Preparedness · 8 min · Updated 2026-06-29
Global Emergency Preparedness Checklist
A calm, practical starter checklist for households anywhere in the world.
Quick checklist
Use this as the working list.
Short items are easier to finish before conditions change. Save official links and adapt supplies to your household, location, and medical needs.
- Store water and shelf-stable food for at least 72 hours.
- Choose two family meeting points: one nearby and one outside your area.
- Save official alert sources for your country and region.
- Keep copies of key documents offline and in the cloud.
- Review your plan every season, not only after a disaster.
Guide step
Start with the risks near you
Preparedness is easier when it is tied to a season and a place. List the disasters that realistically affect your home, school, workplace, and travel routes: floods, heatwaves, wildfire smoke, earthquakes, winter storms, hurricanes, typhoons, power outages, or public-health emergencies.
Guide step
Build a small kit before buying specialized gear
A useful kit begins with water, food, medications, light, power, communication, cash, hygiene, and copies of documents. Add region-specific items only after the basics are covered.
- Water and ready-to-eat food
- Flashlight, radio, batteries, power bank
- Medication list and first-aid supplies
- Copies of ID, insurance, and emergency contacts
- Masks, sanitizer, trash bags, wet wipes
Guide step
Make the plan visible
The best emergency plan is short enough to remember. Put emergency numbers, meeting points, evacuation routes, and official alert links where everyone can find them.
Official and expert sources
Verify decisions with source-of-record pages.
Disaster Calendar organizes public preparedness information, but it is not an official emergency alert service.