A survey by the Red Cross shows that one in three Dutch people has an emergency kit at home. A significant increase compared to a year ago, but quite a few kits are still far from complete.
The Dutch Red Cross examined how well prepared the Dutch population is for emergency situations. “Our recent research shows that more and more people have an emergency kit at home, but that essential items are often still missing”, says Suzanne Segaar, Head of National Aid at the Red Cross on their website. These items are regularly missing:
Work to be done
Two thirds don’t have an emergency kit
“More and more Dutch people want to prepare properly for an emergency situation, such as a flood or power outage“, according to Segaar. However, according to her, there is still much work to be done. “Two thirds of people don’t have an emergency kit and are therefore not well prepared.”
???? Are you well prepared?
Are you well prepared? Do you have an emergency kit ready, or are you armed in another way against an emergency situation? Share your own findings or experiences about what the Red Cross advises in a comment below!
What’s in it?
According to the Red Cross survey, four out of five Dutch people have a torch or tea lights at home. Non-perishable food and a first aid kit is also no problem for the majority.
Water!
Remarkably enough, this is not the case for water. However, drinking water is absolutely necessary to survive, but only 39 per cent of people have sufficient at home. You can store drinking water for a long time, or you can produce it yourself:
- Chemical purification using purification powder
- Build an extensive filter system
- Boil water
I have already written a series of articles about this. Be sure to check them out:
- From rainwater to drinking water: how to do it
- How to safely drink water from a river
- 6 ways to make drinking water yourself
Emergency radio
Barely 40 per cent of people have an emergency radio, according to the Red Cross. “Especially younger generations rely on the internet or call 112 in an emergency. But without electricity, internet and mobile networks often fail.” At that moment it is important to have an alternative. This is what you need in such a scenario:
- Met een noodradio op batterijen blijf je via de rampenzender op de hoogte van actuele informatie
- What is the disaster channel? Find out more about that here
- Some smartphones have a back-up satellite function with which you can reach the emergency services
- Set up a Mesh network with your neighbours and family members who live nearby
We bought this ready-made emergency kit: read here what we thought of it!
Material alone is not enough
A well-assembled emergency kit is important, but it doesn’t end there. To be resilient, you must above all know how to act and which network you can fall back on. One in five Dutch people still does not feel sufficiently prepared with an emergency kit. What is positive? 82 per cent of all Dutch people are willing to help others in an emergency situation.