Emergency Preparedness for Everyday Households
Church counsel on provident living and preparedness is a foundation for this personal collection of practical resources. I have brought it together with current public-health guidance and local emergency information so readers can move from a manageable first step toward greater household readiness. This is my collection, not an official publication of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints or a statement on its behalf. Readers of every belief are welcome.
An emergency starter and a broader home goal
Start with immediate needs: a three-day evacuation supply and a two-week home supply are useful emergency planning horizons. Then work gradually toward three months of familiar foods, a financial reserve, and longer-term food storage where permitted and feasible. These are different layers of preparation, not competing rules. Build at a pace that fits your household; avoid debt to buy supplies and protect today's essential expenses. Emergency supply starting points; Church food-storage guidance.
Prepare people as well as supplies
Include emotional and spiritual preparation: strengthen supportive relationships, discuss worries calmly, and identify people who can help. Prayer, scripture, and service can support those who draw strength from faith. The practical plans remain open to everyone; religious participation or donations are not conditions for using them. Follow current CDC and local instructions for water, food, health, and emergency safety. Church guidance on emotional resilience.
Choose a practical starting point
A Prepared Home Can Start Small
Check what works, agree on shared decisions, and build toward broader household goals without overextending your budget.
Store Drinking Water You Can Actually Use
Plan quantities, safe containers, filling, labels, and six-month replacement for self-filled water.
A Power Outage Plan the Whole Household Can Use
Plan for health needs, communication, food safety, backup power, and emotional support.
Print and plan
Use the printable household planning kit alongside these articles. Keep completed contact details and household records private, and put the pages where the people who need them can find them.
Reliable resources
Begin with the Church foundation below, then use the technical and local sources for the task in front of you. The directory also includes the American Red Cross and public agencies, plus North Carolina, Wake County, and Raleigh information. In an immediate emergency in the United States, call 911. This page is a preparation guide, not a live alert service.
Church foundation and further preparation
These official Church resources inform the broader approach to preparation. Their religious counsel is offered in its own context; technical safety instructions in this collection follow current CDC and local guidance.
Church preparedness planning
Connect practical planning with household needs, regular reviews, and financial, emotional, and spiritual preparation.
Personal and Family Emergency Preparedness Planning Guide · English · PDF
Food storage and a financial reserve
Build gradually toward three months of normal-diet food, then consider longer-term storage where permitted and feasible. Avoid debt and extremes.
Emotional and spiritual preparedness
Explore calming skills, supportive relationships, service, and faith in Christ alongside practical emergency planning.
Make a plan and protect your records
Make and practice a household emergency plan
Agree on responsibilities, meeting places and ways to reconnect, then use the linked family-plan template to record the decisions.
Family Disaster Plan template · English · PDF
Build an emergency kit
Use the supply list to distinguish a portable evacuation kit from supplies kept at home, then adapt it to your household.
Protect important records before a disaster
Use the checklist to organize identification, insurance, financial contacts and a home inventory; keep completed copies private and secure.
Water
Create and store an emergency water supply
Check how much water to store, choose suitable containers, and follow the current cleaning and storage instructions.
Make water safe during an emergency
Use CDC instructions when authorities say tap water is unsafe, while following the specific advisory from your water provider or local officials.
Food safety and power outages
Keep food safe after a power outage
Check what to do before, during and after an outage, including when refrigerated food should be discarded.
Printable food-safety infographic · English · PDF
Prevent carbon-monoxide poisoning
Review generator placement, unsafe indoor fuel-burning practices and the role of battery-powered or battery-backup CO alarms.
Weather warnings and backup information
Check active weather alerts
Open the official alert directory and check the relevant location rather than relying on an old forecast or shared screenshot.
Understand NOAA Weather Radio
Learn about weather-radio broadcasts as an additional way to receive warnings when internet access is unreliable.
North Carolina Wake County and Raleigh
North Carolina: prepare and stay informed
Use the state hub for preparedness guidance and links to shelter, evacuation, road and outage information.
Emergency alerts explained · English · Web
North Carolina Hurricane Guide · English · Web
Hurricane Guide — printable edition · English · PDF
Wake County: ReadyWake alerts
Set up location-based local notifications and keep your contact information current.
Raleigh: emergency guide and city alerts
Find city-specific contacts, preparedness guidance and links to official local information.
Raleigh alerts · English · Web
Further reading
Further reading for a prepared household. These books approach preparedness through planning, manageable tasks and cooperation. Start with the free official resources; a book is optional. The editions linked here are in English.
Selected from publisher descriptions and verified edition details. This is a reading shortlist, not a claim of personal testing or a substitute for current local emergency guidance.
Use current official guidance for food, water, generators and medical decisions. Books can help organize a plan, but do not replace first-aid training, qualified advice or evacuation instructions.
The Bookshop.org links below are paid links. If you buy through them, I may earn a commission.
The Emergency Playbook: A Bunker-Free Guide to Disaster Preparation
A recent starting point for household planning, small-space supplies and helping one another through disruption. Its emphasis on community makes it a good fit for readers who want practical preparation without a bunker mindset.
View on Bookshop.org (paid link)
Emergency Preparedness: A Practical Guide for Preparing Your Family, Third Edition
A broader family reference covering communication, evacuation, household supplies and different emergencies. A useful companion for turning a general intention to prepare into a written plan and steady, manageable work.
View on Bookshop.org (paid link)
Prepping 101: 40 Steps You Can Take to Be Prepared
For readers who like small tasks: 40 steps, from organizing a preparedness notebook to thinking through household supplies. An older practical guide; check food, water and DIY advice against current official guidance rather than treating every project as essential.