How prepared are you for emergencies?

When it comes to emergency preparedness / self-reliance, I've met people who have run the gamut from full-on prepper (they'd have their own private bunker stocked with 20+ years of supplies if they could afford to), to those who do not even bother with keeping a flashlight in a known location. Sometimes it can seem like a slippery slope from one extreme to the other. I know some people who keep months of non-perishable foods in their pantry, some who line their basement stairs with bottles of Poland Spring, some who keep a stash of silver rounds (one troy ounce apiece, worth about US$15 or so each) in case of economic collapse and hyperinflation, some who have prepared bug-out bags… and of course, some who lack even a flashlight.

What do you consider reasonable? Where do you draw the line between prudence and paranoia, and how do you determine where that line should be drawn?

Having lived in coastal New England until last year, hurricanes and nor'easters were enough motivation for me to keep at least a week's worth of food and water on hand, as well as a decent handful of cash. The roads may be impassable for days and power may be out for over a week following one of these storms, so when it is finally possible to get out to stores again they are often operating cash-only. I also had a charcoal grill and a camp stove for cooking without power. Many of my neighbors had gasoline generators.

But what about larger disasters? Say, a severe pandemic disease outbreak, or another Carrington Event, or major economic or political disruption (World War 3?)? Is there such a thing as a reasonable precaution against such possible atrocities, or is the only response a choice between the undertaking of extreme prep versus "the ostrich approach"? What are your thoughts?

How prepared does it make sense to be?

I mean, I'm not paranoid or anything, and i don't expect anything to go super wrong, but if it was up to me and I had the appropriate amount of money, I'd have a completely self sufficient home in the mountains with a 20 foot tall wall around it with various other layers of electrified and barbed wire and such walls, but that's just because I don't like people. I'd also have an airstrip because I'd like to learn how to fly but that's neither here nor there. And of course I'd have a bunker fully stocked, and not one of those craptastic bunkers either, I'd have one that is like a carbon copy of the house above (Think the movie Blast From The Past), who says you have to live like crap in a bunker? Just because you have to ration and such doesn't mean you can't be comfortable while doing it.

I mean I'm not a prepper, I don't claim to be, I doubt anything will ever happen, but I mean if you have the money why not right?

I always have a go bag. It has cash, weapons, clothing, food (for me, my wife and dogs) and other items like flashlight and other small tools. You never know when the zombie apocalypse will hit. Mostly in case basic services go out for an extended time, power and what not. I am by no means a 'prepper'. It's about being smart and knowing that services fail. My wife and I also have a few predetermined meeting points in case cellular services go out.

My family has always had a room in the basement designated to storing crates of drinks (water, fruit juice, lemonade etc) and non-perishable food items. I don't know why, in particular, but I suspect it has to do with my mum's tendency to buy in bulk if something will keep for a while. We live in a country that is mostly spared by natural disasters and our house is on a hill, so flooding isn't really a concern. We also cook with gas and have a non-electric grill, so if for some reason we got cut off from electricity we'd be good for at least a week or two, but something like that is unlikely to happen.
There's also a drawer close to the front door with flashlights, if anyone's wondering. (We don't keep weapons, but no one does in Germany. Unless you count our kitchen knifes.)

All those things have never really been talked about, they're just there. It doesn't feel like we're prepped for disaster, but I guess we kind of are.

I have a propane generator but that's about it. I have a number of flashlights, lanterns, etc. because we have a lot of storms. We're blessed with a lot of streams and rivers, so water is not usually a problem. As for food, there's an over abundance of deer and I'm armed. Poor deer.

Old New Englander here I keep 2 to 4 weeks worth of food and fuel and often find my self supplying my neighbors. We had two storms last winter with days of sub freezing temps and days of no power, my generator kept several of my helpless younger neighbors homes from freezing up.
I don't worry about WWIII or Zombies.

I don't even own a flashlight lol. I get irritated when we lose power temporarily so I think I would be pretty useless in this scenario lol.

There's nothing to prepare for in suburban SE England. I have a mobile phone and a torch. Job done. :smile:

Same as tiny, I have a flashlight, my cellphone... uh... well I have a smoke detector on every level of my house and a fire extinguisher in the basement and by the kitchen.

In the winter I try to stock up on food. Anyone else live where blizzards are possible? I try to make sure I can go up to a few days with enough food and water, but I don't keep much beyond a few days. That's how long it would take at MOST for the town to help us escape lol.

I live in an area that is extremely prone to seismic activity and bitter cold temperatures so its important for me to prepare.

I have a basic go-bag built and an everyday carry (EDC) bag with food, water, med supplies, fire starting materials, emergency shelter, etc

I'm the type of person that prefers to be self reliant and I know and understand that cell phone service may or may not be available when the next big earthquake hits my area.

I live on a property with its own well and septic. I've got a pretty big propane tank and a generator so I could go off grid for a bit. There's a safe in my closet with some cash as well as my guns.

I prep for camping trips with food and supplies to last a week or so. I have a generator in case I run into catastrophic weather (anything over 80 deg F) and need to run the AC while roughing it in a campground.

I prep for the apocalypse by trying to come to terms with death. I think this is a better approach than trying to make physical accommodations for all possible scenarios. Unless I could actually enjoy making all those preparations it would seem to be a waste to spend so much time and money doing that.