Suppose your home is cut off from power, or you are left stranded in the wilderness. How will you survive?

Although self-sustainment is significantly dependant on food and water, survival kits address other components. Consider all the possibilities resulting from a disaster: injury, isolation, and no communication. As a result, survival kits, whether they are for disasters, roadside emergencies, or the outdoors, cover all aspects.

Disaster survival kits often contain three days' worth of supplies. Although contents differ, a typical survival kit in this case covers food rations, water, lighting and signaling devices, first aid, and possibly a radio or blanket. With one of these survival kits, an individual is capable of meeting daily caloric needs, signaling for help, seeing in the dark, staying connected to the outside world for updates, and addressing any minor injuries.

Survival kits for the outdoors touch on the same group of components, only the conditions of the wilderness are taken into consideration. Coupled with the food rations is equipment for food gathering. In addition to a blanket are a shelter and supplies for keeping warm. While a radio can give you weather updates, news, and relief instructions, an outdoor survival kit additionally covers navigation equipment. First aid, similarly, includes items for insect bites and other potential outdoor injuries.

Roadside emergencies are a separate group of disasters, and as a result, survival kits have components geared toward the needs of the situation. Because repairing a vehicle is one of the primary concerns during such a disaster, roadside survival kits contain basic auto tools, such as jumper cables, a towing rope, and a tire repair kit. Roadside accidents and breakdowns may occur in dark or isolated areas. For getting assistance, an auto emergency kit comes with multiple lighting and signaling options: banners, reflective triangles, flashlights, a lantern, or light sticks.

A survival kit with three days' worth of supplies may not be sufficient, however, if a disaster covered a large area. Power and water may take weeks to be restored. In the meantime, you need the supplies to sustain yourself, and beyond first aid and light, a large food and water supply is essential for survival. Having about a year's worth of food in the event of a disaster is recommended, and over time, you should be building up a supply of rice, beans, sugar, powdered milk, oil, and various dehydrated foods for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.