Start here: practical emergency prep for families

Get your family ready for the emergencies that actually happen.

Calm, step-by-step guides for storms, power outages, evacuations and the paperwork that matters. Pick the situation on your mind and start there.

New to this? Start here Browse guides by situation

Written by a parent who completed CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) training. Safety guidance comes from named public sources.

Three good first steps

Do them in any order. Each one is a small job.

Top guides

Start with what you are facing

Each group below is a good place to begin. Read one guide, do one thing, and you have made real progress.

Storms

Hurricanes, tornadoes and winter storms: what to do ahead of time, and when it is on the way.

Power outages

Staying warm, keeping food safe and getting through the night when the lights go out.

Evacuation and go-kits

A plan everyone knows, a kit that is packed, and the pets and little things people forget.

Important documents

Know what to keep, in what form, and where it lives, before you need to look for it.

Browse all emergency guides →

Guides to read before the next storm

A short list, chosen by hand, of the guides we would read first.

Illustration of winter storm supplies on a kitchen counter at night: gallon water jugs, canned food and a manual can opener, a lit battery lantern, a hand-crank radio, a power bank, a flashlight, and folded wool blankets, with heavy snow falling outside the window.

Emergencies

How to Prepare for a Winter Storm (Free Printable Checklist)

Winter storm prep works best in three windows. Here's what to do before the season, when a watch is issued, and when the warning comes, with water math, the gear test most lists skip, and a free two-page printable checklist.

23 min read

Living room at dusk during a power outage, with a sofa piled with wool blankets, a pair of wool socks and a mug on the coffee table, and a battery lantern giving off a soft warm glow while a dog sleeps under the throws.

Emergencies

How to Stay Warm Without Power: What to Do Tonight

When the power goes out in a winter storm, the plan isn't to heat the house. It's to close off one room, choose safe heat, and watch for carbon monoxide.

9 min read

Open SUV trunk packed with a winter emergency kit, including a folding shovel, first aid kit, water, an emergency blanket, jumper cables, and a warning beacon, parked on a snowy road

Emergencies

What to Pack in a Car Emergency Kit for Winter Driving

A simple winter car kit, plus where to keep it so you can grab what you need fast if you get stuck.

8 min read

An open refrigerator in a dim kitchen with lettuce, a package of meat, strawberries, and a bottle of milk on the shelves and a puddle of melted ice on the floor in front of it.

Emergencies

How Long Does Food Last in the Fridge Without Power?

A closed fridge lasts about 4 hours without power, a full freezer about 48. Here's how to decide what's still safe to eat.

6 min read

Illustration of a home kitchen during a boil water notice: a stockpot at a rolling boil on a gas stove, two lidded pitchers of cooled water, a stack of paper plates and cups, and a handwritten BOIL WATER note taped to the refrigerator door.

Emergencies

Boil Water Notice: What to Do, What's Safe, and a Free Fridge Card

What to boil, what tap water is still fine for, the flush checklist to run when the boil water notice ends, and a free two-page printable with a fridge card for the whole house.

17 min read

Buying Guides

Best NOAA Weather Radios for Storm Warnings

What to look for in a NOAA weather radio, using the National Weather Service's own guidance, plus three models compared on county alerts, power and phone charging.

9 min read

Free printables

Checklists and cards you can print and keep

Each one goes with a guide. Open the guide, and you can get the printable sent to your email.

Tornado Plan Card + Shelter Kit

Your safe spot, backup spot, who gets the kids and where to meet, on one card.

Winter Storm Checklist (Home and Car)

Before-winter, watch, warning and power-out lists for the house.

Pet Emergency Kit Checklist + Pet Info Sheet

The kit checklist by group, plus where your pets can go if you leave home.

Emergency Contact Cards

Fold-over wallet cards, a kids card and a fridge-size household contact sheet.

Family Medication List

Two fillable pages: a household block and room for four people.

Home Inventory Checklist

Room-by-room tick boxes for 13 rooms, plus a table for high-value items.

Keep reading

Latest from the site

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A white plug-in carbon monoxide alarm on a hallway wall outside a sunlit bedroom

Gear & Supplies

Best Carbon Monoxide Detectors for Your Home

Federal guidance on carbon monoxide detectors, boiled down to what to buy and where to install it, plus three models compared on power, battery backup and display.

10 min read

Copper water pipes wrapped in grey foam insulation in a basement, with a kitchen faucet dripping nearby

Emergencies

How to Prevent Frozen Pipes (and What to Do If They Freeze)

The steps that keep water pipes from freezing, the safe way to thaw one that has, and what to do the moment a pipe bursts, with the official wording quoted.

10 min read

A small electric space heater on a bare hardwood floor with clear space around it and its cord running straight to the wall outlet

Gear & Supplies

Space Heater Safety for Cold Snaps and Power Outages

Most space heater fires come down to a few habits. Here is what federal agencies say about distance, outlets, cords, and leaving a heater on.

9 min read

When you want it all in one place

The Family Emergency Binder

If you would rather have your contacts, documents and plans in a single printable binder, we built one. Everything on this site works without it.

See the Family Emergency Binder →

Who's behind this

Hi, I'm Todd

I'm a parent who completed CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) training. I'm not an emergency professional, so the safety guidance here comes from named public sources. Where we live, we see tornadoes, hurricanes, fires, floods, extreme heat, and cold we're not built for. The lesson that stuck: having your information written down before you need it takes one worry off the list. I started this site to give regular families the practical, no-panic guidance I wish I'd had. No bunkers, no fear, just what to buy, store, and do.

More about the site →