Earthquake Disaster Pack

Emergency kit
Below is list of commonly recommended items for an emergency earthquake kit.

staying alive

 * water - 3.5 liters (one gallon) per person, per day
 * food for 3-4 days
 * You don't want your earthquake kit spoiling, so foods that save for a long time without refrigeration are key. Foods that do not require heat or water to prepare are most reliable in disaster.  Also, not all calories are created equal, so don't just charge straight for the pringles - proteins and fats will provide greater satiety and maintain health for longer than pure carbs will.  Suggestions (starred foods are highly portable):
 * Protein sources: nuts* (low salt preferred - big bags can be bought at Costco and other locations), canned-foods* such as beans and tuna/other fish, jerky* (squid jerky is the obvious choice in Japan)...
 * (Canned cat food* isn't actually that bad if you're in a pinch... - Ben 07:45, 18 April 2011 (UTC) )
 * Calorie sources (fats): olive oil
 * Calorie sources (carbs): pasta (requires water to prepare), rice (requires water to prepare), chocolate* (extremely calorie-dense, not entirely devoid of nutrition), dried fruit*
 * Calorie sources (booze): (no joke, alcohol is the densest digestible form of calories besides fats - and it doubles as a disinfectant/anesthetic/mood enhancer) pick your poison
 * Things with nutrients and flavor: canned tomatoes, dried fruits, vinegars (?), pickled foods (?)
 * multivitamins

staying safe

 * helmet (bicycle)
 * heavy-duty gloves
 * goggles and dust mask

staying connected

 * radio (battery-, solar-, and/or hand-powered)
 * AC phone charger; AA phone charger; USB-to-phone cable
 * alkaline batteries AA and AAA (long shelf life such as Panasonic EVOLTA)

staying cozy

 * flashlight (LED type for greatest efficiency)
 * LED headlamps are great - check outdoors shops
 * fleece gloves, balaclava, wool socks
 * windbreaker
 * raincover
 * a personal commode with sanitary bags
 * a lighter to make fire

getting stuff

 * water purification tablets/portable water filter
 * water tanks(empty PET bottles, or Platypus)
 * money: minimum of $100 (JPY10,000) in cash, at least half of which should be in small denominations

fixing stuff

 * knife
 * first aid kit
 * screwdriver, pliers, wire
 * strong tape (e.g. duct tape)

remaining oneself

 * Ziplock bag for wallet/phone
 * family photos and descriptions (to aid emergency personnel in finding missing people)
 * copies of personal identification and important papers such as insurance documents, driver's license, etc.
 * portable HDD with personal data
 * a printed list containing the following informations (even if you are sure you might remember parts of the list, you never know how your memory react in a stress situation):
 * telephone numbers (locally and oversea, company, kid schools and kindergartens, friends, colleagues, English/Japanese translation volunteers, etc.),
 * important addresses (embassy, friends, home, school, company, etc.) preferable in Japanese and Romanji,
 * email-addresses (friends, colleagues, family, etc.)
 * all kind of other important numbers and data (e.g., somehow encrypted passwords, pins, tans, id or passport numbers, account numbers, etc.)
 * if you share the pack with other family members esp. kids, a list of "what to do", "where to meet", "whom to contact"
 * paper and pencils to leave notes (e.g., on the door of your home about your status and the place you are going)
 * paper map of the local city, indicating possible shelters for yourself, family members and friends, e.g., close to work, close to home, close to school, etc., hospitals, etc.

Light and Tight Emergency Pack
A practical light and tight emergency pack, mainly intended for people living in large cities (Tokyo, Osaka, etc) to survive until they can reach an evacuation point. The evacuation point usually have large supplies of water and food and are commonly located in elementary and middle schools.

The bulk of the weight comes here from the water. Remember, if the bag is too heavy to lift, it is not useful.


 * 4 liters bottled water per person. Any supermakets in 2l bottles. JPY500.
 * 2 days food per person:
 * 1 pot peanut butter. Any supermarket with some foreign products (e.g. Meiji-ya), JPY400.
 * 2-4 packs of squid jerky. Any shop. JPY200.
 * Dried fruits. Supermarket (Costco). JPY300.
 * 4 packs curry rice. Any supermarket. JPY400.
 * etc.
 * Swiss knife or multi-tool. (few buck at 100yen shop ?)
 * A lighter. Combini, JPY100.
 * First-aid kit:
 * Bandages. Drug store, JPY???
 * Sport tape. Drug store, two for JPY400.
 * Antiseptics. Drug store, JPY???
 * Scissors. 100yen-shop, JPY105.
 * A few safety pins. Drug store, JPY???
 * A sewing kit. Drug store, JPY???
 * Some ointment to treat burns. Drug store, JPY???
 * Ointment for muscle injuries. Drug store, JPY???
 * Aspirine. Drug store, JPY???
 * Water purification tablets such as Micropur. Drug store (maybe?), JPY1000.
 * Emergency blanket. Home center, JPY200.
 * Sturdy gloves mad of thick fabric. Tokyu Hands, JPY???
 * Goggles. Tokyu Hands, JPY???
 * A pair of slippers, or light sneakers.
 * One underwear change.
 * Thermal underwear. Uniqlo heat tech, JPY1500.
 * Mask. Drug store, combinin, JPY200.
 * AM/FM radio with spare batteries (solar or hand powered is a must). (Ref and cost ?)
 * LED torch or head-light. Choose a model with extremely long battery life, solar or hand powered.
 * Mobile phone charger (which doubles as USB charger) with replaceable batteries. Combini, JPY700.
 * Enough spare batteries for all appliances and/or rechargeable batteries with solar charger. JPY???
 * JPY10,000 in cash, half in small notes.
 * All documents needed to remain oneself as described in previous section.
 * A backpack large enough to contain everything, but no more. 100yen-shop, JPY500.