Emergencies arrive without notice at the most surprising time and in unexpected places. Imagine yourself driving in a desolate area at 1:00 am and suddenly something went wrong, driving and handling your car seems difficult and your tire just exploded. You also remember that the last house you passed by was almost more than 10 kilometers away. In this situation, preparedness is the only way out.
Having a roadside emergency kit can take you out from being stuck for a long time and even save your life. Either short or especially long distance driving, your vehicle must have some stuffs to help you in emergency situations. However, not all people carry an emergency kit and truth is, most actually don't have one kept in their trunks. To come prepared for any emergency that might happen along your way, keep the items on this list as part of your emergency roadside kit.
- Cash instead of credit cards or ATMs will be a lot of help as not all places have ATM machines and stores that accept credit cards.
- Bottles of water, for drinking and repair purposes. Water will definitely help during engine overheating and when your battery water runs out.
- Ready to eat food like crackers, peanut butter, oatmeal, granola bars or other energy food. Don't include foods that spoils easily as you wouldn't know when an emergency would happen.
- First aid kit with some medicines like aspirin and Tylenol, bandages, scissors, gauzes, hot and cold compresses, burn cream, and antibiotic ointments
- Extra blanket for those living in cold places and during cold season.
- Extra clothes so you won't have to wear one you're wearing for the whole time you got stranded.
- Flash light and spare batteries to help you properly repair your vehicle when it's dark.
- Battery Powered Radio for updates in cases where there is a typhoon or other calamity.
- Knife, preferably a Swiss army knife can do more other than simple cutting and slicing.
- For drivers who always bring their kids along, diapers, toys, and other children's necessity
- Jumper cables, preferably 12-foot in length to help when you drain your battery because of turning on the lights or your other car features.
- Spare tire and jack can help you get back to the road if your problem is damaged or flat tire.
- Spare fuses will help restore your lights on after a blown fuse.
- Duct tape can temporarily fix many things like broken hoses, windshield wiper, windows, and act as temporary cover to some tanks, and many others.
- Headlamp or tail light for extensive travels to replace lights that might go out during the lengthy travel. In construction, LED lights live longer than halogen ones.
- Basic tool kit with pliers, screw drivers, hammer, wrenches, and a socket set fitting your car
- A set of flares will help you alert other drivers that your vehicle has broken down. It might help prevent accidents and will save your life and the life of the passengers in vehicles that may come across yours.
- Pocket warmers or small propane burners for snowy places or during winter season.
- A gallon of antifreeze is a must especially if its winter. Low level of coolant can cause severe engine damage so it's best to always have a refill on hand.
- Rain Coat, umbrella, and other rain gear will help you not to get sick when get off the car when it's raining or when the winter wind is blowing.
You may find this list filled with so much stuff to bring, but you surely can put everything in a nylon bag or at least in a plastic container. Your trunk is big enough to keep your only way out of roadside emergencies.
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