Emergency preparedness in the U.S.: alerts, kits and disaster plans

Step 1 — Find out which disasters can happen where you live

No two communities face the same extreme weather (Ready.gov — Evacuation). FEMA’s Search Your Location page shows how to contact your local emergency management office and lists disaster declarations for your state (FEMA). Your state and county emergency management websites explain evacuation zones and routes (Ready.gov — Evacuation).

• Hurricanes bring storm surge, wind and flooding, sometimes far inland (Ready.gov — Hurricanes).
• Floods are the most common U.S. disaster; flash floods can come without warning (Ready.gov — Floods).
• Tornadoes can happen anywhere, but the Midwest and Southeast have a greater risk (Ready.gov — Tornadoes).
• Extreme heat causes more deaths each year than any other weather hazard (Ready.gov — Extreme Heat).
• Earthquakes: “Drop, Cover, and Hold On” (Ready.gov — Earthquakes).
• Wildfires spread quickly; evacuate immediately if authorities tell you to (Ready.gov — Wildfires).

Step 2 — Set up several ways to get alerts

• Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA) arrive on your phone like a text, with a special sound. They’re free, need no subscription and aren’t affected by network congestion, but some phones need you to turn them on (Ready.gov — Alerts).
• The Emergency Alert System (EAS) reaches you through TV, radio, cable and satellite (Ready.gov — Alerts).
• NOAA Weather Radio broadcasts National Weather Service warnings and forecasts 24 hours a day (Ready.gov — Alerts). It needs a special radio receiver (NWS — NOAA Weather Radio).
• Local alerts: sign up for your state and local government’s alerts (Ready.gov — Low and No Cost). If your community has sirens, learn the warning tone (Ready.gov — Tornadoes).
• The FEMA App sends weather alerts for up to five locations and helps you find a nearby shelter (Ready.gov — Alerts). It’s available in English and Spanish (Ready.gov — Low and No Cost).

Watch or warning? The National Weather Service (NWS) uses three key words:

• Watch — be prepared. The hazard is possible but not certain (NWS — Floods). During a tornado watch, review your plan, check your supplies and be ready to act (NWS — Tornadoes).
• Warning — take action. The danger is happening or about to happen (NWS — Floods). During a tornado warning, go to an interior room on the lowest floor of a sturdy building, away from windows (NWS — Tornadoes).
• Advisory — be aware. Less serious than a warning, but still dangerous if you aren’t careful (NWS — Floods).

Don’t wait for the warning: when a hurricane warning comes, “All preparations should be complete” (NWS — Hurricanes).

Step 3 — Make a plan with your household

Your family may not be together when a disaster strikes (Ready.gov — Make a Plan). Ready.gov’s plan has four steps (Ready.gov):

1. Talk about alerts, shelter, evacuation routes, staying in touch and your kit.
2. List your needs: ages, medicines and equipment, disabilities, languages spoken, cultural or religious needs, pets and school-age children.
3. Write the plan down; Ready.gov has a fillable form.
4. Practice it.

Contacts and meeting places. Ready.gov’s card has spaces for an emergency contact, an out-of-town contact, and meeting places from inside your home to out of town (Ready.gov — Communication Plan). Keep important numbers somewhere besides your phone (Ready.gov — Low and No Cost). After a disaster, phone lines are often down or busy, so text instead (Ready.gov — Hurricanes). If your closest family lives abroad, consider also choosing an easy-to-reach contact inside the U.S.

Children. Teach them when and how to call 911, give them an emergency contact, agree on a family password so they don’t go with a stranger, and choose a meeting place (Ready.gov — Extreme Heat). Ask your child’s school or childcare about its emergency and pick-up plan (Ready.gov); see also enrolling your child in school.

Pets. Many public shelters and hotels don’t allow pets, so know a safe place to take them, and ask a neighbor or friend to help if you can’t (Ready.gov — Pets).

Leaving home. Know where you would go, in more than one direction. No car? Plan now how you’d leave, with family, friends or your local emergency management office (Ready.gov — Evacuation).

Step 4 — Build an emergency kit, little by little

After an emergency, you may need to manage on your own for several days (Ready.gov — Build a Kit). The basic list includes (Ready.gov):

• water (one gallon per person per day, for several days) and several days of non-perishable food;
• a battery-powered or hand-crank radio and a NOAA Weather Radio with tone alert;
• a flashlight, extra batteries, a first aid kit and a whistle;
• a phone charger and backup battery, a manual can opener, local maps, and sanitation items.

Then add what your household needs: prescription medicines, glasses, baby supplies, pet food, cash and copies of documents (Ready.gov). Keep small bills, because ATMs and credit cards may not work during a disaster (Ready.gov — Financial Preparedness).

You don’t have to buy everything at once: start with what you have and add one item each time you shop; community food banks can also help (Ready.gov — Low and No Cost). Check your kit every year (Ready.gov — Build a Kit).

Step 5 — Protect copies of your important documents

FEMA’s checklist of documents to protect includes your passport, driver’s license, Social Security card, green card, birth and marriage certificates, lease, insurance policies and medical information (FEMA — Safeguard Critical Documents). Keep paper copies in a fireproof and waterproof box, a bank safe deposit box or with a trusted friend or relative, and electronic copies password-protected (FEMA). Photos or videos of your belongings help with insurance claims (FTC).

As a newcomer, keep copies of your visa, I-94 record and immigration papers with the rest. If documents are lost in a disaster, FEMA’s Replacing Vital Documents page shows where to start; for a green card, it points to USCIS Form I-90 (FEMA). USCIS says people affected by natural disasters can ask for help, which it decides case by case, for example faster replacement of a lost or damaged green card, work permit (EAD) or I-94 (USCIS). For your own case, see free immigration legal help.

Step 6 — After a disaster: get official help

• Don’t return home until local officials say it’s safe (Ready.gov — Recovering).
• Before you clean up, take photos and list the damage. Save receipts, and file a claim if you have insurance (Ready.gov).
• For food and shelter, local officials and voluntary organizations are usually the best options (Ready.gov).

FEMA help. After a Presidentially declared disaster, FEMA and the state, territorial or tribal government may provide money and direct services (FEMA — Citizenship and Immigration Status). You apply at DisasterAssistance.gov, by calling 1-800-621-3362, or at a Disaster Recovery Center (FEMA — Rumors). Tell FEMA about any language need or disability (FEMA — Individuals and Households Program).

Who can get FEMA money. FEMA’s page, last updated June 26, 2026, says: “To be eligible, survivors must be U.S. citizens, non-citizen nationals and qualified aliens” (FEMA). Its list of “qualified aliens” includes green card holders, refugees, people granted asylum and some other groups (FEMA). The same page says (FEMA):

• if the applicant doesn’t meet these rules, the household may still apply for certain federal help on behalf of a minor child who is a U.S. citizen or “qualified alien,” lives in the same household and was under 18 when the disaster happened; the parent or legal guardian applies as co-applicant;
• regardless of citizenship or immigration status, people affected by a major disaster may be eligible for crisis counseling, disaster legal services, disaster case management, disaster nutrition (food) assistance and in-kind help such as medical care, shelter, food and water;
• voluntary agencies help regardless of status.

FEMA advises talking to an immigration expert to check whether you meet its requirements (FEMA); see free immigration legal help.