Be Prepared

Eight tips will lead you through collecting supplies, finding appropriate containers, and creating an emergency plan for friends and family. We've also written a user-friendly guide to general principles of emergency preparedness. Our goal is to help everyone in our City prepare for a disaster so that we are all more resilient.

Power Outage Tips

Build an emergency supply kit
Include items like food, water, cash, power banks, batteries, flashlights, pet food, and medicine. Have enough supplies on hand to last three days and refresh your kit once a year.

Plan for medical needs for you and your loved ones
Make sure you have a backup power solution for your medical devices and your prescriptions are filled. Ensure any backup generators are ready to operate safely.

Travel and Monetary Preparations

  • Keep cash on hand and a full tank of gas. ATMs, credit card transactions and gas stations may not be operating during an outage.
  • If you drive an electric vehicle, have your car fully charged

Other Considerations

  • Learn how to manually open your garage or any other door that operates with electricity.
  • Talk with your building manager if you live or work in a building that has electronic key card access to understand how they will deal with a possible multi-day outage.
  • Only call 9–1–1 during a true emergency situation. Police, fire and other emergency services will be fully staffed and operational throughout the duration of the outage.

Household Outage Tips

  • If you don’t have a surge protector, unplug or turn off appliances, equipment, and electronics to avoid damage caused by surges when the power is restored.
  • Typically, your refrigerator will keep food cold for about 4 hours, and a full freezer will hold its temperature for about 48 hours — as long as the freezer and refrigerator doors are kept closed. Consider using coolers with ice to keep food cold and safe.
  • If you need to use generators, camp stoves, or charcoal grills, use only outdoors in a safe area. Do not use a gas stove for heat.
  • Leave a single lamp on before the outage occurs, that way you will know once the power returns.
  • Check on your neighbors who have medical issues or live alone.
  • Only call 9–1–1 during a true emergency situation.
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