Office Emergency Kit Checklist

Updated December 2022

An office emergency is any situation that disrupts, threatens, shuts down operations, or causes physical and environmental damage to the workplace and its workers. Companies often prepare for emergencies by spending large sums of money on disaster insurance to relieve them of any economic and physical damages during the accident. 

So why not spend as much money to protect the workers?

This year, ensuring your office emergency kit is up-to-date and ready for anything mother nature throws at you is crucial.

Maintaining Office Continuity

During extreme disasters, outside help may not be able to arrive for several days. The supplies in your emergency kit help workers either evacuate or shelter in place for an extended period. 

Offices need a trauma first aid kit for office first responders to treat employees who have been severely injured but cannot get emergency medical assistance immediately.

Also, consider that some businesses may have an emergency response plan that requires certain employees to remain at the facility to maintain critical systems.

Keeping an injured employee stable until medical professionals arrive saves lives.

What to Put in Your Office Emergency Kit

Office emergency kits should have the supplies necessary to help employees escape danger or shelter-in-place at work until emergency relief has arrived.

This includes having a stock of long-term shelf-life food and water as well as enough supplies to maintain healthy hygiene habits.

Additional Emergency Supplies for Your Office

Outside of the traditional emergency office supply kits, there are some specific scenarios that every office needs to prepare for. These include preparation for building collapses, unexpected scattered debris, and the need for emergency shelter.

While uncommon, these disasters have life-threatening consequences. What’s nice about many of these supplies is that they do not expire; just buy them once, and you’ll be set for decades to come.

Office Supplies for Search and Rescue

When a catastrophic event causes severe damage to your building, search and rescue tools protect trapped or crushed employees. 

Remember, any building with structural damage may also have unseen damage. If you are planning on searching for or rescuing an injured employee, keep your eyes peeled for potential building impairments that could cause further injury.

Suggested Items:

• Leather-palmed work gloves
• Safety goggles
• Pry bar

Office Supplies for Breathing and Lung Protection

Masks help reduce the spread of germs and protect you from potentially dangerous particles in the air. While any mask offers some protection, dust masks are always best.

Well-made masks protect people from dust, smoke, and dangerous fumes. Buy brand-name dust masks to guarantee your employees are protected from the elements during an office emergency.

Also, encourage your employees to hold onto their masks while handing them out.

Suggested Items:

• Dust masks
• Respirator mask for smoke protection

Light and Communication Supplies

You probably have candles and flashlights in your home, but do you have enough around the office in an emergency? We recommend keeping a collection of flashlights around the office (with regularly checked batteries), as candles can sometimes lead to accidental damage.

In addition to flashlights or light sticks, your office should invest in a solar or battery-powered radio. Communication is essential for staying safe in an emergency, and radios provide the latest information to everyone on your staff.

Suggested Items:

• Whistle with lanyard
• AM/FM radio with extra batteries
• Flashlight with extra batteries
• Light sticks

Hygiene and Sanitation Supplies

In an office emergency, bathroom access may not be available – especially in a lockdown situation. Keep hygiene and sanitation items on hand to maintain health and safety in the office until help arrives.

Some of these products are available at your local grocery store, but others, such as the portable toilet, must be purchased at an online retailer.

Suggested Items:

• Portable toilet
• Toilet bags
• Deodorizer packets
• Toilet paper rolls
• Vinyl gloves
• Sanitary towelettes
• Hand sanitizer

Need help building your emergency office kit? Reach out to LifeSecure today.

Making small investments to prepare employers and their families for a disaster now is the best way for a business to be secure in the future. At LifeSecure, we understand how quickly a situation can deteriorate during a disaster which is why we’ve dedicated our lives to protecting others.

From office emergency kits to disaster preparedness guides, our team is here to help you protect yourself and your employees from unexpected dangers.

Download your copy of LifeSecure’s office emergency supplies checklist, and post it where everyone can see in order to be prepared for any emergency.

Download Checklist

David Scott

David co-founded LifeSecure in 2005, just a few months before Hurricane Katrina taught everyone that one can go hungry and thirsty in America and even die before help arrives. For over a decade David has focused on developing and discovering superior emergency and disaster survival solutions - kits and supplies. He has trained community groups in emergency preparedness, helped non-profit organizations prepare emergency kits for needy individuals, conducted community emergency response exercises, and developed emergency plans for non-profit organizations. David makes an ongoing study of how best to prepare for and respond to various natural and man-made disasters, and his mission has been to help others “live Life SECURE” every day by preparing for what may come someday.

Learn more about David.