(from Roark)
Mikey - you are radically understocked on water. By a factor of about 10x.
Did you go through the Northridge quake? (Roark was in Simi during that one). The biggest issue after that quake was water. Southern California is DRY. You need water to replace the sweat that living in the open will create.
Get a bag (its a dry powder) of Pool Shock - available everywhere - its concentrated powdered bleach. Easy to store. Calcium hypochlorite.
Gatorade powder.
Sodium thyosulfate.
And the stuff for porta potties - the formulation that contains formaldehyde.
Maps - when the freeways are unusable, you need to figure out how to get from here to there - and back.
An out of state contact number for the whole family - so survivors can report in and rest the mind of the rest of your family. Or call for assistance.
Make friends with a amateur radio operator. (HAM) after Northridge there was a period that the only communication was by radio. Every neighborhood has an antennae farm - at the base you will find an old grumpy man waiting for the "big one" - and that is a useful thing.
Dust masks. Visine. An earthquake kicks up a lot of dust.
Get gloves. Safety glasses. Steel toed shoes.
A demolition hammer and LONG prybar (they are called wrecking bars) was really handy. A LARGE crescent wrench.
If your house hasn't been retrofitted with an inertial gas shutoff - you need one. They cost about $130, and the gas company will usually install it for you for free. That way your house doesn't turn into a torch.
A pigtail that will allow you to connect your generator directly into the house - extension cords are a tripping hazard. By shutting off excessive loads at the breaker box, you can use the house wiring - assuming the house is still habitable.
An inverter that allows you to convert power from your car or other engine to useful things like tools and fans.
Plastic. duct tape.
Great stuff sealer - works great for cracks in walls, pools, on a temporary basis.
Fly and mosquito spray and fogger.
Flashlights (LED is best). Not looking for the brightest - looking for the longest run time, rechargeable.
Waterless hand cleaner.
Johnson's baby shampoo. Can be used as a body wash as well as a shampoo - but if you don't have enough water to do a complete rinse, it won't cause a rash.
Sawsall with demo blade that will cut metal or wood. If you have to free someone from a collapsed two story building - or a sofa for that matter - you need to get through the rubble.
A cooking source that does not rely upon existing tech. Like a Coleman camping stove.
A WEEK of ABUNDANT food - you may be cooking for more people than you realize.
MREs and survival food taste awful, and they are too light for most people to live on for a long time. No reason to overstock on them. You will want to eat normally, just increase the portion sizes for your extra work. You will probably be near or in your home. Rice-beans-canned tomatoes are the start of a good meal with some cooking skill. Tuna, chicken, ham, spam (gack), chili... all sorts of good canned meats.
A length of hose so you can siphon off gas from abandoned or unusable vehicles.
Most people in cities are convinced Walmart will be open the next day, it won't. A ditch kit can save your life. You need two - the one for staying, and the one for moving out. Interchangeable lists. But if you are hiking to a FEMA transportation site, you need a different set of tools than if you are making do until normalcy returns.
A 2000 watt Honda is enough of a generator. All you need is a fridge, and a box fan. You don't need massive electricity - you need reliable and quiet power.
Do you have a ShopVac? Very handy.
If you have a pond, a katadyn filter - converts pond water to water that is potable.
You need buckets to move water around - flush toilets if the rest of the sewerage system is still working.
Roark recommends you google "Nuclear war survival skills" by Cresson Kearney.
Roark's final comment - test and retest everything. Do not assume everything in storage will work. Supplies are important, but data is more important. How long will the lanterns run? How long with the batteries really last? How long will your pond last without pumping?
You have to de-rate things for age - old batteries don't last as long.
Old people don't last as long, either. Be reasonable about what you can do. Don't plan on being superman - cuz you will hurt yourself.
Hands - feet - sleep. You have to protect them all. Any little infected cut can be life threatening. If you can't sleep, you must medicate to sleep - otherwise your judgment goes away.
You'll laugh, but card games. After Northridge, the neighborhood Roark was in played Yatzee and Monopoly until it got old.
Lawn chairs. They spent a lot of time sleeping in lawn chairs. Aftershocks, you know... and an uncertainty about whether the house will hold.
Someone in the house needs to have a bicycle. For when the gasoline runs out, and if the roads are impassable.
Benadryl. Alcohol for "medicinal" purposes. At least a month's supply of necessary meds, if you are on something important to your daily life - 3 months supply. After the hurricane, we were so busy I forgot my daily vitamin. That alone made me more tired and subject to depression - keep up your meds.
(personal note - Roark doesn't do things by halves. My house has a three car garage - we have the last bay of the garage dedicated to hurricane supplies.)
