It’s time to update your Disaster Supplies Kit.

It’s time to get ready. You still have plenty of time.

Hurricane season is a month away, but you still have plenty of time to get ready for the season by getting a kit, making a plan, and being informed of any severe weather dangers.

You don’t want to wait until hurricane season starts — or until a storm is approaching — before taking these steps.

After a disaster, local officials and relief workers will be on the scene, but they cannot reach everyone immediately. You could get help in hours, or it may take days. You will want to have you and your family prepared to cope with the emergency until help arrives.

When a disaster hits, you will not have time to shop or search for supplies, but if you have gathered supplies in advance, your family can endure an evacuation or home confinement. By following the advice below, you can assemble a Disaster Supplies Kit.

Water
Store water in plastic containers such as soft drink bottles. Avoid using containers that will decompose or break, such as milk cartons or glass bottles. A normally active person needs to drink at least two quarts of water each day. Hot environments and intense physical activity can double that amount. Children, nursing mothers and ill people will need more.

Plan on having a gallon of water per person per day, and having at least a three-day supply. If you need a container, the American Red Cross Polk County Chapter has one available called a WaterBOB, a plastic liner for your bathtub that includes a siphon pump to dispense water into jugs or pitchers.

Food
Store at least a three-day supply of non-perishable food. Select foods that require no refrigeration, preparation or cooking and little or no water. If you must heat food, pack a can of Sterno. Select food items that are compact and lightweight. Include such things as ready-to-eat canned meats, fruits and vegetables; canned juices, milk, soup; sugar; salt; pepper; high energy foods, such as peanut butter, jelly, crackers, granola bars, or trail mix; food for infants, elderly persons or persons on special diets; and comfort or stress foods, such as cookies, hard candy, sweetened cereals, lollipops, or instant coffee or tea.

First Aid Kit
Assemble a first aid kit for your home and one for each car. A first aid kit should include: vitamins, various bandages and gauze pads, hypoallergenic adhesive tape, scissors, tweezers, needle, moistened towelettes, antiseptic thermometer, tongue blades, tube of petroleum jelly or other lubricant, assorted sizes of safety pins, cleansing agent/soap, latex gloves (2 pair), sunscreen, non-prescription drugs, aspirin or non-aspirin pain reliever, anti-diarrhea medication, antacid (for stomach upset), a laxative, and other first aid supplies as needed. Your local Red Cross also has compact and portable first aid kits available.

Tools and Supplies
You will also need various household supplies, such as mess kits, or paper cups, plates and plastic utensils; an emergency preparedness manual; a battery operated radio and extra batteries; a flashlight and extra batteries; cash or traveler’s checks and change; a non-electric can opener; a utility knife; a small canister fire extinguisher; a tube tent; pliers; tape; compass; matches in a waterproof container; aluminum foil; plastic storage containers; signal flare(s); paper and pencil; needles and thread; a medicine dropper; a wrench (to shut of water and household gas); a whistle; plastic sheeting; a map of the area (for locating shelters). If you need a battery-operated or human-powered flashlight or radio, your local Red Cross has both in one item, which also includes a cellular phone charger. Call 294-5941 for details.

For sanitation, you will definitely want to pack toilet paper, towelettes, soap and liquid detergent, feminine supplies, personal hygiene items, plastic garbage bags with ties (for personal sanitation); a plastic bucket with a tight lid, disinfectant, and household chlorine bleach.

Clothing and Bedding
Include at least one complete change of clothing and footwear per person. Depending on the likely weather conditions in your area, this may include also include sunglasses, sturdy shoes or work boots, rain gear, blankets or sleeping bags, hat, gloves (for cold or for sanitation), and/or thermal underwear.

Individual needs
Families with infants or elderly members will need to pack items that will help them. For example, infants will need formula, diapers, bottles, powdered milk, and perhaps some medications. Adults or seniors will need heart and high blood pressure medication, insulin, prescription drugs, denture needs, extra eye glasses, and contact lenses and supplies. For both, pack entertainment, such as games and books.

Important Documents
Important documents could be destroyed in a disaster. Keep these records, or complete copies, in a waterproof, portable container:

• Identification, passports, social security cards, immunization records
• Bank account numbers
• Credit card account numbers and companies
• Will, insurance policies, contracts, deeds, stocks and bonds
• Inventory of valuable household goods, important telephone numbers
• Family records (birth, marriage, death certificates)
• You may also want to make copies of precious family photos and have them safe and waterproof inside your kit.

If you need any further information about what to pack in a disaster supplies kit, please call your local American Red Cross Polk County Chapter at (863) 294-5941 or visit http://polkcountyfl.redcross.org.