Disaster preparedness, once the province of fringe groups and so-called preppers convinced doomsday was at hand, has a new face.  

A renewed interest in self-reliance is driving city dwellers and suburbanites to stock their homes and cars for emergencies, owners of disaster-preparedness businesses say. Blame supply-chain shortages and the shock of empty grocery shelves during the pandemic, or more recent natural disasters and tense global events.