Able Neighbours · Household Preparedness
Make a plan your household can use
A practical emergency plan helps everyone know what to do when normal routines are disrupted. Build it together, keep it easy to find, and adapt it to the people, pets, and risks in your household.
Start with local risks
Know what could affect your area
Consider the emergencies most relevant where you live, such as severe storms, flooding, wildfire, extreme heat or cold, power outages, and earthquakes. Check reliable local government and emergency-management guidance for alerts, likely hazards, and recommended actions. Think about how each risk could affect your home, travel routes, and access to essential services.
- Which local hazards are most likely, and which could have the greatest impact?
- How would your household receive trustworthy alerts if mobile service or power failed?
- What local advice applies to evacuation, sheltering, and returning home safely?
Keep in touch
Choose contacts and a family communication plan
Agree on how household members will check in and where to find updates. Choose an out-of-area contact who can help pass messages if local networks are disrupted. Make sure everyone knows important emergency numbers for the place they live, including how to reach local emergency services. During an emergency, use text messages when calls are difficult to connect.
- Choose a primary contact method and a backup if phones or internet are unavailable.
- Agree on a brief check-in message and when household members should send it.
- Keep essential contacts and key plan details somewhere household members can access offline.
Leave safely
Plan evacuation routes and meeting places
Identify more than one way out of your home and neighbourhood, in case a road or exit is blocked. Choose a nearby meeting place outside the home and a second location farther away. Make sure every household member knows how to get there, including children and anyone who may need help. Follow official evacuation instructions promptly and use designated routes when provided.
- Identify who may need help leaving and how assistance will be arranged.
- Choose meeting places that are familiar, accessible, and away from immediate danger.
- Consider transport options if household members do not have access to a vehicle.
When staying home
Prepare to shelter in place
Some emergencies make staying indoors the safer choice. Know which room offers suitable protection for local hazards, and how to follow official instructions about closing doors and windows or turning off ventilation. Keep a battery-powered or hand-crank radio available if recommended locally. Do not leave home or use equipment in ways that conflict with emergency-service guidance.
- Know the safest indoor area for the hazards common in your region.
- Keep a way to receive official alerts if electricity or internet service is interrupted.
- Learn how to safely shut off household utilities if local authorities advise it.
Pack for essential needs
Gather supplies for people and pets
Keep essential items together where they are easy to reach, and plan for several days if local guidance recommends it. Include water, non-perishable food, a manual can opener, a first-aid kit, a flashlight, spare batteries, a phone charger or power bank, basic hygiene items, and suitable clothing. Review needs for babies, older adults, medications, and pets, and rotate food, water, and batteries before they expire.
- Include pet food, water, a carrier or leash, and any supplies needed to travel safely with animals.
- Plan for mobility, communication, sensory, medical, dietary, and other accessibility needs.
- Keep essential assistive devices and their chargers or backup power in your preparations.
Keep it current
Review the plan and practise together
Revisit your plan regularly and whenever your household, home, or local risks change. Check that supplies are usable, routes remain practical, and everyone understands their role. Practise how to leave, where to meet, and how to communicate. A calm conversation and a simple practice run can make the next step clearer for everyone.
- Confirm all household members know the communication plan and meeting places.
- Replace expired supplies and check batteries, chargers, and pet essentials.
- Update arrangements when a household member’s needs or circumstances change.
Printable household checklist
A simple plan to keep within reach
Use this checklist as a practical reminder when preparing together. Keep a copy with your household supplies and review it as your needs change.
- We have considered the main local risks and know where to find official alerts.
- We know how to contact one another and where to meet if separated.
- We know more than one safe way out and how to shelter at home when advised.
- Our supplies reflect household, pet, medical, and accessibility needs.
- We have reviewed the plan together and will check it regularly.
For a paper copy, print this checklist from your browser. No form or personal information is needed.