The American Red Cross suggests that everyone should have disaster survival supplies on hand at all times. They recommend a minimum of three days’ worth of food and water be kept stored somewhere in the home at all times.

While that may sound like enough to make it through a single blizzard in some parts, that amount will not make it very far if an earthquake, tornado, or even an ice storm left the power lines down and the roads are torn up.

In those cases, many people would be looking forward to several more days, weeks, or even months without anything to survive on.

When compiling your own survival supplies for a survival kit, the first thing you should consider is how long you think you may need to live off what you have stored away. Even though a three days supply of food and water may help you make it through until crews can clear snow off the roads, and get the power turned back on, what would you do to replenish your supply if it took longer than that?

Something else that needs your attention during the planning stage for accumulating survival supplies is transportation. With some disasters, there is plenty of time to plan for removing yourself from the area and getting out of harm’s way.

For instance, hurricanes make their presence known days and weeks ahead of time. This provided ample time for families to get out of the direct line of fire. However, it may still be necessary to take something to survive with you. Do you have enough space in your current means of transportation to carry all your family as well as some of their personal belongings and survival supplies?

Weather should also play an important role in how you make plans for a disaster. Consider the difference in the types of supplies you will need if the crisis took place in the winter or summer. During the winter, you would naturally need an array of warm clothing and extra eating supplies, but during the summer your main concern would naturally be additional water.

In addition to all that, each family has its own special needs. For some members, it may be medications for pain or blood pressure as well as others. If you will be traveling with a baby, you will have to plan for diapers, baby items, and some way to keep them clean.

Pets have their own special needs which should not be left out of the planning. It is important that you take everyone’s needs into consideration when planning for survival supplies.

If you have any questions about what should be on your list, you should take some time to do some research or simply pay attention to what your family’s needs are and create your own list.