We are currently living in a time of relative stability, although it has not always been the case. Most people and society in general are grossly oblivious and convinced that our current period of comparable local and planetary security and equanimity is constant. Threats that are not only a significant risk of occurring again but are virtually guaranteed catastrophic events include major volcanic eruptions, coronal mass ejections (CME), meteor impacts, tectonic plate earthquakes, tsunamis, climate change and major draughts, floods and bush-fires to name the main natural dangers.
Our planet is actually over due for many natural disasters and catastrophic events, such as the 1959 solar flare known as the Carrington Event. If this occurs again at the same intensity it will wipe out virtually all electronic devices and machinery around the world. A man-made equivalent are electromagnetic pulse (EMP) weapons and nuclear weapons. Other man made threats that could easily destroy society as we know it are even more numerous and potentially devastating then natural threats.

Preparing the basics for emergencies is not a significant challenge. No matter what the circumstances, there are solutions to help prepare you and your family. The main premise of this topic is to emphasise that preparing for emergencies can occur to any degree on any budget. Incidentally, much of the knowledge and skills to prepare for and help survive through various emergencies were quite simply a normal way of life up until only a hundred years ago.
Stockpile Now!
Supermarkets and grocery stores now no longer store consumable goods due to efficiencies in the supply chains. If a disaster of some nature occurs, it is estimated that grocery stores in modernised societies have less than a few days of food supply. If panic sets in, food supplies will be eliminated in a matter of hours.
FEMA (US Federal Emergency Management Agency) recommends that households have at least two weeks of reserve food provisions in case of a disaster. In reality, very few people have achieved this very basic and readily achievable objective. Most countries around the world have only months, if not weeks of total food reserves.


Accumulating supplies in preparedness for an emergency can occur on any scale. A simple strategy is to purchase a couple of canned goods, boxed water and/or consumable products, especially when discounted, when grocery shopping, as your budget allows. These can be stored in plastic storage containers for example, and stored in cool, dark and dry locations. Some people dedicate entire rooms to stockpile supplies.
A reserve of supplies, whether planned for or already in-stock, would ideally be sufficient to last for a minimum of a month, ideally for three months and preferably for six months. Some people stockpile provisions to last a year or more. Basically what ever you require as a need on a regular basis should be the basis for the foundation of reserve provisions. A preparedness reserve must of course sustain everyone in your group or family.

Suggested items to accumulate as reserve provisions:
- Water
- Non-perishable food
- Personal hygiene products
- Candles
- Batteries
- Medications
- First aid kits and supplies
- Pet supplies
- Clothing
- Cleaning and disinfection agents
- Matches and lighters
- Books for knowledge and learning

If an emergency occurs, and a sufficient surplus exists. Some of the provisions can be shared if suitable, and of course bartered with. Consider this potential during the planning stage.
Emergency Preparedness Kits
Putting together an emergency preparedness kit is something, quite literally, everyone should be doing. Most government departments recommend this tactic, and for good reason.
We all need to prepare for severe weather events, bush fires, power outages and numerous other very real potential catastrophes. Emergency preparedness kits can be as simple or elaborate as you want, as long as it is effective and functional.

Examples of Emergency Preparedness Kits
- Home Storm Kit
- Every Day Carry (EDC) Kit
- Vehicle Emergency Kit
- ‘Bug-Out’ Back Packs
- Emergency First Aid Kits


KEA Ultimate Survival System
Be fully prepared with this very impressive emergency survival kit with, as KEA state, “everything you need and nothing you don’t”.
- Modular design
- Water resistant
- Weight: 1.95 kg
- Size: 260 x 200 x 80mm

For more details:
Bob Cooper Survival Kit
Designed and tested by outback survival expert Bob Cooper, this survival kit, this kit contains all the necessary gear for surviving in the wilderness. Includes instructions and survival tips.
- Weight: 450g
- Size: 130 x 95 x 43mm

For more details:
Learn New Skills
Skills are not the same as knowledge! Having knowledge on a particular subject does not necessarily make one an expert. It’s often not until when knowledge is put into practice that someone starts developing into an expert. A developed skill is also transferable. Once one is proficient in a particular skill, then that ability can be taught to others.
Some suggested skills to develop in preparedness for emergencies include but certainly not limited to:
- First Aid
- Gardening
- Food preservation
- Food foraging
- Water purification
- Fire starting
- Self defence
- Candle making
- Archery
- Alcohol distillation
- Navigation
- Off-grid living


The ability to execute a particular skill could easily be the difference between life and death. First aid is one skill that would be critical during any emergency, as there is no greater ability to save some ones life, particularly that of a family member or friend. A significant component of developing certain skills is practising those skills before they are truly needed.
Prepare A Community
Humans are by general social, we do survive better when cooperating in groups. This is of course why people desire to belong to certain social organisations. One of the best strategies to prepare for an emergency is to organise a group of people with like-minded intentions.

However, not every one is willing to accept the possibility of the threats to society and our current way of life. Some people prefer to remain comfortable in an oblivious manner. Incidentally, it is likely that these people will be at greater risk, both psychologically and physically, during a significant emergency.
Those undertaking or planning emergency preparedness may appear extreme to friends or family that are indifferent. Although, just the gentle suggestion to them that emergencies derived from disasters and catastrophic events do occur, have always occurred and have the potential to occur in the near future may persuade them to start thinking of the relevance. Simply planting the seed of thought may be the beginning of forming an emergency preparedness community.
Never underestimate the power of forming a cooperative community with the objective of collaborating for the common good and aiming to achieve the greater good. Skill sets can be shared and complimented with other peoples skill sets. This is how society has developed since the conception of societies.
Conversely, never underestimate the power of those forming alliances with harmful intentions. People that are not prepared to cope with an emergency soon turn to drastic measures when faced with self preservation. As history has shown, from the inception of agriculture to catastrophic modern events, people that are unprepared during an emergency have the very real potential to resort to violence in order to survive.
It is those that form a cooperative collaboration, and are aware of the associated threats and risks, that will fair better during any particular emergency. Obviously, the chances of successful survival begins at the planning stage, Preparedness is the key.

Barter & Trade
For the ten thousand years or more that human societies have existed, it really has only been the last one hundred years or so that money has been the only source of obtaining goods and services. Currency in the form of coins were valued since the ancient Roman empires, but denomination currency was always supplemented with bartering. The very concept of bartering is indeed the historical foundation of functioning societies.
Bartering trade is the exchange of goods and services with the equivalent quantity of goods and/or services. Skills can be traded for other peoples abilities and/or provisions, and vice versa, goods can be traded in exchange for skills and services. Usually in any society where the trade of bartering is prevalent, only a minority are specialised in producing a specific good or service. No point every one being a specialist in one ability.
In a severe enduring emergency, this very same defining feature of a functioning society will still apply. Those with an abundant stockpile of provisions, or the ability to produce them, and those with a specialised skill to provide a service, to meet the needs of others, will be of value in that society.

Conclusion
For those aware that today’s societies are confronting very real potential risks and threats, whether flooding caused by extreme weather events or major volcanic eruptions, preparing for emergencies can be relatively simple and inexpensive. The realisation and the initiative is all that is needed to start an emergency preparation strategy. Always recognise though that if a catastrophic event of any degree occurs, as recent history has clearly demonstrated, then widespread panic is most likely.
The aim of this website is to provide an introduction to the various ways we can all prepare for impending emergencies. As preparedness is an ongoing developing process, so to is a significant objective of Oz Survival Aid to continually develop and share knowledge on emergency preparedness. To prepare for emergencies start planning now and implement action. Once prepared for emergencies, you are then reasonably ready to plan for perpetual preparedness and procurement.