Is Your Pantry Ready for the Next Big Storm?
It seems like you can’t turn on the TV these days without seeing some type of storm coverage. I always feel bad for people that have gotten hit by 2 feet of snow or a tornado and weren’t prepared for it. We don’t get much snow around here but we do get tornados and high winds. Occassionally our power gets knocked out because a transformer blows or a tree falls on power lines during stormy weather. All in all we’ve been really lucky but a lot of people in our area haven’t been. There are communities that have gone without power for days after a big storm.
Last year we a few close calls with storms heading our way so we tried to be more prepared and put together a small storm pantry. With tornado season right around the corner, we’re getting stocked up on a few essentials. I’ve put together a short of list things we’re keeping on hand as sort of a storm readiness kit. It’s definitely not very elaborate but it’s given me piece of mind during storm season.
Building a storm pantry is all about having some things on hand that can be eaten without much work and no heat. You should have at least 3 days of supplies put away, with water at the top of your list.
10 Things to Have In Your Storm Pantry
- water – at least 1 gallon person plus extra for cooking
- canned fruits and vegetables
- manual can opener
- dry cereal
- peanut butter
- canned chicken and tuna
- dried milk or shelf stable milk (evaporated milk works well)
- dried fruit (raisins, cranberries, dates) and low salt nuts
- low salt snacks (crackers, cookies, etc)
- Disposable plates and utensils
A few other things to consider:
A good NOAA weather radio can be a life saver. You can find them at almost any big box store ad some sporting good stores like REI or Academy Sports. Try to get one that can run on batteries or that has a hand crank so don’t have to worry about keeping them charged.
Think about buying an external battery charger like a mophie. You can give your cell phones or other electronics a quick boost in an emergency. It’s also a great thing to have when you’re traveling.
Make sure you have flashlights and plenty of batteries. We try to keep a small flashlight in several rooms in our house in case we have a to run to our safe place in the middle of the night.
Keep candles and lighters where they will be easily accessible during a power outage. Make sure everyone in the house knows where they are.
Buy some large containers to store water for washing up or baths.
1. Mophie External Battery Charger
2. Reliance 6 Gallon Water Container
3. Eton American Red Cross NOAA Weather Radio
