Emergency radio kit

Official guidance after a nuclear detonation is to get inside, stay inside, and stay tuned (Ready.gov). Staying tuned is what this kit is for. Ready.gov says to have a battery-powered or hand crank radio, which will continue to work if other forms of communication fail (Ready.gov). Its basic kit list adds a NOAA Weather Radio with tone alert, extra batteries, and a cell phone with chargers and a backup battery. The emergency alerts and radio guide explains how each alert system works.

Two kinds of radio

• A NOAA Weather Radio receiver. NOAA Weather Radio broadcasts official warnings, watches, forecasts, and other hazard information 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and it also carries alerts for non-weather emergencies such as national security or public safety threats (Ready.gov). It needs a special receiver that can pick up the signal (NWS).
• An AM/FM radio that runs without wall power. This is the battery-powered or hand crank radio on Ready.gov’s list (Ready.gov). Local stations carry instructions from officials.

The crank radio on this list covers both: AM, FM, and the NOAA weather band. The desk alert radio stays plugged in and sounds an alarm on its own, so you hear a warning even when you are not listening.

What to look for in a weather alert radio

The National Weather Service recommends looking for receivers with the Public Alert or NOAA Weather Radio All Hazards logo (NWS). Three features it describes:

• Tone alarm: NWS sends a 1050 Hz tone before broadcasting most warnings and many watch messages (NWS).
• SAME: Specific Area Message Encoding lets you pick the area you want alerts for (NWS), so the radio does not go off for a county far away.
• Battery backup: since power outages often happen during storms, NWS says a receiver with battery backup can be crucial. It recommends AC power for a unit that stays home, to save the batteries (NWS).

Program your county code when you set the radio up, not during an emergency. Then put AA batteries in it for backup.

Batteries and charging

Buy batteries in the sizes your radios take. On this list, the weather alert radio takes 3 AA for backup and the pocket radio takes 2 AA. The crank radio has its own built-in power options. A power bank keeps a phone charged, which matters because Wireless Emergency Alerts arrive on phones: they look like text messages, and some phone models require you to turn them on (Ready.gov).

A contact list on paper

If your phone dies, its contacts go with it. Ready.gov says to write down your contacts and plans and keep copies in a backpack, wallet, or taped in a notebook (Ready.gov). It suggests choosing an out-of-town contact, who may be easier to reach in a disaster, and texting rather than calling, which leaves phone lines open for emergency workers (Ready.gov). Ready.gov’s nuclear guidance also says to identify an out-of-state contact you can tell where you are and that you are safe (Ready.gov). The notebook on this list holds that list. Write in pencil and keep it with the radios.