Module 01 · 4 min read · Last reviewed 2026-08-22
Your first 15 minutes
The alert tone cuts through the room. Somewhere outside, something is very wrong, and you have a quarter of an hour before the decisions get harder.
The first 15 minutes are for confirming the hazard from an official source, accounting for everyone in the household, and choosing one of two postures: stay or go. Nothing else matters yet.
Action checklist
- Read the actual alert text — hazard, area, and instruction.
- Account for every person and pet in the household.
- Decide: shelter in place or prepare to evacuate.
- Send one short text to your out-of-area contact.
- Put shoes, phone, keys, medications and go-bag in one place.
Common mistakes
- Scrolling social media instead of reading the official instruction.
- Calling everyone at once and clogging the network.
- Driving toward the hazard to see it for yourself.
Module 02 · 5 min read · Last reviewed 2026-08-22
Your first 24 hours
Day one. The novelty wears off around hour six, right when the refrigerator stops being a refrigerator.
Stabilize: secure water, protect food, establish a check-in rhythm, and start conserving battery and fuel as if the outage will last a week.
Action checklist
- Fill containers and the bathtub while pressure holds.
- Keep fridge and freezer closed; move critical items to a cooler.
- Set two daily check-in times with household and neighbors.
- Switch phones to low-power mode; use one device for updates.
- Write down what you already used so resupply planning is real.
Common mistakes
- Burning through phone battery on video and streaming.
- Opening the freezer 'just to check'.
- Running a generator before verifying placement and CO alarms.
Module 03 · 5 min read · Last reviewed 2026-08-22
Surviving three days without power
Seventy-two hours in the dark is where plans meet reality — and where heat, cold and boredom do more damage than anything with teeth.
Three-day outages are a thermal and medical problem first. Manage indoor temperature safely, protect medication, and keep at least one reliable information channel alive.
Action checklist
- Identify a cooling or warming option that does not involve indoor combustion.
- Keep refrigerated medications in a cooler with a thermometer.
- Ration battery power: radio first, one phone second.
- Check on neighbors, especially older adults, twice a day.
- Know where official cooling/warming centers are announced.
Common mistakes
- Heating with an oven, grill or generator indoors.
- Assuming a medical device battery lasts longer than its rating.
- Waiting until batteries are dead to look for more.
Module 04 · 4 min read · Last reviewed 2026-08-22
Building a seven-day household reserve
Resupply convoys are a movie trope. Real resilience is boring, gradual and already in your pantry.
Build the reserve a few items at a time, store what you actually eat, and rotate by date. Seven days is a realistic regional target; fourteen is better where storage allows.
Action checklist
- Add two or three shelf-stable items per grocery trip.
- Store one gallon of water per person per day.
- Keep a manual can opener and an outdoor-safe cooking method.
- Write the date on everything and rotate oldest first.
- Include pet, infant and dietary-specific needs.
Common mistakes
- Panic buying in the 48 hours before a storm.
- Stocking food nobody in the household will eat.
- Forgetting water for hygiene and pets.
Module 05 · 4 min read · Last reviewed 2026-08-22
When to shelter and when to evacuate
Two doors. One says stay, one says go. Officials have already told you which one is yours.
The hazard decides. Evacuate when officials order it for your zone, or when flooding, fire or structural danger threatens where you are. Shelter in place when the danger is outdoors and travel would expose you to it.
Action checklist
- Look up your official evacuation zone today.
- Write down two destinations outside the risk area.
- Identify your interior shelter room at home.
- Know how you would leave without a personal vehicle.
- Confirm pet and accessibility arrangements in advance.
Common mistakes
- Waiting for conditions to look bad before leaving.
- Assuming a shelter accepts pets without confirming.
- Planning only one route out.
Module 06 · 3 min read · Last reviewed 2026-08-22
Floodwater is more dangerous than zombies
It looks like a shallow puddle across the road. It is the only part of the scenario that reliably kills people.
You cannot judge depth, current, or whether the roadbed still exists. Six inches of moving water can knock down an adult; a foot can move most vehicles.
Action checklist
- Turn around, don't drown — every time, no exceptions.
- Never drive or walk around barricades.
- Assume floodwater is contaminated and electrically dangerous.
- Report downed lines; never touch or drive over them.
- Wash thoroughly after any contact with floodwater.
Common mistakes
- Following the car ahead through standing water.
- Letting children play in flooded streets.
- Taking a 'shortcut' through a familiar low spot.
Module 07 · 3 min read · Last reviewed 2026-08-22
Carbon monoxide: the invisible monster
No smell. No sound. No warning. The one hazard in this guide that genuinely behaves like a movie villain.
Most post-storm deaths in outages come from generators and indoor combustion. Keep every engine and flame outdoors and far from openings, and install CO alarms with battery backup.
Action checklist
- Generators outdoors only, well away from doors, windows and vents.
- Never use grills, camp stoves or generators indoors or in a garage.
- CO alarms with battery backup on every level.
- If the alarm sounds, get everyone outside and call 911.
- Know the symptoms: headache, dizziness, nausea, confusion.
Common mistakes
- Opening the garage door and calling it ventilation.
- Running a generator on a porch or near a window.
- Ignoring a headache that improves outdoors.
Module 08 · 3 min read · Last reviewed 2026-08-22
Safe food after a power outage
The fridge has been dark for a day and a half. Your nose is not a laboratory instrument.
Time and temperature decide, not appearance or smell. Keep an appliance thermometer and apply the four-hour and 40°F rules.
Action checklist
- Keep refrigerator and freezer doors closed.
- Refrigerated food is unsafe after four hours above 40°F.
- A full freezer holds about 48 hours; half-full about 24.
- Refreeze only food still containing ice crystals or at/below 40°F.
- When in doubt, throw it out.
Common mistakes
- Tasting food to test it.
- Trusting appearance over a thermometer.
- Repacking a warm freezer and hoping.
Module 09 · 4 min read · Last reviewed 2026-08-22
Medication continuity
Pharmacies are closed and the refill portal is a spinning icon. This is the failure people forget to plan for.
Work with your prescriber and pharmacist in advance on an appropriate on-hand supply, cold-chain handling, and what to do during a declared emergency.
Action checklist
- Keep a printed medication list with doses, prescribers and pharmacy.
- Ask about emergency refill options in your state and insurance plan.
- Plan cooling for refrigerated medications.
- Note power needs for any medical device and register with your utility.
- Take medications with you in every evacuation.
Common mistakes
- Stockpiling beyond clinical advice.
- Leaving medications behind during a fast evacuation.
- Assuming any open pharmacy can access your records.
Module 10 · 4 min read · Last reviewed 2026-08-22
Helping children handle emergencies
Kids read adults faster than they read alerts. Your calm is part of their kit.
Give children age-appropriate information, a role, and a routine. Practice the plan so it feels familiar rather than frightening.
Action checklist
- Practice the meeting places and check-in text together.
- Put an ID and contact card in each child's bag.
- Know the school's emergency and reunification procedure.
- Pack comfort items and quiet activities.
- Limit exposure to repeated distressing coverage.
Common mistakes
- Hiding the plan entirely, which increases anxiety.
- Promising outcomes you cannot control.
- Assuming school pickup will work as normal.
Module 11 · 4 min read · Last reviewed 2026-08-22
Planning with older adults
The neighbor who has weathered every storm since the sixties still needs someone checking the door twice a day.
Address mobility, medication, powered equipment, heat and cold tolerance, and social isolation directly. Build a named support network, not a vague assumption.
Action checklist
- Identify at least two people who will check in daily.
- Plan accessible transportation for evacuation.
- Keep spare mobility aids, glasses and hearing aid batteries.
- Register powered medical equipment with the utility.
- Keep printed medical history and care contacts.
Common mistakes
- Assuming family across the region can arrive quickly.
- Overlooking heat risk during summer outages.
- Leaving assistive devices behind in a rush.
Module 12 · 4 min read · Last reviewed 2026-08-22
Disability-inclusive preparedness
A plan that only works for the fastest person in the household is not a plan.
Build around actual access needs: power for devices, communication supports, service animals, accessible transport, and a personal support network that knows the plan.
Action checklist
- List every device that requires power and its runtime.
- Carry backup batteries and charging options.
- Prepare communication cards or apps for responders.
- Arrange accessible evacuation transportation in advance.
- Share the plan with three or more support-network members.
Common mistakes
- Relying on a single caregiver with no backup.
- Assuming shelters have specific equipment available.
- Leaving service animal documentation at home.
Module 13 · 3 min read · Last reviewed 2026-08-22
Pet evacuation
If it isn't safe for you, it isn't safe for them. Nobody should be going back for the cat.
Take pets with you. Confirm which shelters, hotels and boarding options accept animals before an evacuation is ordered.
Action checklist
- Carrier or crate for every animal, labeled with contacts.
- Current photo with you and up-to-date microchip details.
- Food, water, medication, leash, litter and waste bags.
- Vaccination records in the go-bag.
- A pet-friendly destination confirmed in advance.
Common mistakes
- Leaving pets behind 'for a day or two'.
- Assuming all shelters accept animals.
- No carrier, no records, no plan.
Module 14 · 4 min read · Last reviewed 2026-08-22
Neighborhood mutual aid
The fastest responders on your street already live on your street.
Know who nearby may need help, who has useful skills or equipment, and how you will communicate without networks. Cooperation beats stockpiling.
Action checklist
- Trade contact info with immediate neighbors before storm season.
- Note who has medical training, tools or generators.
- Identify neighbors who may need check-ins.
- Agree a low-tech signal, like a note on the door.
- Consider CERT or Red Cross training.
Common mistakes
- Waiting until the event to introduce yourself.
- Improvising unsafe rescues instead of calling 911.
- Forming informal patrols or checkpoints — that is unsafe and unlawful.
Module 15 · 3 min read · Last reviewed 2026-08-22
Spotting rumors and misinformation
The scariest thing spreading through the region is usually a screenshot.
Verify before you act or share. Official alerts, the NWS, and municipal emergency management are the sources that matter; everything else is a lead, not a fact.
Action checklist
- Check whether an official account or alert says the same thing.
- Look for a date and a named agency.
- Beware of screenshots with no source link.
- Correct yourself publicly if you shared something wrong.
- Bookmark official sources before the event.
Common mistakes
- Resharing urgent-sounding posts to 'be helpful'.
- Treating an old photo as current conditions.
- Trusting AI-generated summaries for emergency instructions.
Module 16 · 4 min read · Last reviewed 2026-08-22
Recovering after the emergency
The credits do not roll. Re-entry, insurance and cleanup are the long tail of every event.
Return only when officials say it is safe, document everything before cleanup, and treat debris, mold and standing water as hazards.
Action checklist
- Wait for official re-entry announcements.
- Photograph damage before moving or discarding anything.
- Contact insurance early and keep a claim log.
- Wear protective gear during cleanup; watch for mold.
- Register for assistance if a disaster declaration is made.
Common mistakes
- Returning early and blocking response operations.
- Discarding damaged items before documenting them.
- Ignoring mental-health strain during recovery.
