A workable emergency plan tells every person in your household where to go, how to reconnect, who may need help, how warnings will arrive, and which supplies keep everyone safe. Start with your local emergency-management office and current official alerts: hazards, sirens, evacuation routes, shelters, cooling centers, and flood zones differ by address. Then write the plan, assemble supplies for your actual household, and practice it before the next heat wave or storm.
What an emergency plan must cover
A national checklist cannot identify the safest room, evacuation route, shelter, or cooling center for your home. Use local emergency-management instructions for those decisions, and use this process to turn them into a household plan you can follow under stress.
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- People and needs: everyone who lives with you, regular visitors, children, older adults, disabilities, pregnancy, chronic conditions, allergies, medicines, mobility limitations, communication needs, and medical equipment.
- Hazards and locations: heat, tornadoes, severe thunderstorms, hurricanes, flooding, wildfire smoke if relevant locally, and power loss at home, work, school, child care, and regular travel destinations.
- Communication: emergency contacts, an out-of-area contact, a meeting place, and a way to reconnect when people are separated.
- Protective actions: the room or building for each hazard, when to shelter, and the conditions that require evacuation.
- Resources: cooling, water, food, medicines, charging, lighting, transportation, pet care, and disability-related equipment.
- Warnings and practice: at least two alert channels, drills, and a schedule for reviewing the plan.
Extreme heat is especially important to plan for because it can become dangerous when air conditioning fails, medication needs refrigeration, or a person cannot recognize or respond to heat illness. Treat heat planning as an emergency plan in its own right, not as an afterthought to storm preparation.
1. List household needs and local hazards
Create a household needs record
Write a one-page record and keep a copy with the emergency kit and in a secure digital location. Include each person’s name, date of birth, emergency contacts, allergies, medications and doses, doctors, insurance information, mobility or sensory needs, preferred communication method, and the equipment needed to stay alive or functional. Note who can lift, drive, translate, provide child care, or check on a neighbor.
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Include children who may be at school, older adults who may be alone, visitors who regularly need assistance, and pets or service animals. Identify a nearby helper who can reach the home if a tornado warning or outage occurs while a household member is away. Ask a clinician whether a person with heart disease, another chronic condition, or pregnancy needs a personalized Heat Action Plan; the CDC identifies these groups, along with children, as needing special attention during heat.
Map the places that matter
For each address where a household member spends time, record the county or parish, local emergency-management website or phone number, shelter location, cooling-center information, evacuation zone, and the best route to higher ground or a sturdy building. Learn which warning system serves each location. Tornado warnings can be issued by county or parish, so a siren at home may not cover a workplace or school.
Ask local officials about accessible transportation, shelters that accept service animals, backup power for medical needs, and language or hearing-accessible alerts. A plan that works only for a person who can drive, hear a siren, climb stairs, or read a phone notification is incomplete.
2. Write communication and meeting arrangements
Use a paper plan as the household master copy
Phones can be lost, damaged, uncharged, or unusable when networks are congested. Write emergency numbers, the out-of-area contact, medication information, school and child-care contacts, utility numbers, and meeting places on paper. Give a copy to every adult and teach older children where it is stored.
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Choose two meeting places:
- Nearby: a location outside the home, such as a neighbor’s property or a marked corner, for a fire or immediate evacuation.
- Outside the area: a relative, public building, or other agreed location for a neighborhood-wide evacuation or disaster.
Select an out-of-area contact who can relay messages. If local calls fail, household members may be able to reach that person from another network. Decide who picks up children, who contacts older relatives, who transports pets, and who carries medicines or mobility equipment. Do not assume the person with the most technical skill will be available.
Prepare more than one way to receive warnings
Use a combination of Wireless Emergency Alerts, a battery-powered NOAA Weather Radio with a tone-alert feature, and local radio or television. The National Weather Service recommendation relayed by the CDC is to choose a radio with battery backup and a tone alert that sounds automatically for a watch or warning. Keep spare batteries, and test the tone where sleeping people can hear it.
The FEMA App can deliver National Weather Service alerts for up to five selected U.S. locations, provide preparedness information, and help locate a nearby shelter. It is useful for people who travel or have family in several places, but it should not be the only warning method: a cellular outage, dead battery, or loss of internet access can prevent an app notification.
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There is no universal best shelter. The correct action depends on the hazard, the building, flood exposure, official instructions, transportation, and each person’s medical or mobility needs.
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| Hazard | Preferred protective action | Critical qualification |
|---|---|---|
| Tornado | Go to a basement or an interior, windowless room on the lowest floor; protect your head and neck. | People in mobile homes should identify a nearby sturdy building before warnings are issued. |
| Hurricane wind | Use a sturdy interior location on the lowest level that will not be flooded. | Do not shelter in a basement or low area that local flood guidance identifies as unsafe. |
| Flood | Move to higher ground when officials advise it; evacuate by the designated route. | Never walk or drive through floodwater or around a road barrier. Moving water can sweep away vehicles. |
| Extreme heat | Go to air conditioning or a designated cooling location; reduce exertion and drink fluids. | Arrange transportation and a check-in for people who cannot travel independently. |
| Severe thunderstorm | Move indoors, away from windows, and follow local warnings for hail, wind, or tornadoes. | Continue monitoring alerts because a watch can become a warning quickly. |
Know the difference between a tornado watch and warning
A watch means conditions make a tornado possible. Review the plan, bring people and pets inside, and keep monitoring alerts. A warning means a tornado has been sighted or indicated by radar. Take shelter immediately in the preselected basement or interior, windowless room on the lowest floor; do not wait to see the funnel.
Set evacuation triggers before an emergency
Write down which official messages require leaving, who has authority to make the household decision, and the latest safe departure time. Identify the destination, route, alternate route, transportation, fuel, accessible vehicle, and pet arrangements. Leave before roads become impassable when local officials issue an evacuation order. A person who needs oxygen, refrigeration, powered equipment, or accessible transportation may need to leave earlier than the general population.
4. Build a heat-wave and power-outage plan
Choose a cooling destination
List at least two places with reliable air conditioning: a cooling center, library, community center, relative’s home, or another public facility. Confirm opening hours, transportation, accessibility, pet rules, and whether the site has backup power. The CDC points people to 2-1-1, state cooling-center listings, and local health or emergency-management departments for current options.
Plan how each person will get there if driving is unsafe or fuel is unavailable. Arrange a buddy who will check in at the hottest part of the day. Ready.gov advises finding a cooling option when air conditioning is unavailable, avoiding strenuous outdoor activity during midday when possible, drinking fluids, and checking on others.
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Protect medicines and medical devices
Ask a pharmacist or clinician how long each refrigerated medicine can remain at a safe temperature and what to do after an outage. Record the manufacturer’s battery, charging, and backup requirements for oxygen equipment, powered mobility devices, sleep equipment, monitors, and communication devices. Register medically necessary equipment with the utility if that service exists, but do not rely on priority restoration; still plan for relocation.
Keep a charged power bank, vehicle charger, compatible adapters, spare batteries, and paper instructions. A generator, if used, must remain outdoors and at least 20 feet from building openings; never operate a generator, grill, camp stove, or fuel-burning device indoors or in a garage because of carbon-monoxide poisoning.
Recognize and respond to heat illness
For heavy sweating, nausea, or fainting, the CDC advises moving the person to a cool place, giving water, and putting cool wet cloths on the body. Stop activity and monitor closely. Heat-stroke signs include very high body temperature, hot dry skin, a rapid strong pulse, dizziness, confusion, or unconsciousness. If heat stroke is suspected, call 9-1-1 or get the person to a hospital immediately; do not delay for home treatment.
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5. Assemble supplies for your actual household
FEMA advises several days of food, water, and emergency supplies. The CDC tornado checklist specifies at least three days. Use those as a floor, then add what a longer evacuation, outage, medication schedule, disability, infant, or pet requires.
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| Category | Include | Planning detail |
|---|---|---|
| Water and food | Drinking water, ready-to-eat nonperishable food, manual can opener, infant formula or special diets. | Store enough for at least three days; include a way to carry water. |
| Medical | Prescription and over-the-counter medicines, copies of prescriptions, first-aid supplies, glasses, hearing-aid batteries, medical-device supplies. | Rotate before expiration and keep temperature-sensitive items according to clinical advice. |
| Light and information | Flashlights or lanterns, spare batteries, battery-powered or hand-crank NOAA Weather Radio, paper maps, whistle. | Test equipment and keep a battery backup for the radio; USB-capable hand-crank models can help charge small devices. |
| Power and communication | Power banks, car chargers, adapters, charging cables, backup smoke and carbon-monoxide alarms. | Confirm that connectors and batteries match every device. |
| Safety and hygiene | Blankets, sanitation supplies, masks if locally needed, fire extinguisher, sturdy shoes, gloves, cash, identification copies. | Keep shoes and a light near beds in case broken glass or debris blocks normal exits. |
| Pets and service animals | Food, water, medicines, leash, carrier, bowls, waste bags, vaccination and veterinary records. | The CDC tornado guidance recommends a separate two-week supply of pet food, water, and medications. |
| Accessibility and caregiving | Communication cards, spare mobility parts, transfer aids, diapers, sensory supports, backup batteries, and a helper list. | Pack items in containers that the person can open or that a caregiver can carry quickly. |
The pet recommendation is separate from the three-day household minimum. Check the kit every few months, replace consumed or expired items, update clothing sizes and medicines, and test every charger, radio, alarm, and battery. CDC notes that U.S. households experience about four hours of power loss per year on average; that population average does not predict how long an individual outage will last, so a severe-weather kit must also cover a prolonged local outage.
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- Run a communication drill: each person calls or messages the out-of-area contact, then reports the meeting location and status.
- Run a tornado drill: move from normal rooms to the designated interior shelter, bring the radio and shoes, and practice protecting the head and neck. Teach children that a watch means possible and a warning means shelter now.
- Run an outage drill: locate flashlights, start the radio, connect a power bank, verify medical-device backups, and identify the cooling destination.
- Run an evacuation drill: load medicines, documents, pets, mobility equipment, and water; follow the primary route and note the alternate.
- Review the record: update contacts, school arrangements, medication lists, vehicles, pet information, and accessibility needs before each hazard season and after any household or health change.
Ask children to explain where they would shelter and how they would call for help. Ask older adults and people with disabilities to identify any step that is physically, visually, audibly, or cognitively difficult, then change the plan rather than expecting them to improvise during a warning.
What to do when severe weather or heat arrives
During a heat wave
- Move to air conditioning or the planned cooling location; do not wait until symptoms become severe.
- Drink fluids according to your clinician’s advice, limit strenuous activity during the hottest part of the day, and wear light clothing.
- Check on people at higher risk, especially those living alone, young children, older adults, pregnant people, and people with heart or chronic conditions.
- Keep watching official alerts for excessive-heat updates and power-outage information.
During a tornado or severe thunderstorm
- When a warning is issued, go immediately to the preselected interior, windowless room on the lowest floor or basement.
- Stay away from windows, skylights, and exterior doors; use helmets, mattresses, or sturdy furniture to protect your head and neck if available.
- Do not leave shelter to watch the storm. Continue monitoring warnings until officials indicate the danger has passed.
During flooding or a hurricane
- Follow evacuation orders and use the planned route and destination.
- Never walk, swim, or drive through floodwater, and never move a barricade. Water may conceal washed-out roads, debris, or downed power lines.
- If sheltering, use a sturdy location that is not exposed to floodwater. Keep the radio, shoes, medicines, identification, and pet carrier accessible.
- Use generators and grills only outdoors, at least 20 feet from doors, windows, and other building openings.
During a power outage in extreme heat
- Check whether the home is becoming unsafe and move to the cooling destination before heat accumulates.
- Keep refrigerator and freezer doors closed; follow medication-specific guidance rather than guessing whether a medicine remains safe.
- Use flashlights instead of candles when possible, and never use a stove, grill, or generator indoors.
- Check on neighbors and relatives, especially anyone dependent on powered medical equipment or unable to travel alone.
Common planning failures and fixes
| Failure | Why it fails | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Relying on one phone alert | The phone may be uncharged, out of service, or outside cellular coverage. | Pair Wireless Emergency Alerts with a battery-backed tone-alert NOAA Weather Radio and local broadcast media. |
| Using one shelter for every hazard | A basement may be suitable for a tornado but dangerous in a flood; an upper floor may be unsafe in high winds. | Assign a location for each hazard using local construction and flood guidance. |
| Keeping generic supplies | Food or batteries may not meet a person’s medical, infant, accessibility, or pet needs. | Build the kit from the household needs record and test device compatibility. |
| Waiting for roads to clear | Floodwater and debris can make a route impassable or sweep away a vehicle. | Know the evacuation trigger, leave on official instruction, and use the alternate route. |
| Assuming a generator is automatically safe | Indoor or near-window operation can cause fatal carbon-monoxide buildup. | Operate it outdoors at least 20 feet from openings and follow the manufacturer’s instructions. |
| Never practicing | People may forget the room, route, contact, or equipment under stress. | Run short drills, include children and helpers, and revise the plan after each drill. |
Where to get current local instructions
Before and during an event, check your city or county emergency-management office, state health department, National Weather Service warnings, utility outage information, and official school or workplace messages. Use current local instructions for evacuation orders, shelter openings, cooling centers, road closures, flood depth, and return decisions. National guidance can explain the planning method, but officials who manage your address determine which route and facility are safe.
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