Independent guide. Follow local emergency alerts and evacuation orders.
Start with what you already own. Work out your water quantity, check the essentials below, and separate supplies for staying home from what you can carry if you need to leave.
Source review: . Based on NWS disaster supply guidance and ADPH's emergency kit list. Adapt this checklist to your household and local emergency instructions.
Start with 1 gallon per person per day for drinking and basic sanitation, using the ADPH emergency supply guidance. Choose a planning period that fits local emergency guidance. Three days is a starting point; a longer disruption may require more.
Enter a whole number from 1 to 20.
Enter a whole number from 3 to 14.
9 gallons: planning baseline
3 people × 3 days × 1 gallon per person per day = 9 gallons.
This baseline is not a complete personal plan or a daily drinking target. Add water for pets and consider extra needs from heat, food preparation, illness, and medicines. Consult local emergency guidance and your clinician about personal medical needs. Read CDC water storage guidance.
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Tick each category after reviewing it. These checkboxes are a temporary on-page checklist; print your checked copy or write down what is missing before leaving the page.
Plan for at least one gallon per person per day for drinking and sanitation. Store more for heat, pets, infants, medical needs, and cleanup.
Use your household water calculation above.
Check now: Count the gallons of safe water already stored. Check bottle seals and container condition before counting them toward your plan.
Choose shelf-stable meals, manual can-openers, comfort food, infant formula, and dietary-specific supplies for at least seven days.
Check now: List meals your household will actually eat. Check serving counts, dietary needs, expiration dates, and whether a can opener is needed.
Use LED flashlights, lanterns, headlamps, and spare batteries. Avoid relying on candles during high-risk conditions.
Check now: Switch on each light and check that the spare batteries match. Put one where you can find it in the dark.
Charge power banks and consider a portable power station for phones, radios, and small essentials. Keep fuel safely stored if using a generator.
Check now: Test your charging cable with the device it needs to charge. List the devices that matter most before comparing backup power.
Include bandages, antiseptic, gloves, pain relievers, prescription copies, and at least a week of critical medications.
Check now: Check the contents and expiry dates of your existing kit. Keep your personal medication plan with your emergency documents.
Pack wipes, trash bags, toilet paper, hand sanitizer, soap, menstrual products, diapers, and cleanup gloves.
Check now: Gather the hygiene supplies already in your home and separate the items you would need to carry if you leave.
Keep a NOAA weather radio, paper contact list, battery backups, and printed local emergency numbers.
Check now: Test the radio and write key contacts on paper. Decide who you will contact if household members are separated.
Store food, water, leash, carrier, medication, vaccination records, litter, and comfort items.
Check now: Check that the carrier and leash are accessible, and keep pet records with the supplies you would take when leaving.
Protect IDs, insurance, titles, medical records, emergency contacts, and small bills in waterproof storage.
Check now: Choose a known place for your document pouch. Make sure the people in your household know how to find it.
A stored household supply and a bag you can carry serve different needs. Keep larger water and food stores accessible at home; gather portable essentials, contacts, documents, and pet supplies for leaving. Practice lifting and carrying your bag before an emergency.
Write down where you would go and how household members will contact each other. Keep that plan with your kit, as recommended in the NWS hurricane planning checklist. A stocked kit does not replace an evacuation order; follow local officials.
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Water
EssentialA reusable container for storing drinking water before a storm interrupts service.
Includes: One empty 7-gallon container with a dispensing spigot.
Best for: Households with space to fill and store water before a storm.
Compare: Plan enough water for everyone in your household. A full container is heavy, so choose a storage spot before filling it.
Bottled water you already have counts toward your supply too.
Communication
EssentialA battery or hand-crank NOAA weather radio helps you receive official weather alerts.
Includes: One radio with a rechargeable battery and Micro-USB charging cable.
Best for: A separate source of weather alerts if phone service fails.
Compare: Charge it before the storm and check local weather-channel reception. Its six AA backup batteries and wall adapter are sold separately.
Phone alerts are useful, but batteries and cell networks can fail.
Lighting
EssentialA 400-lumen headlamp keeps your hands free while moving around during an outage.
Includes: One graphite headlamp and three AAA batteries.
Best for: Hands-free light for one person during a power outage.
Compare: Store spare AAA batteries with it. The optional BD 1500 rechargeable battery is sold separately.
Phone flashlights drain the device you may need for calls and alerts.
Power
ImportantA rechargeable power station can keep phones, radios, and small essentials charged.
Compare: Compare watt-hours, output ports, recharge options, and medical-device needs.
Use this rechargeable battery station as directed. Check its capacity against the devices you plan to run.
Solar generator
ImportantA portable power station bundled with solar panels can recharge small-device backup power when grid power is out and sunlight is available.
Includes: One Explorer 1000 v2 station and one SolarSaga 200W panel. The station and panel may ship separately.
Compare: Compare watt-hours, AC output, solar input watts, panel compatibility, recharge time, and battery chemistry.
Solar generators are limited by battery size, cloudy weather, panel placement, and recharge speed.
First aid
EssentialA soft-case first aid kit keeps basic wound-care supplies together at home or in an evacuation bag.
Includes: One all-purpose soft-case kit, model FAO-442.
Best for: Households that need a basic kit rather than individual refills.
Compare: Add prescriptions and household-specific medical supplies separately.
Check your existing kit first. Replacing missing or expired supplies may be all you need.
Flood defense
ImportantA practical flood-defense option for homeowners and renters who want to reduce water intrusion around doors and low points.
Compare: Use sandbags as part of a bigger flood plan, not as a substitute for official evacuation guidance.
Sandbags help with short-term water control, but they do not replace evacuation orders or proper drainage planning.
Wood supplies
ImportantTreated wood is useful for temporary repairs, shutters, and other storm-damage fix-up projects after conditions are safe.
Compare: Match the wood type and length to the repair you plan to make before buying.
This is not a full repair kit, but it supports short-term storm recovery work.
