Help in Building an Urban Emergency Kit

Hi, I need help in building a small Urban Emergency Kit. I'm thinking something no larger than a pop can. Those are the things that I'm thinking of putting in.

- CMG Infinity
- Small 1 cell AA radio (not sure where to find this yet)
- 2 spare AA battery
- Small Swiss Army knife
- Tylenol
- About $50 cash in small bill/coins
- Pencil and post-it pads
- Heat reflective emergency blanket
- Matches and tea candle
- Safety pins
- Whistle

A CPF member mention EVAC-U8 from exitsafe.com and I totally agree but due to size, I'll probably carry the EVAC-U8 with my emergency kit (not in my emergency kit).

Any suggestion or comment would be great.

Think you could squeeze in a "Leatherman" type tool instead of the SAK? It may give you a few more options if you need them, eh?

Countycomm has a starter set: http://www.countycomm.com/justincase.htm

What do you mean by "carry"? Are you going to tote this thing around everywhere you go? If it's for at home or office or your car, there's no need to keep it so small.

Drugstores around here have some very small earphone radios (no speaker). Not sure what kind of batteries they use. They are cheap, like $5 or less. They may be FM-only. Around here that's not a problem. Some cellular phones also have built-in radios. If you carry a cell phone anyway, maybe you could just pick one of those models.

Those uninsulated reflective blankets are useless. I have no idea how the fad got started. Get one with insulation (bulkier though) or forget it.

If you're really cramped for space, skip the CMG Infinity and spare batteries and substitute a coin cell light. You won't need 40 hours of light in an urban emergency.

Don't forget some duct tape!

Lithium AA's for shelf life & run time.
Reflector Signal Mirror (Metal one with aiming hole)
Spare Glasses if you need them (Got to be able to see)
Nylon Cord
Make sure the matches are waterproof (I one of those small lighters)
24 hours of any required meds

I carry nearly all the same stuff in my brief case, with teh exceptions being no Knife (I fly a lot) and AAA batteries for with ARC AAA replacing the Infinity (Radio runs on AAA's also) Found the SwissTech Pliers pass airport security since they do not have any pointy things on them but do have Pliers, Wirecutters and Screwdrivers.
It all fits in one of those small Eagle Creek Zipper pouches and is always in my briefcase.

Never know when you will be in a place and need any of this stuff. (Power failure due to tornado in a 19 story building and had to help my group find the way to the stairwell and down. I was the ONLY one of the citizens with a flashlight and the floor wardens were occupied.)

When I was in California (Earthquakes) this was the type of kit we put together for our children to keep in backpacks.

Additionally if you are carring this in your car or brief case remember a laminated family picture with emergancy contact info on the back incase the you cannot communicate or you become disabled.

Plan for the worst and hope for the best.

If you find a small AM radio with a speaker (smaller than Shirt Pocket Size) that uses an AA Battery let me know. The only small AM Radio with a speaker I've sound uses AA's is the Sharper Image one with Digital tuning. Works great is a small size but uses AAA's.

Am looking for one not just for emergancy's but to listen to the Baseball Games and Sports Talk. The really small radios only appear to be FM and headset only.

Another useful thing: P-38 keychain can opener, about 25 cents at army/navy stores or 2/$1.00 shipped from these guys, if your SAK has no can opener:

http://www.georgia-outfitters.com/page52.shtml

I see there's a bigger one now (P-51) which does sound a lot nicer if you're not going for minimum space. The P-38 is tiny and useable, but a PITA.

Another addition: folded up 1 quart Ziploc bag, makes a good improvised water bottle. The "freezer" type is a little stronger (thicker plastic) but both are pretty tough.

I can't see the need for a signal mirror in an urban kit. You won't be flagging down aircraft.

To see what that cut on you head looks like....

You might want all weather writing paper and a Space pen instead of Post-it notes.
http://www.campmor.com/webapp/commerce/command/CategoryDisplay?cgrfnbr=35893&cgmenbr=226

look up the term "Mini-kit" and Altoids. There are LOTS and LOTS of lists of altoids Mini kits out there - there is one on my web page. Then thing about what you would ADD, because now you have about 3x-4x the room!

http://www.breitling.com/en/models/professional/emergency/


Well.......it fits!! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon15.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/eek.gif

By "carry" I mean that I'll carry it around with me in my back pack.

I really like the idea of duct tape and photo with phone numbers at back.

Here's a thread about small radios from a while back. Nothing that great was found.

I just bought a couple of cheap FM-only earphone radios, 1 for $2.99 or 2/$5.00 at Walgreens. They run on two AAA's and are the size of a pager and have a belt clip. They're not as small as they could be, but they're very lightweight. The guts are on a 1"x2" PC board with a lot of analog through-hole components. These guys didn't use a ten-cent part if they could use nine one-cent parts instead. But about half the space is used by the 2aaa battery compartment. Overall, it's about 2.5" squareish and 1/2" thick. I bet you could repackage the PC board in about third of the total space, by using a coin cell instead of the two AAA's and ditching the plastic shell (just wrap some tape around it or something). A less drastic mod would be to just cut off the AAA compartment and take off the belt clip, use the existing plastic shell and knobs around the rest of the board, and power it with a coin cell taped on the back. A CR2450 coin cell should last maybe 2/3 as long as a pair of alkaline AAA's, which is probably tens of hours in a tiny thing like this. Further space savings can be had (as someone in the other thread mentioned) by separating the two stereo earbuds and throwing away one of them with its accompanying wire. In the more drastic mod, you'd also dump the plug and socket for the earphone, and just direct solder the wire. This is all for a $2.50 radio so you're not exactly destroying an expensive piece of equipment with such a mod.

Back when I was a little kid there were all kinds of ultra-miniature radios available, that fit in pens, wristwatches, and whatever. I can't seem to find those any more. I don't know why. With surface-mount parts and a coin cell instead of that through-hole stuff and AAA's, the little Walgreen's radio could be the size of a matchbook.

FWIW, the radios I got look like same as the one in this package: http://store.yahoo.com/tressasvillage1/waraw.html

I have carried a tiny Radioshack AM/FM 1xAAA headphone radio (using R earpice only) on my belt for years. In addition to providing entertainmemt and news it has come in very handy on occasion including the time I was hunkered down on the crowded floor of the United VIP lounge at Denver airport while a tornado was bearing down on us. That radio is as much a part of my EDC as my lights.

Brightnorm

Norm, do you mean this radio? I think the 2aaa one that I got is about the same size or only a tiny bit larger. It's FM-only and has no tuning dial or indicator at all! There's just one button that sets it to the bottom of the band (88 mhz) and a second button to scan upwards to the next station. I guess it's not so great if I was planning to use it with any regularity. But it pulls in several stations even in the very crummy reception area where I just tested it, and it cost under three bucks.

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Found the SwissTech Pliers pass airport security since they do not have any pointy things on them but do have Pliers, Wirecutters and Screwdrivers.

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Rocketman, I'm surprised you could carry on a Swisstech. According to the TSA doc I see, all tools, including screwdrivers (unless for eyeglass repair), wrenches and pliers are all prohibited.

http://www.tsa.gov/public/interweb/assetlibrary/Permitted_Prohibited_12_18_2003.pdf

I feel REALLY naked when I fly and have no pocket tool of any kind for my whole trip.

Louie, why don't you put the pocket tools in the checked-in luggage?

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Found the SwissTech Pliers pass airport security since they do not have any pointy things on them but do have Pliers, Wirecutters and Screwdrivers.

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Rocketman, I'm surprised you could carry on a Swisstech. According to the TSA doc I see, all tools, including screwdrivers (unless for eyeglass repair), wrenches and pliers are all prohibited.

http://www.tsa.gov/public/interweb/assetlibrary/Permitted_Prohibited_12_18_2003.pdf

I feel REALLY naked when I fly and have no pocket tool of any kind for my whole trip.

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Thats the billions of dollars for airport security at work for ya! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smoker5.gif

Not to get too far off topic, but I avoid flying with anything but a carryon for practical reasons.

Back on topic, one interesting concept I heard in lieu of an EvacU8 smoke hood, was to carry a large oven roasting bag such as used for roasting turkeys. They are heat resistant and clear, the idea being that in case of a smoke emergency, on could pull it over your head and might have a few extra seconds for an escape. You rebreathe in the bag for several seconds, but it might be OK for a short time. Never tried it! Of course, an extra plastic bag is useful in any kit. I've heard some rumors that airport security has sometimes confiscated EvacU8s, apparently thinking you are planning to gas the plane and take it over.

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- Small 1 cell AA radio (not sure where to find this yet)

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I'm surprised no one's mentioned this yet: County Comm Pocket Shortwave Radio...two AA instead of one, but it's small and the shortwave is a bonus. Only $10, too. I haven't played much with the shortwave, but the FM/AM seems pretty clear.

I might also try a Freeplay or other windup radio, though I don't have any personal experience with them yet.

I just bought one of these for the emergency radio, and when it arrives I will especially be checking the SW. I'll post a review when done.

Radio stuff should go in the radio thread (I dragged that thread out again so that the info could go in one place) but anyway the Countycomm, while a good deal, is a bit large and heavy for EDC. I got one recently and the AM and FM do work fine, but I haven't been able to get any shortwave stations with it so far.