If you’ve come this far, then you should have at least one bug out bag prepped and ready to go in case disaster strikes.
Nobody knows when – or even if – one of these terrible emergencies will take place, so what happens to all these bug out bags between now and then? Sturdy backpacks which can hold everything that we’ve already mentioned aren’t likely to be small, so you don’t want to leave yours lying around. If you did, it’d be more likely to get in the way, become a trip hazard, and just generally do you more harm than good.
You need to find somewhere safe and secure to keep your bug out bag; somewhere out the way that’s easy to access at the same time. That’s easier said than done, you might be thinking, but here are a few suggestions on where to store your bug out bag.
You have several options here, so it’s definitely worth weighing up the pros and cons of each.
Firstly, when you were creating your plan of action to go inside your bug out bag, you should have considered where you’ll go if you need to leave your home. To a certain extent this will depend upon the type of emergency that you’re planning for. In the case of extreme weather you might be able to move to another part of the country; in an alien or zombie attach you’ll want to head to the middle of nowhere, far from the madding crowd; in the case of some other sort of catastrophe such as an explosion, your best chance of survival will probably come from hunkering down in some sort of bunker. Not all of these will be available to you – not everyone has a nuclear bomb shelter sitting in their back yard – but by now you should have a good idea of where your final destination will be.
With this in mind, your best bet is to store your bug out bag in your chosen location – if it’s safe to do so. You shouldn’t leave it in any sort of open or public location, but try to find somewhere safe and private to store it. This might be your holiday home, it might be a cabin in the woods, or if you’re one of the few that does have your own personal bomb shelter, then put it in there!
By storing your bug out bag in your secure destination, it will mean that on the day of reckoning, you will only have to worry about getting yourself to safety, without having to worry about remembering to take your belongings. They will already be sitting and waiting for you, ready for when you arrive.
That said, there is a major drawback to this idea. It assumes that everything will go to plan, and that you will actually arrive in your chosen place of safety in one piece. It doesn’t bear thinking about, but what happens if this doesn’t happen?
Massive emergencies for which bug out bags are necessary are unchartered territory, and they’re unpredictable in nature. We can plan as carefully as we can, but there’s still a chance that the world will throw us a curveball and we won’t be able to carry out our plans as we had expected to.
As a result, storing your bug out bag away from your person could end up being a complete waste. If you end up heading in a different direction or if you need the contents sooner than expected, then it will be of no use if it’s sitting in a hut in the middle of nowhere.
If this sort of unpredictability is something that you’re worried about, then perhaps the second storage option would be a better idea for you.
Of course, this option involves storing your bug out bag at home. As I mentioned before, don’t leave it lying around as it’ll just get in the way; keep it safe in an easily accessible cupboard or chest of sorts.
Whatever you do, don’t store your bug out bag somewhere that’s difficult to access, such as in a locked basement or attic. When trouble hits and you need to evacuate as quickly as possible, you won’t have time to race around your house, let alone fuss with locked doors and flights of stairs. Fumbling around with these sorts of obstacles will just cost you precious time – and maybe even your life.
Instead, you want to find a cupboard that is quick and easy to get to when you’re in a rush. One that’s kept unlocked and near the front door is ideal, if you have one!
Having said this, storing your bug out bag at home is not without its faults, either. For starters, you will actually have to remember to take your bug out bag with you as you evacuate, which may not be the first thing on your mind. In addition, you might just about have room to store your own bug out bag, but if you have a family or live with other people, then finding space to keep all the bags could prove to be a real challenge.
These are the two best options which are open to you when it comes to storing your bug out bag. Both options have their advantages, and both have their disadvantages. It’s up to you to decide which option is most suitable for you, your living situation and your escape plan.
Whether you plan to store your bug out bag at home or in some other secure location, there are a few things to look out for which should remain constant in every storage spot. You should choose somewhere cool and dry; the temperature should remain constant, rather than being prone to fluctuate between very warm and very cold. This is important for preserving your supplies (especially the food) as any changes in temperature can have a serious detrimental effect.
Lastly, but certainly not least, I will reiterate the fact that you should replenish your food supplies annually. Even if this means making a special trip out to your safehouse in the middle of nowhere every year (if that’s the option that you’ve chosen), then so be it. Taking the time and effort to refresh your stock of food and drink will be worth it; you’ll find that the benefits of having fresh food for longer far outweigh the hassle of the journey!