The theme this week on the Retirement Quick Tips Podcast is: Prepping for emergencies in 2022.

Today, I’m talking about creating some prepping goals which starts with having enough emergency supplies for: 3 days, then moving up to 2 weeks, 1 month, 3 months, and if you’re really serious about this prepping stuff - 1 year or longer. I’ll probably never make it to a year’s worth of food in storage, but I am actively working towards a 3 month supply of food and water, which is no small feat. 

If I’m being honest, what scares me the most is a prolonged power grid failure, because everything hits the fan when that happens. No heat, no lights, no ability to cook food, the water supply and sanitation would go pretty quickly. No food at the grocery store, no clean running water. And then you have unrest and serious security issues in a prolonged grid-down situation as people become desperate. 

But this is not the most prudent place to start and it’s pretty overwhelming to think about. Do I have basic emergency supplies to keep my family fed, warm, and dry for 3 days? Getting 3 days worth of food, water, and backup power, along with some basic tools like flashlights and a first aid kit are a great place to start. 

Once you’re covered for 3 days, move on to 2 weeks. CDC has some good resources on Creating and Storing an Emergency Water Supply, and recommends 1 gallon of water per person, per day for drinking and sanitation. So that means in my household of 5 + the dog, we need a minimum of 70 gallons of water for a 2 week supply. 

At 2 weeks, you’ll definitely need more food, and a reliable way to stay warm and cook that food, so alternative sources of heat and fuel will become necessary. What good is all that pasta and rice if you have no way to cook it and not enough water for it anyways? 

At 2 weeks to 3 months of preparedness, you’ll need to move into the safety and security category as well if all your basic necessities are covered. This doesn’t just involve guns and ammo. How to protect your property and your family goes well beyond that, and I read recently that a good solid flashlight is the most important personal safety tool you can own. 

I just scratched the surface here, and later this week I’ll talk about some additional resources to help you build up some emergency preps, but for now, just focus on starting small where you are and building up over time. 

That’s it for today. Thanks for listening! My name is Ashley Micciche and this is the Retirement Quick Tips podcast. 

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