Get Your Disaster Kit Together

Having a disaster kit together is one of the top recommendations of emergency planners as the 2012 hurricane season nears. But just what should you put into a kit?

Here’s what the National Hurricane Center recommends:

• Water. Have at least one gallon for each person for up to seven days.
• Food. Make sure to have nonperishable food items for up to seven days for each person in the household. Be sure to include a hand can opener and paper or plastic plates and utensils. It’s also a good idea to store snacks, specialty foods for infants or seniors and cooking utensils.
• Important papers. Use a waterproof container to store insurance documents, medical records, Social Security cards, bank records, birth certificates and so on.
• First aid supplies, as well as items to care for any babies, special needs or elderly people in the household.
• Blankets and pillows.
• Clothes.
• Toiletries.
• Flashlights and batteries.
• A battery-operated radio or weather radio.
• Charged mobile phones (extra batteries are a good idea, too).
• Cash and credit cards.
• Keys.
• Tools.

Source: National Hurricane Center

For more on storm preparedness, just click on the "2012 Hurricane Guide" link below, or visit Pinellas County Emergency Management online.