Australians are no stranger to natural disasters. We are hit with everything from bushfires and drought, to cyclones and floods. And it seems with increasing regularity and intensity. So, it’s not surprising that more and more Aussies are asking themselves if they should have a ‘Go bag’ ready just in case of an emergency evacuation. But why is it smart to have a Go Bag at the ready, particularly in Australia? Let’s take a closer look.

Is it smart to have a Go Bag in Australia?

The answer is yes, it is smart to have a go bag in Australia. In fact, many state and local authorities are now encouraging Australians to get packing a go bag for emergencies and natural disasters. So why do we need to prepare a Go Bag?

Here are two excellent reasons:

1. Natural disasters are growing in intensity and frequency in Australia, and some are compounding (multiple overlapping weather events)
2. Recent flooding in South East Queensland and northern New South Wales have shown us that Australians are chronically underprepared for emergencies and natural disasters.

For the most part, the lifestyles and daily activities of Australians are heavily dependent on interconnected systems for the delivery of essential services (energy, water, food, health, transport and communications).

When weather events, disasters and emergencies cause these to fail, things can get dicey and we find out that we are underprepared.

Are you prepared for extreme weather?

Many Australians are unprepared for extreme weather and natural disasters, according to QBE research.

Only a quarter of Australians (25.6%) says their homes and families are well or extremely ready for natural disasters and weather events. The rest of them (22%*), on the other hand, claim that they are either unprepared (22%) or only somewhat ready (52%).

According to a study of over 1,000 Australians conducted by recent research delving into the habits and opinions of more than 1,000 people, 71% don’t have an emergency preparedness plan.

Which group do you fit in to?

What is a Go Gag?

A Go Bag is a pre-packed bag of essentials that you can grab in an emergency situation. They are also known as Emergency Go Bag, Grab bag, Grab and Go Bag, Emergency Evacuation Bag or WUSH (Wake up Sh*ts Happening).

The idea is that in the event of an emergency, you can grab your Go Bag and be self-sufficient for 24 to 72 hours. Until help arrives or you can get to an emergency shelter or friends place.

A Go Bag is a much a smaller kit than a Bug out Bag. It’s designed to contain only essential items for each household member that they can easily and quickly ‘grab and go’.

When would you use a go bag in Australia?

State and territory authorities around the country, including Queensland and WA, are starting to recommend that Australians prepare an emergency or disaster Go Bag.

But why do we need to prepare a Go Bag?

It’s estimated that more than nine million Australians have been impacted by a disaster or extreme weather event over the last 30 years. And Australians are 5 times more likely to be displaced by a natural disaster than someone living in Europe.

Those are some incredible statics if you live down under and you’re not prepared!

To add to this, a recent commission into natural disaster risk in Australia found that both the frequency and the intensity of natural disasters is increasing here. We need to do more to be prepared, both at a community level and as individuals.

Part of emergency planning and preparedness is readiness in case of an immediate evacuation. In this situation, authorities are recommending you pack a Go Bag.

When is it smart to have a go bag in Australia?

Like many evacuating the 2020 Lismore during the floods, you could be stranded in your car by rising flood waters. You may even be there for an extended period before floods recede and help arrives.

Or you may need to flee your home from racing bushfires that are travelling with the winds just folks on the outskirts of Canberra or those impacted by the Melbourne bushfires.

River flooding or coastal inundation could rise beyond historic levels and force you from your home in minutes.

A cyclone warning might be upgraded, causing you to change your mind at the last minute about sitting it out at home.

These are real life situations that have happened to many Australians. It’s not far fetched that it could happen to you.

Minutes to escape – what if an unexpected emergency occurs?

An unexpected emergency might be something like a house fire in the middle of the night, or flash flooding in urban areas. You might have only minutes to escape with your life and grab what you can. If this does happens to you, the chances are you won’t have time to grab the basics like a first aid kit, emergency food provisions, or clothes to get your through.

In general, go bags are designed for use in specific types of emergencies where time is of the essence and you need to be able to quickly grab what you need and go. It’s definitely smart to have a go bag ready when your safety is time critical.

How does a Go Bag help?

It’s smart to have a go bag prepared and ready because this can reduce your sense or worry about natural disasters and emergencies that might happen and how you will be impacted. We’ve been through a lot in Australia over recent years, with devastating bushfires, record breaking floods and a pandemic. Worrying about events like these can be very real.

A Grab and Go bag can also reduce the stress of living through an emergency during the event. You and your family will be much better equip to cope with the disruption that can occur and get back on your feet afterwards.

Being prepared with everything you need can be the difference between evacuating just in time or your safety being risk.

Having an emergency kit prepared yourself means that you’re also able to help others in need if the time does come!

Is it smart to have a Go Bag or a Bug out Bag?

So how do you know whether to prepare a Go Bag or a Bug out Bag?

Think about your own circumstances. Ask yourself, “what kind of emergency am I likely to face and how difficult will be to reach help, or for help to get to me?”

A Bug out Bag is different to a Go Bag – here’s how

A Bug out Bag is a bigger emergency preparedness kit with survival gear in it. It typically contains things like canned goods, and emergency blanket, tools to construct a makeshift shelter, and so on. It also has more non-perishable food in it and more water – enough to last 72 hours or more.

If you need to really go it alone for few days and bring your own food and shelter, then pack yourself a Bug out Bag. You’ll end up with a more comprehensive kit to get you through an emergency situation of any description.

A Go Bag or emergency preparedness bag will contain the absolute essentials you need to get to help, or to get to an safety. Or so help can reach you. It also has those items you’ll need once you do arrive at an emergency shelter. If that’s where you are headed, you don’t need to bring shelter or food with you.

Go Bags are a great choice for Australians who live in urban, suburban or semi rural locations where help and shelter is not that far away.

If you have an expectation that help is not far away, you don’t need to pack survival gear or canned food because emergency shelters usually provide for warmth, shelter, water and food needs.

What do you put in your Go Bag in Australia?

You put emergency supplies to meet your basic needs that you can carry with you until you get help or reach your local shelter.

The most important thing to put in your bag are essential items. These are the things that everyone needs to meet our basic human needs in everyday life.

Think water, food, shelter, warmth, light, first aid and communications. We have these at the top of our bag checklist to make it easy for you.

After the essentials, are other necessary items to help get you and your family through any disaster. Things like clothing, tools, important documents and even comfort items.

Should you buy a preassembled kit or build your own Go Bag?

Now that you know what a Go Bag is and what to put in it, you’re probably wondering whether you should buy one or make your own.

There are some ready made Go Bags on the market. They come in different shapes and sizes with different items depending on the supplier. You can also find Go Bags specifically designed for kids.

Buying a preassembled Grab and Go Bag

The advantage of buying a Go Bag is that it’s one less thing to think about. You know the contents have been put together by experts and that everything in the bag has a specific purpose.

We recommend ready made first aid kits for this reason, even if you do want to build your own Go Bag.

The disadvantage of buying a Go Bag off the shelf is that they can be more expensive than you hoped, and you may not need or use all the items in the bag.

Making your own Go Bag

If you decide to make your own Go Bag, you’ll need to put some thought into what what emergencies you’re likely to face. This will help you decide which items to put in your Go Bag.

We also pulled together a handy list of items that you can use to build your Grab and Go bag below. Our bag list is pulled from all Australian resources and experts online.

Making your own Go Bag can be a fun project for the whole family. It’s also a great way to make sure you have exactly what you need in an emergency.

Ultimate Emergency Go Bag list for Australian conditions

Our Go Bag list has been compiled by pulling together the best resources from Australian and state government authorities like the Queensland government, fire services, SES and the Red Cross. It’s a dependable and comprehensive list of items recommended by experts from these organisations.

Not all of these items may be relevant for you. If you are on a budget or unable to carry much, focus first on the essential Grab Bag items at the top of our list. Then sort through the rest to weigh up what you need versus what you can afford or carry.

Essential Go Bag items

Water

Water is the most important and highest priority item to plan for in your Go Bag. Without water, humans can’t survive for long. And don’t make the mistake of thinking you’ll have abundant access to water during a flood. It’s not necessarily the case! Flooding can take water treatment and transport infrastructure offline.

The bottom line is, always prepare water no matter the scenario!

• Bottled water – the experts recommend that adults generally pack 3 litres of water per day per adult. Water Purification tablets or iodine tablets – you may need to purify water, even in a shelter situation. Natural disasters can place stress on public water supplies, as it did during the 2020 Brisbane floods. Iodine tablets are well known water purification tablets. They are small, easy to get hold of and worth putting in your pack.
• Metal containers or metal water bottle – they’re more durable and you can use them for hot or cold water.

Food

How much food you pack depends on your personal needs, how much you can carry and how long you will need to rely on your supplies.

Humans can actually survive quite a while without food. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t pack any! In fact, your experience is going to be a lot less stressful if you can avoid becoming hangry (hungry+angry). So please pack some basic food provisions.

Avoid food that goes off, is destroyed when wet, or excessively heavy. Look for dehydrated and light weight food options with plenty of protein to keep the hunger away. We have the basics here, but if you need more food for your family take a look at MREs or meals ready to eat.

• Beef jerky – we recommend beef jerky in our food list because it’s light weight, full of protein, and easy to pack. If you’re vegetarian or don’t eat beef, think about meal bars or protein bars as a replacement food item.
• Meal bars
• Trail mix or fruit and nut mix
• Energy bars – also called protein bars, these are filling and can keep hunger at bay for longer. Just check how much sugar and salt are in the ones you buy. Too much salt can make you thirsty and too much sugar can bring on hunger earlier.

Warmth and shelter

• Sleeping bags – compact sleeping bags and survival blankets will be invaluable even if you are heading to a shelter.
• Bivy sack – a bivy sack can come in handy to keep your sleeping bags and emergency blanket dry. Its a waterproof bag and can be found in outdoor or camping stores.
• Warm blanket, usually wool
• Mylar blankets – these are also called ‘space blankets’ and are designed to retain the patients body heat during shock. They are compact and provide insulation and protection in all weather conditions. For example, they are water resistant and often come with reflective surface, providing high visibility and reflecting to allow cooling in hot climates. Mylar blankets are reusable.
• Pillow – because shelter pillows might not give you any sleep!

First aid

• First Aid Kit and manual – first aid is right at the top of the priority list because emergencies can often lead to injuries that need tending. Look for a comprehensive first aid kit. A soft pack first aid kit is a good option.
• Prescription medication & medical prescriptions – don’t forget the necessary medications and medical prescriptions from your doctor. These will be hard to come by if you haven’t packed spares.
• Non prescription medications – diarrhoea tablets and pain killers are often useful in these scenarios.
• Extra eyeglasses or contact lenses – these can also come in handy if you are faced with a hasty evacuation and don’t have time to think, let alone grab your spare pair!

Light

You may not have access to power during a disaster. But you’ll still need light to basically everything! Also, we wouldn’t rely on a mobile phone light to provide what you need. Often they don’t provide enough illumination and you’ll need your phone battery for other things! Here’s what to prepare to light your way:

• LED flashlight/torch 
• Headlamp – so you can work hands free
• Extra batteries – make sure you have batteries or a way to charge all of your gadgets. This may include a torch, mobile phone and radio.

Communications

Staying connected is an important part of preparedness. There are apps you can download to keep up to date with what is going on. You may also need communication to get in touch with rescue services. Tip – don’t rely on the power grid or communications network being available!

• Solar power charger – if you don’t have power supply one of these can come in very handy to charge your mobile phone.
• A battery powered or hand crank radio – we prefer a hand crank radio as you don’t have to make sure your extra batteries are up to date!
• Cellphone or mobile phone
• Prepaid phone card – its great to have one of these in case your provider’s network goes down. Telstra is probably the most ubiquitous option.
• Pad and pencil – to write down important information that you can’t afford to forget.

Other items to consider

Personal items

• Toothbrush/toothpaste
• Soap/shampoo
• Feminine hygiene items
• Toilet paper – try to get compact toilet paper in water proof packaging
• Hand sanitizer – a little hand sanny goes a long way beyond a pandemic. You can use it to avoid gastric bugs when other sanitation or running water may not be available.
• Deodorant
• Comb
• Microfibre towel
• Disinfectant wipes – for when everything gets grubby and you just can’t stand it any more.
• Wet ones – these are great to freshen up if you don’t have access to a shower pr running water.

Clothes

You need clothes for all family members. At a minimum pack 3 changes of under garments and at least one change of outer wear. Don’t forget to layer if its cold! Heres what we recommend:

• Closed—toed shoes or boots 
• Light weight long sleeve shirt x 2
• Change of underwear x 3
• Quick dry light weight long pants x 2
• Socks x 3
• Poncho, raincoat or waterproof jacket

Tools

• Utility knife or multi tool – a multi tool is like a swiss army knife and can replace the need to carry loads of other tools like a can opener or screwdriver. Once of the best things you can buy for your bag.
• Duct tape – you’ll find duct tape one of the most useful items to have in your go bag because it has so many different uses.
• Lighter
• Garbage bags – it sounds odd but garbage bags are super handy. They can double as ponchos, water proofing and be used to carry soiled items and wet clothes.
• Map(s) of local area
• Coms & Navigation Kit – if you’re worried about the internet going down and GPS failing this is a smart inclusion for you bag, alongside maps of the local area.

Protection

• Respirator mask / smoke mask / dust mask
• N 95 Masks – because… Covid.
• Insect repellent
• Sunscreen and hat
• Work gloves
• Waterproof bag – to store things like clothes and electronics, particularly if your areas is prone to storms, floods or cyclones.

Comfort

Being stranded or staying in shelters can be stressful and boring. A little attention to comfort can make an incredible difference to morale. So pack a few food items and games that to help ease the boredom and make you and your family members feel a little better about what you’re all going through!

• Sweets
• Deck of cards
• Travel games

Important documents

Here is a list of the documents that most Australians actually have hard copies of, and that you’ll need to pack in your go bag:

• Government ID
• Birth certificates and marriage certificate
• Emergency plan and contact list – family, friends lawyer, insurance agent
• Medicare, pension cards, immunisation records
• Bank account and credit card details
• Family photo
• Medical documents (medication prescriptions, eyeglass prescription, medical history, insurance cards, etc.)

Don’t forget to save copies of important documents you have electronically in the cloud. This way, you can access them from anywhere there is an internet connection.

Smart gear

• USB flash drive with electronic copies of important documents that you may need before you return home, such as your insurance policies.
• USB Smart Charger Cable – for your cell phone or mobile!

What kind of bag or pack do you need?

You need a pack that’s comfortable to carry, will fit all of the supplies on your bag checklist and that you can quickly grab and go. With this in mind, we recommend leaving the bag buying until the end.

Get all of your supplies together first so you can eyeball just how much is there. You may even want to weigh some things. Then look for a bag that is going to fit what you or a family member need.

What to think about when buying your pack

Think about all of your family members. Each of you might need a different pack based on height, weight and physical ability. Look for bags with internal pockets that make essential supplies easy to access.

Weight – the heavier the bag, the more difficult it will be to carry. We recommend a go bag should be no more than 25% of your body weight.

Size – too big and you’ll have trouble lugging it around. Too small and you won’t be able to fit everything inside.

Padding – a comfortable go bag is a go bag you’re more likely to actually use! Padding on the back and straps will go a long way to making your bag more comfortable to wear.

Waterproofing – if you live in an area that is prone to storms, you’ll want to make sure your go bag is waterproof.

Attachment points – go bags often need to be attached to other things, like wheelchairs or stretchers. Make sure your bag has attachment points that will make this possible.

Now that you know what to put in a go bag, as well as some general guidelines for choosing the right pack, you’re well on your way to being prepared for anything!

If you want to know more about how to pack a Go Bag, check out this post ‘How big should a Go Bag be (we nail size, weight and volume in 5 minutes)’

Pet supplies

Pets are a part of our family too in Australia! You may need to pack a separate bag for your pets! Think about preparing pet food, a water bowl, a sleeping mat and a toy for comfort. Crates can be a good thing to take if you can fit one.

What about families and children?

Your go bag should be tailored to meet the specific needs of your family, including any children or babies. We recommend packing one separate bag for all of your children’s needs. It may be one more bag for you to carry, but you’ll stay more organised by keeping these items separate. If they fit in a day pack, even better!

Here are some extra things you may need to think about:

• Nappies
• Wipes
• Formula or baby food
• Pacifier or dummy
• Extra clothes
• Toys and books
• Special medications

A word about money

You won’t always be able to use EFTPOS or ATMs during an disaster. Especially if there is a power outage or the NBN / internet goes down. Instead, save money and put some of it into your go bag for this kind of emergency.

We recommend $500 per adult, denominated in small bills ($5, $10 and $20). You’ll thank us later.

Where to store your Go Bag?

Most people store them in a cupboard near the front door. That way it is easily accessible when you need it. Just grab the bag and out the front door you go!

You’ll also need easy access to regularly check the contents of the bag and replace any expired items. It’s smart to to pack all of your food items together as you’ll need to check the used by dates for these, as well as any extra batteries.

Ultimate Emergency Go Bag Checklist (free pdf)

If you’re not ready to start preparing today, you can easily download the items in this article as a list to use later.

Here is our free Ultimate Emergency Go Bag Checklist PDF.

No sign ups. No hitches. 100% free. Why? To save you the time and hassle of doing the research for yourself!

What should you do next?

1. Check out our resources on what types of hazards or disasters might impact you, based on where you live.
2. Think about how you might personally be impacted and what you would do in any of these emergencies. Where you would go? How long would it take to get there?
3. Take a look at the different types of emergency kits that might suit your circumstances.
4. Talk to your family about emergency preparedness.
5. Download social media and emergency apps that allow you to stay connected should an emergency occur.
6. Download our Emergency Go Bag checklist pdf.
7. Prepare your Go Bag!

Conclusion

Disasters can happen without warning, so it’s important to be prepared. Know what hazards you are likely to face so that you can get prepared for any situation. We have answered the question is it smart to have a go bag with a resounding – Yes! So download our Go Bag checklist to save time and get prepared today. You never know when you might have to evacuate (and that’s the point of a Go Bag!). So get together everything you and your family will need to stay safe today. Happy packing!