Yes ! Unfortunately I had to learn the hard way. Last year my house and many more homes in our community( Fort Mcmurray Ab Canada ) were wiped out by a huge Forest fire and we had zero warning that it was coming our way until the forest fire was on my street. Anyway, We had about 15 mins to get the kids ready and grab what We could to evacuate our home and the city . I didn't have an emergency bag prepared but I managed to grab one can of my sons special hypoallergenic formula and some of his safe foods,inhailers and eppipens and I grabbed all of our medications that were already in containers and a few little odds and ends like my purse and cell phone and we headed out.. never to return again. We lost everything we had ever owned . And then on top of all of that, there was only one way out of our city and we had to literally evacuate through fire. It felt like an apocalypse and we truly only made it out by the grace of God.

My house is still not even started to be rebuilt yet and it's over a year later so as you can imagine,our lives have been completely turned upside down.

Anyway, I am sorry for Rambling on, I just wanted to share my real life experience with you so if (God forbid )any of you are ever put in a situation like this, maybe my story can provide a little input as to what you should do to prepare !

Here are my suggestions, Always have extra water on hand...At least an extra case, always have all of your important documents packed together in a safe place (things like your birth certificates, important mail, marriage certificates, children's pictures, coins, extra jewellery etc) . Have it ready to grab and run. Have a box of extra food for the family packed in reach with safe foods for your allergy children included. Don't have your important things packed in different parts of your house, have it all in one place,preferably on the main level where you have access to it at all times without having to dig or search for it ( you will most likely not have time to search for anything). Have all of your medications organized in one place preferably already packed in a container where you can easily grab it.
Have a list written out of all of you current doctors/ specialist names and numbers ready to grab ( keep it with your important stuff or have it on your fridge where u can grab it quickly) and if you are a coffee lover, grab your coffee and your coffee maker and RUN lol becuse you are about to experience a life of insanity to the point where coffee and adrenalin are the only two things that will keep you alive while you try to keep your head above water and rebuild your life ! Lol

Thanks for reading and I hope none of you ever have to experiment any sort of evacuation or trama in your life !

God bless!

I agree with Maureen that I hope all are safe and not in the midst of the storms, floods, fired, etc. My heart and prayers are with those who are.

Food wise I don't have an emergency bag ready but I could throw one together easily as I keep my pantry in the basement backroom well stocked. My kids joke that if there is ever an emergency they are all showing up at my house.

I do have a Rubber Maid emergency box kit with things like band-aids, gauze, elastic bandages, antiseptic creams and sprays, small scissors and white thread, Rubbing alcohol, peroxide.whipes, burn ointment, tweezers, aspirin, Aleve, medicine for vomiting and diarrhea, allergy pills, blood pressure pills, cotton balls, cotton whips, Q tips, ear drops, Saline solution, disposable tooth brushes, tooth paste and mouth wash. Small camp cups that fold down. I also have at least a full case of water on hand at all times. I periodically have to change out meds. etc. As for food I have lots of non-perishables that I could easily toss into a cooler. I also keep ice paks in the freezer at all times. Like Maureen, I also keep small amounts of foods and water in the car. I also have a shortwave radio with extra batteries (these must be checked periodically), a deck of cards and small travel games. Extra socks and hats.

Luckily I have never had to use most of these things, but being a doctor's daughter I just am used to being prepared.

Hi everyone, first I'm praying for everyone's safety! I have gluten, nitrate and sulfide allergies so "normal "emergency items don't work for me either. I've packed my pantry with Amy's soups, gluten free crackers, peanut butter and gluten free pasta and sauce. Also, Emergency Essentials has a bucket of emergency packs of gluten free meals.you can get a weeks worth for a reasonable price. Amazon carries several varieties of these buckets, just look under gluten free emergency food. They taste good and they are good for 20 years. I have also added applesauce packages, the crackers and peanut butter to the bucket. If I had to leave my home, I just grab the bucket,and I'm good. I so keep some of these same items in the trunk of my car. Good luck everyone, I hope this helps. Take care....

I've put all my documents and pictures on a jumpdrive and that is on my keychain there is a second one in my bag. I did this just before the 2013 flood that hit Exshaw.

My go bag consists of water, flashlights, clothes, documents in a plastic bag or case, canned/dried food that is appropriate for the allergies in our home and a can opener. We have survival bracelets that have cord and a metal piece that can serve as flint as well as function as other things if needed. Depending on how much time you have, you can ad tarps with bungee cords and a tent - both can be used as shelter after a storm.