How to Build a 72-Hour Emergency Kit

A 72-hour emergency kit is a focused set of supplies meant to help your household bridge the first days of a disruption—whether you stay home or leave quickly. It is a starting milestone, not the finish line.

This guide follows public checklists from Ready.gov — Build a Kit and complementary kit guidance from the American Red Cross. Always adapt for medical needs, climate, and household size.

Why 72 hours?

Federal preparedness messaging often uses roughly three days as a practical window when infrastructure is stressed and help may be delayed. That does not mean three days is always enough. If you can sustainably store more water, medications, and food, do so—especially for winter storms, heat waves, or known local hazards.

Two kits, one idea

Many households benefit from splitting supplies:

1. Stay-put kit — bulkier water, extra food, sanitation, blankets, at home.
2. Go bag — lighter pack per person for evacuation (clothing, meds, documents, snacks, water bottle, chargers).

Ready.gov’s kit page covers both sheltering and evacuation considerations; your household plan decides which you grab.

Core items (starter list)

Use this as a build list—not a panic purchase order:

Water

• About one gallon per person per day for drinking and sanitation (verify against current Ready.gov water guidance).
• Extra for pets.
• Manual can opener if you store canned goods.

Food

• Ready-to-eat or minimal-cook options for three days.
• Infant formula / special diet foods as needed.
• Pet food.

Health & sanitation

• Prescription medications (rotate; talk with a pharmacist about emergency extras where appropriate).
• First-aid supplies.
• Moist towelettes, garbage bags, personal hygiene items.
• Menstrual supplies; diapers if needed.

Power, light, information

• Flashlights or headlamps + extra batteries (avoid candles as a primary plan due to fire risk).
• Power bank and charging cables.
• Battery-powered or hand-crank radio for weather and official news.
• Whistle to signal for help.

Documents & cash

• Copies of IDs, insurance, and medical info in a waterproof pouch (and/or encrypted digital copies).
• Small amount of cash in small bills if ATMs/networks fail.

Clothing & warmth/cooling

• Change of clothes; sturdy shoes.
• Blankets or sleeping bags.
• Climate-specific items (work gloves, rain layer, cool packs—match your region).

Tools

• Multi-tool or basic toolkit.
• Dust mask / N95 as recommended for your risk scenario (follow CDC/local guidance for smoke or debris events via CDC emergency resources).
• Local maps if GPS may be unavailable.

How to assemble without overwhelm

1. Inventory what you already own.
2. Buy gaps over two or three shopping trips.
3. Label bags: “Go bag — Adult,” “Stay kit — Water,” etc.
4. Store go bags near an exit; keep stay supplies accessible in the dark.
5. Calendar a six-month check: batteries, food dates, clothing sizes, prescriptions.

Special situations

• Power-dependent medical equipment: plan for battery backup and talk with providers before outages.
• Apartments: focus on water, light, sanitation, and evacuation routes; coordinate with building management where possible.
• Vehicles: a smaller kit helps if you are stranded (water, blanket, light, charger, basic first aid).

Common mistakes

• Buying exotic gear before water and medications.
• Storing everything in one heavy tub you cannot carry.
• Never telling household members where kits live.
• Forgetting pets and chargers.

Next step

Print the Family Emergency Preparedness Checklist and mark kit items as you finish them. Pair the kit with a written plan—supplies without decisions still stall under stress.