During a blizzard or snowstorm, when temperatures are below freezing, a person can only survive for about three hours without shelter from wind and moisture, two of the ways a person’s body loses heat.
Since your vehicle will be your shelter, you want to add supplemental items. [list][*]Make sure your car is full of gas....if stranded, start it every hour to heat it up and let it run to recharge the battery. Make sure exhaust pipe is clear of snow[/list][list][*]Keep heat inside your body. Clothing and blankets, for example, do not provide heat or warmth but they’re vital because they preserve or help trap the heat your body generates.[/list][list][*]Hypothermia, which only requires a 2-3 degree drop in a person’s body temperature, is the chief cause of death from exposure to freezing temperatures. The first effect is an inability to think clearly.[/list][list][*]Put one wool blanket for each person you anticipate could be in the vehicle in your trunk or in the storage tub, plus two more for other uses. Wool dries quickly if it gets wet and keeps you much warmer than many other materials.[/list][list][*]You want to also add an extra set of clothing for each person, plus two sets of socks per person.[/list][list][*] Include scarves, hats and water-resistant gloves to help preserve heat in high-loss areas like the head and neck and to keep your hands from becoming wet.[/list][list][*] Keep a pair of winter boots in the car. In northern rural climates, it is fairly common for people to keep a pair of boots (typically old) in the trunk. In an emergency, bad footwear can be dangerous in the snow, leading to frostbite.[/list][list][*] Keep hand warmers in the car. While good gloves or mittens are better prevention, these are handy. You can get in the camping and hunting goods sections of big box stores.[/list][list][*] Get 5-10 newspapers, depending upon your vehicle size, to insulate your vehicle’s windows. This will help trap in the heat your bodies produce, the heat your vehicle produces if and when you turn it on and to serve as a barrier against the wind.[/list][list][*]Have a few bottles of water in the car[/list][list][*]Have some high calorie snacks in the car[/list][list][*]Make sure you have fresh batteries in flashlights, flares and a lighter[/list]