You’ve already packed backpacks with supplies for the school year, but have you packed an emergency kit to help get you through emergencies?

In situations like floods, evacuations and winter storms, you should be able to care for members of your household, including pets, for at least three days. This helps first responders focus on people who are hurt or need immediate help before expanding their support to the community.

A properly-stocked emergency kit ensures you have food and water, and any necessary supplies to get through the early days of an emergency. And it will be ready at a moment’s notice, taking some stress out of a stressful situation.

Your emergency kit should include basic supplies – food, water, important documents, first aid kit, clothing and more – but it should be customized to you and your family’s needs.

If you have an infant, consider adding diapers and formula (if applicable). If you have medical needs, you may want to pack your medications, records of your prescriptions and essential medical equipment. If you have pets, consider packing a harness and leash, extra food and water and comfort items.

Basic supplies to include

• Water (four litres per person per day)
• Food that won’t spoil such as canned food, pasta, energy bars and dried food
  • If packing canned food, make sure to pack a manual can opener
• Medical supplies such as over-the-counter and prescription medications, back-up pair of glasses, extra contact lenses and solution, and essential medical equipment
• Important documents such as identification, birth certificates, health care cards, passports, prescription medication records, insurance policy, and banking information
• First aid kit
• Change of clothing and shoes for each household member (seasonally appropriate)
• Toiletries and personal hygiene items
• Mobile phone charger(s)
• Activities such as books, puzzles, cards and small toys
• Sleeping bags or warm blankets
• Cleaning supplies such as wipes, masks, gloves, trash bags, hand sanitizer and toilet paper
• Wind-up or battery-powered flashlight with extra batteries
• Wind-up or battery-powered radio with extra batteries
• Candles and waterproof matches or lighter

• Emergency kit checklist
• Emergency kit checklist for your pets
• Vehicle emergency kit checklist
• Farm animal and livestock preparedness

A simple spark can cause wildfires. Preparing for the threat of wildfire is a shared responsibility. Below is some information and links on what you can do to help reduce the risk of wildfires. 

Spring and fall are high risk seasons for wildfire. By reducing risks, there is less chance a wildfire will affect your property. We suggest that rural residents consider the FireSmart program by taking the time to assess your property and eliminate as many fire hazards and fuel sources as possible.

Get started right away! 

Some easy things you can do today are:

• Mow and water your grass around your home; remove all long grass, shrubs, logs, branches, twigs and needles within 10 metres of your home.
• Store firewood a minimum of 10 metres from any structure.
• Contact your utility company if trees or branches are not clear of power lines on your property.
• Prune branches from the base of your trees to reduce the chances of a fire running up the tree.
• Remove any dry and dead plant debris from under decks, in the gutters and accumulations against any structure.
• Remove accumulations of poplar pollen, it is highly flammable and significantly increases the speed that fire can spread.
• Enclose combustible decks with non-combustible materials.
• Always keep a watchful eye on fire pits and burn barrels when they are in use.
• Plant fire resistant trees like aspen, birch or poplar instead of highly flammable varieties like spruce and pine.