Being prepared for an emergency can save you time, money, stress and, even your life depending on the situation. In this blog, Billy Haley, our director of education, a man who’s passionate about preparedness, and a former special forces medic who’s been saving lives for over 25 years, makes various recommendations on how you can be ready for an emergency. 

Preparing Your Home For Emergencies

There are a wide variety of emergencies that can happen at home, ranging from natural disasters to power outages and even home invasions. These are the ways Billy recommends preparing your home for disaster.

Preparing Your Home

There are many ways you can prepare your home for a myriad of things. Here, we’ll focus on a few basic ways you can prepare for several emergencies. Keeping a stocked bug out bag, alternative power sources (such as a portable generator), and a way to stay informed (such as a radio). It’s also always a good idea to have some sort of home security system and cameras installed to protect yourself from intruders. 

Supplies to Keep in Your Home

Having these items in your home, knowing where they are, and understanding how to use them can be critical.

• Baking soda & fire extinguisher

• Bug out bag

• First aid kit 

• Jugs of drinking water

• Locks and a security system

• Nonperishable or freeze dried food

• Portable propane-based items such as a stove and lantern

• Smoke alarms

• Tools to turn off water and gas

Preparing Your Family

A plan isn’t any good if nobody but you knows what it is, especially if an emergency happens while you’re not around. The same goes for supplies. If nobody knows where the fire extinguisher is, there’s no way to put out the fire. Here are some things the entire family should know ahead of time:

1. Know where everything you might need in an emergency is.

2. Know who to contact based on the emergency (poison control, 911, etc.).

3. Have a plan (for natural disasters, house fire, home intrusion, etc) and ensure everyone knows it.

4. Be aware of local environmental threats (wildfire, flood, etc) and plan for them.

5. Plan where you can take shelter in case of a natural disaster. 

Preparing Your Vehicle for Emergencies

You never know what could happen while you’re on the road and far from home. Making sure you have the necessary equipment stored in your car can prevent an emergency, help prevent the worst case scenario, or even save a life. Here’s how Billy Haley recommends preparing your car for a potential emergency.

Preparing Your Vehicle

In order to make sure both you and your vehicle are prepared for an emergency. Make sure to maintain a dedicated emergency first aid kit in your vehicle, always keep the gas tank at least half full in case you aren’t able to get more fuel, keep the fluids and tire pressure topped up, and keep up on general maintenance. 

If you are involved in an accident, make sure everyone is okay. Turn your hazards on and move your vehicle to the side of the road or another safe vehicle if possible. Turn your car off and call the police to report the accident. Exchange information with the other driver and take pictures of the damage to both vehicles. 

Supplies to Keep in Your Vehicle

• Blanket

• Emergency window breaker and seatbelt cutter

• Flares or triangles

• First aid kit

• Flashlight

• Jumper cables

• Nonperishable food

• Power bank

• Spare tire, jack, and lug wrench

• Tire repair kit

• Water

Preparing For First Aid Emergencies

Nobody ever expects to be the person who experiences a freak accident. Even if you’re the most careful person in the world, you’re always at risk of experiencing an emergency. Because of this, it’s important to be prepared with the tools and knowledge you need to save a life.

First Aid Emergencies

In order to be prepared for a first aid emergency, there are a few basic things you need to do.  First you need to make sure your first aid kit has all of the supplies you need and that it’s organized in a way that you can quickly find everything even in a stressful situation. It also needs to be stored in any easily accessible place. For example, we don’t recommend storing your first aid kit in the trunk because even a small fender bender can prevent you from being able to open it. Lasly, everyone needs to know where the kit is stored. First aid kits are useless if you can’t find one when you really need it. 

Supplies to Keep in Your FAK

Remember, it’s always a good idea to have a free more supplies tahn you think you’ll need. As they say in Special Operations, “Two is one and one is none.”

Life-Saving Items

• Chest seals

• Emergency pressure bandages

• QuikClot

• NPAs

• Space blanket

• Tourniquet

Everyday Injury Supplies

• Antiseptic wipes

• Bandages

• Burn gel

• Gauze

• Over the counter medications

• Personal medication

• Skin glue

• Splint

• Triangular bandage

• Triple antibiotic

• ZZIPS

Staying Calm in an Emergency

It can be incredibly scary when you or someone you care about is in danger, whether that be from an injury or some other emergency. However, when you panic, you run the risk of making a mistake or exacerbating the situation. That’s why it’s so important to be calm when disaster strikes. Here are some tips on how to stay calm during an emergency.

1. Avoid getting flustered. Pause, take a deep breath, and assess the situation. Look at the situation objectively, not subjectively.

2. Take a second to collect yourself if you need to. Be methodical so you can perform well. It’s better to take it easy than to get all panicky trying to do everything at once. We have a saying in Special Forces, “Slow is smooth and smooth is fast.” Additionally, remember that calm is quick, but quick doesn’t mean calm.

3. Take charge and remember to communicate. Keeping order cuts down on the chaos that can occur during an emergency. Enlisting help takes some of the stress and burden off your shoulders, resulting in you being more quick and calm. Teamwork goes a long way in an emergency. 

4. Anticipate and acknowledge the stress. Accept that emergencies can be stressful. It’s a mindset thing. Like any challenge in life, simply acknowledging the fact that, “Ok, this is probably going to suck, but it’s ok, I can handle it.”

5. Flip the script on stress. Anxiety is the evil twin of excitement. All the feelings, emotions and biological elements are there. Instead of reading those things as, “Oh God, Oh sh**, Oh no…”, flip it around and use them as fuel, “It’s go time!” 

6. Anticipate, but don’t be paranoid. Sometimes we find ourselves in situations or places that can be inherently dangerous. Sometimes this is intentional (riding motorbikes, rock scrambling, etc.) and sometimes not. Just be aware and alert. “Ok, I can see how this could get sketchy or go sideways.”

7. Pull yourself together, man!  Remind yourself that being collected and calm versus the opposite can not only make the difference between providing marginal or even poor care and quality care. It can be the difference between life and death.

3 comments