{"id":2741,"date":"2020-03-23T23:52:55","date_gmt":"2020-03-23T14:52:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vhbloglive.wpengine.com\/?p=2741"},"modified":"2020-03-23T23:52:56","modified_gmt":"2020-03-23T14:52:56","slug":"what-to-pack-in-your-emergency-bag","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.villagehouse.jp\/en\/japanese-apartment-life\/what-to-pack-in-your-emergency-bag\/","title":{"rendered":"What to Pack in Your Emergency Bag"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Japan is a great country filled with\nlots of things to see and do. The culture is one that should be explored, and\nthere are so many beautiful places to visit. That being said, there are some\ndangerous aspects to the country. There is a constant threat of earthquakes,\ntyphoon season, and even tsunamis. Even though it isn’t a guarantee that it\nwill happen, it is always good to be prepared just in case something does\nhappen. There are some things to try and keep around your place, and most can\nbe found in local stores.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Water<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It seems like the most basic thing to\nkeep, but most people seem to forget about it. It is best to keep a few bottles\nof water around for when things get bad. It is best to get a few two-liter\nbottles in a bag or stored in a cool spot. You can get them for as cheap as 100\nyen per bottle, and each convenience store has their own brands so you can\nchoose whichever one you like. It is also a good idea to fill your tub, if you\nhave one in your apartment, with some emergency water. That water won’t be for\ndrinking, but for if the water in your apartment stops running. You can fill\nthe toilet, wash dishes, or use it for cleaning yourself for some time. It\nnever hurts to have a few extra bottles to make sure you will have enough to\nlast a few days.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Medication\/First Aid<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

If there happens to be a disaster, it\nwill be near impossible to get any medical supplies together. Anything from\nserious medicines to band-aids will be hard to find. Buying enough medicines for\nat least a few different things will help the most in a dangerous situation.\nStock up on things like band-aids, gauze, basic medicine such as headache\ntablets, and basic disinfectant. There are all kinds of injuries that can\nhappen during an emergency, and it is best to keep a small stock of items to\nhelp out until you can get to an emergency shelter. Medical masks will be\nessential in big disasters as there can be leaks or gases that can be harmful\nif inhaled in large quantities. It can also help contain the spread of\nsicknesses and diseases. If you are unsure what to get, you can find material\nonline that will detail out what things you should pick up and keep on in your\nemergency bag. There are some stores in Japan that sell bags and kits that have\neverything that you may need in them. They can be a little pricey, but it is\nworth it to have peace of mind when things go bad. You can check the local\ngovernment’s website for more details on emergency kits as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Clothing<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Depending on what time of the year it\nmay happen, you will need to have some clean and dry clothes ready for\nemergency use. This is very important, as the proper clothes can dramatically\nhelp you in a bad situation. For wintertime, you should keep some long pants\nand long sleeve shirts available in case snow or ice becomes a major problem.\nLong johns and heat tech clothing is very valuable in situations involving cold\nweather. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For the rainy season, it is best to\nhave some water-resistant clothes like ponchos or rain suits. Umbrellas are\ngood but can become a hindrance during stormy weather as they will get blown\naway in strong winds. Appropriate footwear is essential and can help keep your\nfeet from unwanted harm and can help you navigate flooded areas. Rain boots are\nthe best for rainy weather, and they can also protect your feet from more\ndebris that may be in your way. If you have trouble finding your size you can\nuse the internet to find some large size versions, or you can buy covers for\nyour shoes to help keep them dry. Gloves are indispensable in any situation and\ncan be used in different ways. In an earthquake, you may need to get around\nruble or move debris from spots and doing so with an uncovered hand can lead to\ninjury or infection. In the cold that can keep your fingers warm and give you\nhelp if you need to use your hands like shovels. Any kind of undergarment that\ncan help fight the elements will be good to have on hand too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Tools<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This can be a tough one to figure out,\nas there are some things that may seem unnecessary or too confusing to tell if\nit is needed. Simple is the best when looking at what tools to keep in the\nemergency bag. First is a small pocket-knife or a cutting tool. You can find\nsmall pocket-knives with multiple tools that can help in any situation.\nFlashlights and lots of batteries are very helpful and can also be bought at\nmany stores in Japan. Containers for hold perishable foods or water bottles for\ndrinking water are good to keep on hand. For the cold seasons, you can get hand\nwarmers to help when temperatures drop too low. Having a water-resistant bag\nwill ensure all of your supplies stay dry when you have to go to a shelter.\nHaving a lighter or some matches will be very helpful if you will need to start\na fire without electricity. Trying to keep on the essential things will help\nyou keep your bag open enough to fit all of the things you will need. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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There is a lot of useful information\naround the city halls and local government buildings that can help you prepare\nappropriately. Most of the local governments have begun to add English versions\nof all their emergency preparation materials. This isn’t going to be true for\nall cities, but most have begun to do it. Find out where the shelters are, and\nan escape route planned out for when things turn bad. If you take the extra\nsteps to make sure you can easily navigate your surroundings, it will make\neverything easier if an emergency does pop up.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Japan is a great country filled with lots of things to see and do. The culture is one that should be explored, and there are so many beautiful places to visit. That being said, there are some dangerous aspects to the country. There is a constant threat of earthquakes, typhoon season, and even tsunamis. Even […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":2754,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2741","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-japanese-apartment-life"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.villagehouse.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2741","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.villagehouse.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.villagehouse.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.villagehouse.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.villagehouse.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2741"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blog.villagehouse.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2741\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.villagehouse.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2754"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.villagehouse.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2741"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.villagehouse.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2741"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.villagehouse.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2741"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}