15 Items to Keep on Hand for Severe Weather, Power Outages, and Other Emergencies

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Living in Georgia, we are at risk of experiencing hurricanes, tornadoes, and various other natural disasters.  After our recent near-miss with Hurricane Helene (we are so grateful it missed us, and we are continuing to pray for those in the affected areas), I decided that it was time to evaluate our stock of emergency items in case of long-term power outages, flooding, fires, etc., and I found so many fantastic items, a few of which I didn’t even know existed.  Since I found so many great items, I thought I’d share them with all of you as well.

Fireproof, Water-Resistant Document Bag 

Preparing for our homes to be destroyed by a fire and/or another natural disaster is not something anyone ever wants to think about, but it’s important to be prepared for it in the event that it ever does happen.  While tangible items aren’t nearly as important as humans and pets, there are a few tangible items that are important – birth certificates, social security cards, passports, laptops with sensitive information, etc. – and they should always be stored in a safe space.  This document bag is fireproof up to 2000 degrees Fahrenheit and it is water resistant making it the perfect place to store those irreplaceable items.  It includes 4 passport mesh bags, 16 card slots, 4 disc pockets, 7 folder layers for documents, and one main pocket of large space for other valuables such as laptops, iPads, jewelry, etc.  It is portable and has a strong handle so you can grab it and go quickly, and it has a combination lock to keep everything secure. 

 

Home Generator

Power outages are common during natural disasters, so a backup generator can be a good thing to keep on hand to power refrigerators, microwaves, and other electronic items.  This portable generator doesn’t use gas, and instead, it runs on a rechargeable battery.  The battery can be charged electronically or by solar power and you can use it to power various household appliances.  It’s highly rated and the reviews are fantastic.  It is pricey, but it is currently 20% off, and there is a $200 off coupon that you can clip in addition to the 20% off.

 

Large Cooler

If you don’t have a backup generator, then it’s good to keep a large cooler on hand for perishable items.  Brian purchased this cooler for us ahead of Hurricane Helene and we can definitely say that it performs as well as it says.  It’s 52 quarts, so it holds a large amount of stuff – up to 76 cans + up to 51 pounds of ice!  It has three inches of insulation, so it keeps everything inside ice cold for days.  It also has a very lightweight design with rugged wheels and a large handle making it easy to transport.  It has all of the bells and whistles and performs just as well as a Yeti, but it's way more affordable.

 

Refrigerator Thermometer

Refrigerated food needs to stay below 40 degrees, so in order to keep an eye on your perishable food in the event of a power outage, it’s a good idea to keep a refrigerator thermometer anywhere where you store perishables.  We keep one in our refrigerator at all times so in the event of a power outage, we can see what the temperature is in the fridge when the power comes back on.  We also bought one to keep in our cooler to ensure that the perishables in the cooler didn’t rise above 40 degrees.  These are cheap, and you can stick them anywhere, so they are great for providing peace of mind.

 

Manual Can Opener

Most people stock up on canned goods in the event of a hurricane or severe weather, but many people forget that an electric can opener would not be useable in a power outage, so it’s always good to keep a manual can opener on hand.

 

Emergency Meals Entrees

Speaking of food, this package of emergency meal entrees is fantastic to keep on hand in event of a major emergency situation where you may be without electricity for an extended period of time.  This container of freeze-dried food includes 10 varieties of entrees, 120 servings in all, and it lasts for 25 years as long as it’s stored in a cool and dry environment.  It comes with 22 resealable pouches that let you use only what you need and save the rest for later, and the resealed pouches last for up to a year.  To prepare the food, all you need is water (you could use bottled water if you find yourself without running water) and heat (you could build a fire if there’s no electricity).  There is also a fruit and veggie version, a whey milk version, and a burger mix version that you could keep on hand.  I never even knew anything like this existed until I started writing this post!  The reviews are awesome, too!

 

Corded Phone

Remember these?!  I know this may seem like an odd item to keep on hand but hear me out.  Sometimes during natural disasters, cell towers are destroyed, causing mobile phones to be unusable.  What on earth would you do in the event that your cell phone wasn’t working and there was an emergency?  Well, did you know that if you have a phone with a cord like this one, you can plug it in (no electricity required) and call 911 even if you don’t pay for phone service?  Yep, I learned this little trick several years ago, and we’ve kept a phone with a cord on hand in our closet ever since then just in case.

 

Power Bank

And in the event that you have a power outage, but your cell phone still works, you’ll need a way to charge it.  We keep several power banks on hand for this very reason.  We love this Anker power bank for its slim design and big power.  You can use it to charge various brands of cell phones and tablets multiple times in one charge.

 

Lanterns

If the power goes out, you’ll definitely need light if it’s dark outside.  We have a couple of these lanterns, and we love them.  They have low and high settings so you can adjust the amount of light output, and they have high runtimes of 30 hours on high or 70 hours on low.  They are also easy to carry, and you can hang them, too.  They come with lifetime LEDs that never need replacing.

 

Battery Backup LED Lightbulbs

Speaking of lights, these LED battery backup lightbulbs are another item that I never knew existed until my friend, Jessica, sent them to me ahead of Hurricane Helene.  You use these in place of standard lightbulbs, and they are self-charging.  Then, in the event of a power outage, the battery backup in these lightbulbs will provide up to five hours of light.

 

Extra Batteries

We always keep extra batteries on hand for all devices, too, in case of a power outage.  The Amazon Basics brand is SUPER affordable, and they are high-quality Alkaline batteries that are long-lasting.  This is all we use at home now, and they come in all sizes.

 

Weather Radio

In the event of any kind of severe weather it’s always good to have a weather radio on hand.  This one has NOAA weather scan and alert that will alert you to over 60 kinds of weather hazards and emergencies.  It allows you to enter a code specific to your area so you are only notified of emergencies in your area, and you can program it for up to 25 different counties.  Again, this is great to have in case of a power outage/internet outage.

 

Battery Operated Fans

If you live in the south, then you know how awful a power outage can be in the summer.  We can’t live with out our A/C here, so it’s always good to keep a battery operated fan on hand at all times.  This one will keep you cool for up to seven days on a single charge with fresh D batteries!  Load up on those Amazon Basics batteries, y’all!  ;o)

 

Emergency Thermal Blanket

On the flip-side, if you live up north, it can be extremely dangerous to be without heat during the winter, so it’s always good to keep some thermal blankets on hand.  These are engineered with advanced dual-sided aluminized Mylar technology to maximize heat retention and reflection to retain 90% of your body heat, completely blocking out rain, snow, and moisture.  They are portable, lightweight, waterproof, and versatile.

 

First Aid Kit

It’s always a good idea to have a basic first aid kit on hand, even during times when there isn’t an emergency, so I had to add this to the post as well.  This 160-piece kit includes essential first aid supplies like cleansing wipes, gauze pads, assorted bandages, creams, medicines, and much, much more.  And it’s portable!

 

I’ve always believed in being fully prepared for anything, and I hope that you find this comprehensive guide to be of great help for emergencies of all kinds.  Let me know if I’m forgetting anything, and please let me know if there are any other unique gadgets/items that you know of that I haven’t listed here!