Could your household manage for three days if electricity, water, mobile communications or other essential services were disrupted? You don't need to buy everything at once. Start with what you already have at home, identify what's missing and gradually build an emergency kit that suits your household.
Use this checklist as a practical starting point.
Water
☐ Drinking water for everyone in your household
☐ Additional water for babies, medical requirements or other specific needs
☐ Drinking water for pets
☐ Suitable bottles or containers for storing or collecting water
Remember that water isn't only needed for drinking. Depending on the emergency, you may also need water for basic food preparation and hygiene.
Food
☐ Non-perishable food for at least three days
☐ Food that can be eaten without cooking
☐ Food suitable for individual dietary requirements or allergies
☐ Baby food or ready-to-feed formula, where required
☐ Pet food
☐ Manual tin opener
Choose food your household normally eats and regularly rotate your emergency supplies rather than leaving them forgotten for years.
Emergency lighting
☐ At least one reliable torch
☐ Head torch for hands-free lighting
☐ Spare batteries suitable for your torches
☐ Emergency radio with built-in torch, where applicable
Having more than one source of light is useful. A torch can provide general portable lighting, while a head torch leaves both hands free when you need to move around, help another person or carry out practical tasks.
Useful equipment: GP torches, GP head torches and emergency radios with built-in torches.
Information
☐ Battery-powered, wind-up or hand-crank radio
☐ Spare batteries
☐ List of useful radio stations/frequencies where appropriate
☐ Printed or written emergency information
An emergency radio provides another way of receiving information when your television, home internet or normal mains-powered equipment isn't available. Depending on the model, an emergency radio may combine several useful functions such as AM/FM reception, battery operation, solar charging, hand-crank charging, USB connectivity and a built-in torch. Useful equipment: Emergency radios.
Communication
☐ Fully charged mobile phones
☐ Charging cables
☐ Suitable power bank
☐ Written list of important telephone numbers
☐ Household communication plan
☐ Two-way radios where appropriate
A mobile phone should remain your normal communication tool when networks are working. However, suitable two-way radios can provide direct radio-to-radio communication between users without relying on Wi-Fi or a mobile network. Useful equipment: PMR446 radios such as suitable Motorola and Midland models.
Backup power
☐ Charged power bank
☐ Spare batteries in the correct sizes
☐ Rechargeable batteries/devices where appropriate
☐ Alternative charging options where appropriate
☐ Necessary charging cables and adapters
Try not to depend entirely on one source of power. Different devices may offer battery, USB, solar or hand-crank charging options. Always check the actual capabilities of each product rather than assuming an alternative charging method will quickly or fully charge every device.
First aid and medication
☐ First aid kit
☐ Essential medication
☐ Basic first aid supplies
☐ Spare glasses or contact lenses where needed
☐ Written information about essential medication
☐ Backup arrangements for essential medical equipment where applicable
If someone depends on medical equipment or medication, plan specifically for their individual requirements and follow relevant professional guidance.
Warmth and clothing
☐ Warm clothing
☐ Blankets or sleeping bags
☐ Waterproof clothing
☐ Strong, practical footwear
☐ Additional clothing appropriate to the season
Remember that a power cut can also affect heating systems.
Hygiene
☐ Toilet paper
☐ Wet wipes
☐ Hand sanitiser
☐ Personal hygiene products
☐ Sanitary products
☐ Nappies where required
☐ Rubbish bags
A loss of water supply can make everyday hygiene surprisingly difficult, so include basic alternatives.
Important information and documents
☐ Emergency telephone numbers written on paper
☐ Copies of important identification documents
☐ Insurance details
☐ Medication information
☐ Important medical information
☐ Household emergency plan
☐ Local emergency information where relevant
☐ Pen and paper
Don't store everything exclusively on your phone or in the cloud. Important information should still be accessible when your battery, internet connection or online services aren't.
Babies and children
☐ Baby food/formula
☐ Bottled water where required
☐ Nappies
☐ Wipes
☐ Medication
☐ Warm clothing
☐ Comfort item
☐ Age-appropriate food and drinks
☐ Simple games, books or activities
Think beyond physical necessities. An emergency or prolonged power cut can be unsettling for children, so familiar items and activities can help.
Elderly or less mobile household members
☐ Essential medication
☐ Mobility aids
☐ Spare batteries for relevant equipment
☐ Suitable lighting within easy reach
☐ Warm clothing and blankets
☐ Written medical/contact information
☐ Plan for assistance if evacuation becomes necessary
Pets
☐ Pet food
☐ Drinking water
☐ Medication
☐ Lead/harness
☐ Carrier where appropriate
☐ Waste bags/litter supplies
☐ Identification information
☐ Familiar blanket or other useful comfort item
Visibility and signalling
☐ Whistle
☐ High-visibility clothing or equipment where appropriate
☐ Suitable signalling/visibility^ equipment for your circumstances
*Never assume that a particular flag colour or shape is an officially recognised emergency signal unless this has been confirmed for your country and situation.
Ready to leave? Even if your main emergency supplies are intended for staying at home, think about what you would need if authorities advised you to leave.
☐ Essential medication
☐ Identification/documents
☐ Mobile phone and charger
☐ Power bank
☐ Torch/head torch
☐ Radio
☐ Water
☐ Ready-to-eat food
☐ Warm/waterproof clothing
☐ Essential baby supplies
☐ Essential pet supplies
☐ Important telephone numbers
These items can form the basis of a separate emergency grab bag.
One final check
Ask everyone in your household:
- Do we know where our emergency supplies are?
- Can we find our torches in the dark?
- Are the batteries charged or usable?
- Do we know how to receive information during a power cut?
- Do we know how to contact each other if mobile communications are disrupted?
- Does our kit reflect the needs of everyone who actually lives here?
- Could we take the essentials with us quickly if we had to leave?
An emergency kit doesn't have to be built in one day. Start with the essentials, add what your household is missing and check your supplies regularly.
Useful emergency preparedness equipment
- Emergency radios
- Emergency backpack
- GP torches
- GP head torches
- PMR446 two-way radios
- Handheld scanners
- Safety and visibility equipment
Tip: Keep your household emergency kit somewhere accessible and make sure everyone in your home knows where to find it.
