Making a natural disaster emergency bag: why it’s good to involve children and teenagers

Making an emergency bag is an important part of preparing for natural disasters. An emergency bag has all the items that you and your family need to stay safe and healthy if you need to leave your home during a natural disaster.

When children and teenagers are involved in making an emergency bag, it can help them know what to expect in a natural disaster. It can also help them feel safer, more in control, and more confident that things will be OK.

What you need to make a natural disaster emergency bag

You need a bag. If you want to pack separate bags for each of your family members, you’ll need more than one bag.

You need essential items to put in the bag – that is, items for health, care, safety and comfort. You can find a starter list of items at the end of this guide.

You also need time to get a bag, decide on essential items, make a list, gather and organise the items, and pack the items. The time this takes will depend on things like whether you need to pack several bags, buy specific items and so on. It can help to do this activity well before any possible natural disasters.

How to make a natural disaster emergency bag

Here’s how to make a natural disaster emergency bag with your child.

Organising the bag

• Choose a bag. Pick one that’s sturdy and easy to carry, like a backpack.
• Label the bag with your name and contact information.

Organising the items

• Decide on the essential items that you and your child need.
• Create a checklist of the items.
• Gather the items from your list. You’ll need to buy items that you don’t have or replace items that have expired, like food or medicine.
• Organise the items for packing. Put different items into different pockets or compartments, if your bag has them. Or you could use labelled ziplock bags to organise the items.
• Pack items into the bag.

Storing the bag

• Store the bag in a secure place and somewhere you can get to it easily.
• Put your checklist on top of the bag to remind you of last-minute items to add – for example, food or medicine with short expiry dates.
• Check the bag every 6 months to make sure it’s still ready. You might need to add new items or replace expired items.

Adapting this activity for children of different ages or children with diverse abilities

Here are things younger children can do to help with packing an emergency bag:

• Choose and gather comfort items, like a favourite toy, game and book.
• Count items – for example, water bottles or spare clothes.
• Sort items to pack into the bag’s pockets or compartments.

Here are ways older children and teenagers can get involved:

• Research what items are needed and why.
• Help you write a list of items, check for expired items, and note items that you need to buy.
• Pack items into the bag.
• Practise using items that will go in the bag, like a torch or weather radio.

You can adjust these tasks so that children with diverse abilities can participate. For example, you could break tasks into steps and teach the steps. Or you might need to use visual supports or video modelling to help children with disability, autistic children or children with other additional needs understand and do the tasks.

If your child is old enough to understand, it’s good to make sure they’re familiar with the items in the emergency bag. Knowing the items and their purpose can help your child feel more confident about using them if you and your child get separated.

Items to put in a natural disaster emergency bag

You can use the checklists below to get started on emergency bags for your child and family. You’ll need to adjust these lists depending on your local circumstances and your family’s needs.

Health and medical needs

• A first aid kit
• N95 (dust) masks or similar respirators to filter out smoke and ash
• Safety glasses or goggles for eye protection from smoke and ash
• Medicine and prescriptions – enough for 14 days if possible
• Freezer bag and prefrozen ice packs for medicines or foods that need to stay cold

Daily care

• Bottled water
• Feeding and food needs – for example, infant formula, expressing or bottle-feeding equipment, special food if your child has allergies, and a manual can opener
• Hygiene items – for example, nappies, wipes, hand sanitiser, toothbrushes and toothpaste, lotions and creams
• Weather-appropriate spare clothes labelled with your child’s details and contact information for you and next of kin

Information and identification

• A waterproof satchel with important information – for example, a list of key contact numbers, your family Medicare card, your child’s medical plan, a list of your child’s medicines, and your child’s individual learning plan (ILP) if they have one
• An emergency identification bracelet or card with your child’s details and your contact information, which you can remove from the bag and attach to your child
• Written instructions for using the items in the bag, in case you and your child get separated

Communication and safety

• Electronic items, like phone chargers, a torch, a weather radio, and a small tracking device to attach to the emergency bag and your child if appropriate
• Spare batteries
• A whistle to attract attention and signal for help

Activities and toys

• Small games
• Colouring pens and a notepad
• Books
• Favourite toys that don’t need batteries
• Comfort items – for example, a special toy, teddy or blanket