diff --git a/hiredis.c b/hiredis.c
index 10ac8d0..a36c6f3 100644
--- a/hiredis.c
+++ b/hiredis.c
@@ -1059,6 +1059,12 @@ static redisContext *redisContextInit(void) {
     c->errstr[0] = '\0';
     c->obuf = sdsempty();
     c->reader = redisReaderCreate();
+
+    if (c->obuf == NULL || c->reader == NULL) {
+        redisFree(c);
+        return NULL;
+    }
+
     return c;
 }