloves. Goggles and earplugs would be small and inexpensive addition to precious eyes and ears. Maybe a hat with visor bill too. Just a thought for those who don't wear hat and glasses every day.

Store foods at work in a closed container. Many rather nice office buildings still have mice, roaches, and such. If you're not already an eyeglass-wearer, have a pair of better safety glasses. Don't keep alkaline batteries in devices that are almost never used. Lithium batteries rarely leak, but alkalines do often leak. I'm a tool guy. I would want several: Multi-tip screwdriver, larger pliers with wire cutter, perhaps one larger tool prying and hammering. A sling bag or fanny kit to carry things in.

safety Vest NA, Tennis shoes NA. Glock 9mm, essential when SHTF. Anyh1 who resists will be shit down and robbed of their supplies. Dress shoes, you be surprised what adrenaline can do,

Great video but don't put on the vest and start trying to help out if there is an evacuation if that's not your job. Sure, if someone is injured, help them and/or try and contact the person in charge. The one thing people don't want is confusion. If you want to help, then volunteer to be the fire warden. No one ever puts a their hands up for that job. Make helping official.

I would add a pair of socks, extra pair of undies, a collapsible water pouch (like the kind for a Sawyer filter) , and small packable backpack, the kind that stuffs into a real small pouch.