Power outage

A long outage turns water, heat, food, and medicine into daily problems. Read these in order.

Sheets, in reading order

1. 1 What to do when the power goes out A power outage checklist for the first hours, days 1 to 3, and days 4 to 7, with CDC, FDA, and Ready.gov guidance on generators, food, water, and medicine.
2. 2 Emergency water: how much to store and how to treat it How much emergency water to store, how to store it, and how to make it safe by boiling, bleach, tablets, or a filter, with CDC and EPA amounts.
3. 3 Generator safety: carbon monoxide, placement, and fuel Where to put a portable generator, how far from the house, CO alarms and symptoms, safe refueling, and why you never backfeed, per CDC, CPSC, and FEMA.
4. 4 How to stay warm without power Stay warm in a winter power outage: hold heat in, dress in layers, use heat sources safely, avoid carbon monoxide, and spot hypothermia and frostbite.
5. 5 How to stay cool without power in a heat wave How to stay cool in a heat wave power outage: where to find a cooling center, when fans stop helping, who is most at risk, and heat illness signs, per CDC.
6. 6 How big a portable power station do you need? Size a portable power station for an outage by adding up watts and watt-hours, plan how to recharge it, and check medical devices with the maker first.
7. 7 Emergency food supply and 72-hour kit food How much emergency food to store, what kinds, how to rotate it, and planning for infants, special diets, and pets, from Ready.gov, FEMA, and CDC.
8. 8 Medical equipment and medicine in a power outage What FDA, CDC, and Ready.gov say about insulin and refrigerated medicine without power, keeping medical devices running, and planning before an outage.
9. 9 Emergency toilet and sanitation without running water Sanitation supplies to keep, handwashing without running water, emergency toilet supplies, and septic cautions, from CDC, EPA, FEMA, and Ready.gov.

Gear lists

• Home backup power for outages Battery power, lights, a radio, a CO alarm, and food-safety tools for a multi-day power outage, based on Ready.gov and CDC guidance.
• Emergency water kit Water storage up to a 55-gallon drum, purification tablets, a bleach dropper, and filters, with CDC and Ready.gov amounts for storing and treating water.
• Power outage winter kit Sleeping bags, wool blankets, hats, a battery CO alarm, battery lights, and a radio for a winter power outage, based on CDC and Ready.gov guidance.
• Emergency food kit Shelf-stable food, a manual can opener, airtight containers, a fridge thermometer, a cooler, and an outdoor-only camp stove, per FEMA, CDC, and Ready.gov.