Building Evacuation Kit

Version 2.0
I work in a high rise building in downtown Seattle. One of the concerns that I’ve had is evacuating the
building during an emergency situation. While following a buildings pre-planned evacuation is key, as a Prepper I
prefer to also prepare for events that can take you off-script. Your original plan may fall apart, people may become
injured when under stress during the evacuation, and routes may become obscured. The building may no longer be
safe to be in (e.g., fire) or I may need to make it home to my family ASAP and don’t have time to bunker in place for
an extended period of time. Who knows what the situation might be?

In previous videos I have showed my Urban EDC Backpack, which contains a decent amount of emergency
gear, such as items for first aid and trauma. I have also shown my Office Emergency Preparedness Kit (EPK), which
contains basic gear for sheltering in place in the office (e.g., water, food, signaling devices, shoes, etc.). The items in
this kit are intended to provide complimentary redundancy to the items in those other kits, but this specific kit’s
main purpose it to provide hands free evacuation supplies for not only escaping a damaged building, but also
making it out of the city safely by blending in with the urban environment. I do not want to stick out like a
“Prepper” who has a bunch of gear on them. Thus, many of the items in this kit are specifically included for an
“Urban Gray Man” approach in the Seattle area. Rather than dress up like a tactical SWAT team ninja, I’ve chosen to
go with the construction worker look, which is a very common look in the Seattle area due to all of the new high
rise buildings going up nowadays. This look allows me to carry common PPE items without sticking out. Since I am
evacuating the downtown Seattle area, which has frequently gone through times of protests and civil unrest (e.g.,
CHAZ), I also have included some items that would allow me to blend in with that type of crowd, which currently is
the black block look. Again, my whole goal is to escape the city and to get home as quickly and safely as possible. To
me, these outfits are “urban camoflauge” and I would like to be able to change in and out of them as needed.

I previously used a sling bag in Version 1 of the Building Evacuation Kit, but now I am leveraging a
construction tool belt to carry many of the handheld items. This will allow me to still carry my EDC Backpack and
possibly expand upon it using some of the items from my Office Emergency Preparedness Kit. The items in this
Building Evacuation Kit are specifically designed to assist in an evacuation of a high rise building from numerous
emergency events such as fire, earthquake, acts of terrorism and more. Rather than store these in a backpack, I’ve
decided to leverage a hard shell carry-on suitcase, since it is very common to see these in an office setting since
people are frequently going on business flights. I can store this under my desk without anyone really thinking twice
about it. Without further ado, let’s start going through all of the items of Version 2.0 of the Building Evacuation Kit,
featuring Urban Camoflauge. As always, knowledge is the most important prep to have. However, having the right
tool for the job, combined with that knowledge, is my preferred method of emergency preparedness.
C TYPE PRODUCT COST NOTES
Rather than store the Building Evacuation Kit in a
backpack, I have decided to leverage a carry on
suitcase because it looks more common place in an
Carry On Delsey 20" Carbonite Carry-On office setting. I store this next to my desk at work and
Suitcase Luggage Spinner $50 it just looks like I am going on a business flight.

One of the risks I am concerned about in an urban

MSA 475369 V-Gard Slotted environment is falling debris after an earthquake or
Full-Brim Hard Hat, with 4- flying projectiles during civil unrest. This hard hat is
point Fas-Trac III Suspension, used by countless construction workers across the
Hard Hat Standard, White $16 city and offers some level of protection for your skull.

KwikSafety (Charlotte, NC)
CLASSIC | 10 Pockets Class 2
ANSI High Visibility Reflective
Safety Vest Heavy Duty Mesh
Orange with Zipper and HiVis for
Safety Vest OSHA Construction Work
This common PPE item not only makes you visible in
both daylight and nightlight, but it also helps you
blend in with the construction worker crowd. I also
feel that wearing a safety vest makes you look
"official" in some capacity, which will help you blend
$30 in overall in an urban environment.

This is another PPE item, albeit a little more hardcore.

During some evacuation situations I would be
concerned about civil unrest. I decided to include this
item after the recent CHAZ (Capitol Hill Autonomous
Zone) formation in Seattle, WA. This Type IIIA soft
armor protects against most handgun rounds. I
bought it on a screaming deal during a Black Friday
AR Concealment Plate Carrier sale. Again, my main concern is to make it home to my
Ballistic Vest with Soft Armor N/A family, alive.
I am worried about loud noises like explosions. These
ear plugs are able to stay wrapped around your neck
Ear Howard Leight Quiet Band Ear when not in use and offer some level of protection
Protection Plug, Foam, Orange $5 from things like flashbangs.
I'm including a single three-course MRE to provide
extra calories during an emergency situation. I may
end up putting one more in this kit after optimizing
Food Meal Kit Supply MRE N/A space.
I got this used orange hoodie from a friend of mine
who is a construction worker in Seattle. I like the
Orange Construction Hoodie heavily used look to blend in with your average city
Hoodie (Used) N/A construction worker.
This cheap flashlight could be used for providing
UltraFire 11-Inch Signal Traffic illumination, although I am using it for the orange
Wand Safty LED Flashlight 250 signaling capability and to help with the overall optics
Flashlight Lumen $13 of this Building Evacuation Kit.

Due to the many folks wearing black block in city

riots, a black hoodie is basically urban camoflauge in
today's world. This one could be used in conjunction
Hanes Men's Full-Zip Eco- with the orange safety vest and if need be, the vest
Smart Fleece Hoodie, Black, could be removed to go with the black block look in
Hoodie XX-Large $14 order to blend in and get out of dodge.
 Self Pro Summer Face Mask
Balaclava Protection from
Dust, UV & Aerosols - Reusable
Face Mask Bandana Face Cover
CLC Custom Leathercraft 125L
Handyman Flex Grip Work
Gloves Gloves
Carhartt Men's Acrylic Watch
Hat Hat
Backpack ZOMAKE Ultra Lightweight
(Ultralight) Packable Backpack (Black)
This balaclava is used in conjunction with the black
hoodie to help complete the black block look. Again,
this is for camoflauge purposes only in an effort to
$16 escape the city discretely.
These are my go-to work gloves for these type of kits
due to their cost and quality. They are Shrink
Resistant, offer Improved Dexterity, are Tough,
$15 Stretchable, and provide Excellent Grip.
This is the most common cap that I see worn in
Seattle, especially with construction workers.
Carhartt products are known for their quality and
durability. I've included it for those reasons in
$15 addition to the urban camoflauge that it provides.
While I already carry an EDC Backpack with a lot of
capabilities, this inexpensive, lightweight backpack is
a backup that could be used. I also use it for storing
some of the specific items in the Building Evacuation
$16 Kit while it is stored in the carry-on suitcase.

This is my Go-To gas mask due to its feature set and

quality. I previously stored goggles and a fire mask,
but I wanted to upgrade to this CBRN mask to provide
Gas Mask MIRA Safety CM-6M Gas Mask $220 numerous capabilities using different filter types.
This filter offers P3-certified protection (according to
Gas Mask EN 143:2000 standards) filters out 99.9999+% of
Filter MIRA Safety ParticleMax P3 $25 biothreats such as long-lasting protection from
(Virus) Virus Filter (each) airborne viral and bacterial threats.

Transform your gas mask into a reliable, fully

functioning multiuse smoke hood with these VK-450
filters. Designed to overcome smoke & particulates
(along with high concentrations of carbon monoxide),
Gas Mask these advanced filters provide crucial hours of
Filter MIRA Safety VK-450 Smoke / protection and clean air from some of the most
(Smoke) Carbon Monoxide Filter N/A common disasters faced by US citizens.

This filter provides protection against solid and liquid

particles, pepper spray, smoke-producing substances,
radioactive particles, bacteria, fungi, toxins, viruses,
Gas Mask MIRA Safety CBRN Gas Mask riot control agents, blister agents, choking agents,
Filter Filter NBC-77 SOF - 20-Year blood agents, nerve agents, incapacitants, herbicides,
(CBRN) Shelf Life $80 pesticides, and more.
I include one of these marine signal flares in most of
Orion Hand-Held Marine Red my emergency preparedness kits for signaling
Signal Flare Signal Flare $13 purposes (e.g., search and rescue).
This tool belt is used to carry multiple Building
CLC Custom Leathercraft Evacuation Kit items in addition to complimenting the
IP489X Suede Tool Bag & Poly construction worker look. Customer Leathercraft
Tool Belt Web Belt, 3 Pocket $13 makes fantastic products.

VIPERTEK VTS-989-1 Billion
Heavy Duty Stun Gun -
Rechargeable with LED
Stun Gun Flashlight
Pepper SABRE RED Pepper Spray
Spray Keychain
Klein Tools NCVT-1 Voltage
Tester, Non-Contact Voltage
Detector for AC Voltage, Low
Voltage Battery Indicator and Auto
Tester Shutdown, Batteries Included
Estwing Gooseneck Wrecking
Bar - 5/8" x 18" Pry Bar with
Angled Chisel End & Forged
Crow Bar Steel Construction - EWB-18
Door Access SEARAT (The Seattle Rapid
Tool Access Tool) - Ignition USA
PETZL - TIKKINA Headlamp,
Headlamp 250 Lumens, Standard Lighting
ACE ACE 3 Inch Elastic Bandage
Bandage with Hook Closure
Glow Stick Cyalume Green Glow Stick
I wanted to include some non-lethal self-defense
items for this kit for times of civil unrest. Many
women joggers in the city will run while carrying a
stun gun like this one for not only self-defense but
$30 also a deterrent.
Many people carry pepper spray in an urban
environment to use as self-defense. In some videos
you may see someone try to carry Bear Spray,
thinking that if it can deter a bear it can deter a
human. However, bear spray is designed to put out a
wide cloud, filling the air with droplets, discouraging
the bear from attacking. Pepper spray is a targeted
stream designed to incapacitate a person close to you.
Bear spray isn’t designed to fend off humans, but one
reason you might see people carrying it for self-
defense is that it’s legal in places where pepper spray
isn’t. It just isn’t as effective. Check with the laws in
$10 your local region regarding this type of item.
In a post-earthquake emergency, I've always been
concerned about electrical wire and power lines
obstructing pathways. I've included this voltage tester
to have on hand, just in case I needed to check a line
$13 or outlet for power.
This is my universal key. I previously included a small
box crate opener, but it didn't have the leverage that I
think would be needed. This “Made In America” pry
bar could be used for opening doors, breaking
windows to help someone stuck in a vehicle, and
$12 more.
This item is not officially included in my Building
Evacuation Kit, as I am still actively testing it. It is
used by firefighters for accessing industrial doors
without damaging them. It includes a shove knife, key
blade to get around latch guards, and more. Expect a
$80 full product review of this clever tool later this year.
Often times I see construction workers with
headlamps on their construction hats, so I decided to
include on to use with this kit for hands free
$20 illumination.
One of the things that I am concerned about in regard
to building evacuation is twisted ankles that
accidently happen when hurrying down multiple
flights of stairs. This ACE bandage could be used for
$10 many different medical situations as a wrap.
Just in case I need to illuminate an escape door or
pathway, I've included a glow stuck. The Cyalume
$1 brand is my favorite due to their quality and
(each) brightness.
 I've included a lumber marking crayon for writing
messages on floors or walls to help with evacuation, if
needed. You can use it to provide directions like "Go
Marking Dixon 49400 Lumber Marking $1 this way" or providing warning messages like "Be
Crayon Crayon (Black) (each) careful for fallen power lines!".
I've included several feet of gaffer tape for adhesive
purposes. I have it wrapped around an old card and
try have enough of it to be able to seal off a door
$18 frame if need be. For a standard 36 x 84 inch door
Tape Gaffer Tape (roll) you'll need around 20 feet of tape to seal it.

This fire blanket is mainly used for smothering

Hot Headz H-FIR-BLN100 Fire
Fire Blanket Blanket, 36 x 36-Inch, Red
First Aid Only 7-600 6 Piece
Eye Wash Eye Wash Kit
cooking fires, but it can also be used in survival
situations by wrapping around your body and acting
as a heat shield. Simply pull down the tabs and
remove the blanket from the hanging pouch to deploy
$17 it.
This eye wash liquid can be used to flush out eyes
after riot control agents have been used or to remove
$10 ash and dust due to building damage.

Again, I am concerned about twisting an ankle during

Liomor Ankle Support
Ankle Brace Breathable Ankle Brace
SAM Rolled Splint 36",
SAM Splint Orange/Blue
an evacuation situation by rapidly going down
multiple flights of the emergency staircase. This ankle
support is fitted with crisscross reinforcement straps
to offer strong support & stabilization for the ankle
$9 tendons and joints.
Just in case someone were to break an arm or leg
during an evacuation emergency, I've included this
SAM splint to be able to create a padded splint to a
limb. It can be wrapped using the ACE bandage or the
$12 SWAT-T tourniquet.

I've included a sharpie for writing messages on floors

or walls to help with evacuation, if needed. It could
Sharpie 30174 Permanent $1 also be used for writing medical information on an
Sharpie Marker (each) injured person that paramedics could reference.
The SWAT-Tourniquet is a unique and multipurpose
dressing. Its name provides a description for usage
Stretch, Wrap, and Tuck. It can be used as a
Tourniquet SWAT-T Tourniquet, Orange $11 tourniquet, pressure dressing, or elastic bandage.
These are many parents Go-To baby wipes. I've
included some to be able to wash your face (or
others) from debris, dust, riot control agents, and
more. They are Extra-Large Wipes, Hypoallergenic,
Wipes Kirkland Baby Wipes N/A and contain no Chlorine, Alcohol, or Dyes.