Contamination changes the plan
Boiling or disinfecting does not make water contaminated by fuel, toxic chemicals or radioactive material safe. Use a safe alternative and follow local health guidance.
CDC emergency water guidance ↗Build a workable readiness plan.
A manageable sequence for one person, a household, or a small group. Complete it together and return to it as circumstances change.
First, understand your situation
Start with local hazards and the needs of the people involved. A plan for an apartment, a rural home and a neighborhood will look different. Use current local emergency guidance to choose priorities.
If danger is immediate: follow emergency instructions and contact local emergency services. Do not delay evacuation to gather supplies or finish this checklist. CivArk does not provide live alerts.
Secure the essentials
Think through water, food, shelter, communication and continuity of care. Record what you already have before buying anything.
Estimate supplies with the toolkit →Agree on a shared plan
Discuss contact methods, meeting locations, transport and who may need help. Keep the plan simple enough to explain without a screen.
Use the community guides →Practice and keep a copy
Run a low-risk tabletop exercise. Look for missing information and tasks with only one trained person. Keep a paper copy and a tested offline copy.
Build your knowledge vault →
Your checklist
Small steps, visible progress
Stored on this device. Export a copy to keep it or move it to another browser. Avoid putting sensitive personal information in shared files.
Safety foundations
Do not taste-test safety
Power loss and floodwater can make food unsafe. Never taste food to determine whether it is safe; use current food-safety guidance and discard questionable food.
CDC emergency food guidance ↗Keep official instructions handy
Write down your local emergency management, utility and public health contacts before a disruption. Save current alerts, evacuation routes and accessibility arrangements in your plan.
Download a planning template →