A fire may be one of the worst experiences someone might ever face. Being in one is terrible due to the panic and fear of dying, and losing everything that you own may be equally worse. Not for the material loss but the loss of things that are part of your memory. That along with the things that are hard to replace can cause you a lot of trouble and headache. It’s hard to get them all back when you can get them back.
So, for this reason, many people create a strategy. This way they know what to do and can ensure that the important things will be protected and taken care of. After all, house fires are sort of common. Not only that but with the current climate changes, certain natural disasters involving fires may become more recurrent than ever.
That made me wonder, what to grab in case of fire? In case of fire, you should grab important documents, objects, and anything that you can’t replace or it’d be too expensive to do it like jewelry. The best thing that you can do is make a list of these items and have them at a specific location, so it’s easier for you to grab them.
Here you can see a list to get you started, then, below you can see a better explanation of each item.
- Pets
- I.D and social security
- Passport
- Flash drive or hard drive with your backup data
- Emergency bag
- Financial documents
- Personal documents
You must make a list, so you’re prepared when things happen. You don’t want to be in a moment like this not knowing what to do. Losing time here can make a whole lot of difference. Now, it’s also important to point out that this list assumes that you’ve made sure that your whole family is out. Otherwise, they’re the ones that you should worry about getting out of the house.
Pets
The first thing that you should worry about is about getting all the living creatures out of the house. Now, considering that you’ve taken the kids out of the house if you have any, the next thing is to get the pets out as well. It’s even a good idea to give them basic training if you can for this kind of situation, so they don’t get in the way. You should get them fast but be careful to not waste too much time trying to grab them and lose valuable time.
Pets are even less resistant to toxic smoke compared to humans. This means that you can waste too much time and let them inhale that. That’s also why it’s such a good idea to give them basic training. This would make them even alert you if something happens. You can look up online on how to do this, it’ll take only a few minutes every day.
So, make sure to grab your pets in case of fire. Remember that it’s a good idea to train them in this situation. If you’re talking about pets other than dogs, maybe you should consider having an exit strategy for them to make things faster for both of you.
I.D and Social Security Number
Another very important thing is to remember important documents like your I.D and your social security. These are crucial documents because otherwise, you can’t be identified and be able to access other documents in your bank and so on. So, always remember to get your I.D and social security and take them with you.
A great idea that many people execute is to get a fireproof document bad. In it, you could put your I.D card and social security. It’ll make that much easier for you to grab them and also safer. There’s a chance that it’ll even resist the fire in case you’re not fast enough to get them.
These documents are one of the most important that you have, so do not leave them behind. You should look for a fireproof bag that withstands high-temperature for a long period. The Fullive Fireproof Document Bag is a great option for you. Just remember to leave in an easy-to-reach place. Get yours here.
Passport
You may have no intention of leaving the country right now, but grabbing your passport with you it’s important. Actually, any official identification document is important and should be taken with you. It’s important to make sure that you grab everything that helps identify yourself. So, put the passport in the fireproof bag alongside the I.D card and social security. This way, you only need to go for one.
Now, this is also important because you never know when you’re going to have to leave the country. In an SHTF situation, you’re still likely going to need to have a passport to cross borders. This is why is so important that you do grab yours and make sure that it’s with you at all times. Also, if you leave outside of your country, then it becomes more important than the I.D.
So, make sure to think about all of these documents. Your passport is important no matter if you’re an expat or you may need to leave the country. Always have with you in case of fire. It’s an important document and there’s some bureaucracy to get a new one.
Flash Drive Or Hard Drive
Nowadays we’re digitalizing nearly everything. This means that an important portion of our lives is digital. We have photos, files, important documents, messages, you name it. Everything is somehow stored as a digital file. That makes it even more important to have backups of all these data. This is when having a flash drive or a hard drive will be valuable to you.
The first thing that you must do is to make sure that you do the backup of your data. Store only the important files that you cannot lose. This means official documents, important email, and personal stuff that you can’t replace. The average smartphone users use up to 5GB of data a month, so you might have more than you think.
So, make sure that you have a flash drive or a hard drive with all your important files. A nice tip is to put the flash drive or the hard drive inside a fireproof safe. It’ll make things much safer. You can set it up in a place that it’s easy to access and leave the house. The SentrySafe SFW123DSB Fireproof Safe is the best fireproof safe in the market. Check it out here.
Emergency Bag
Have you heard of emergency bags? These are great for anyone that wants to be prepared for anything. It’s just a bag with everything that you’ll need to survive and get out of SHTF situations. In it, you can include all the important things that you want to take with you and tools to help you survive. You can include weapons, food, and water bottles.
Make sure to get a big bag that fits everything that you need to take with you. Remember to give priority to your immediate necessities, so you’re not taking too much weight with you. After all, you don’t want to slow down and waste valuable time because the bag is too heavy.
So, make sure to prepare an emergency bag. Make a list of all the important objects for you, and put them in the bag. The Emergency Zone Bug Out Bag is a great emergency bag. It comes with everything you’ll need to put your stuff in it. Take a look here.
Financial Documents
Your credit card, bank account information, and insurance documents are important. This means that you should also remember to grab them in case of fire. After all, getting them back and trying to prove your rights may be a pain in the ass later. This means that the best that you can do is to make sure that you store all of these in a safe location.
Then, make sure that they’re easy to access. You could also train the situation, so you know where is everything and what to do in the case of a fire. This may sound even silly but it’s important.
So, just make sure to not forget your insurance documents, credit cards, and bank account documents.
Personal Documents
Some things aren’t worth a penny, but they’re irreplaceable to use. These are the photos, gifts, objects, letters. Anything that has an important meaning to you and that you can recover in the case of a fire.
Those personal documents should go with you as well. This means that you should grab them. If you have them already separated in one place is even better.
So, make a list, put them in one place, and train how to grab everything on time. Once you accomplish this, you’re good to go.
Final Thoughts
These are what you should grab in case of fire. Make sure that you do not leave anything important behind. Especially the things that you can’t replace and the thing that will help you rebuild your life.