Practical steps to help businesses and households prepare for outages before severe weather or other emergencies strike.
Power outages rarely arrive at convenient times.
They can accompany hurricanes, severe thunderstorms, flooding, winter weather and other emergencies—and they can affect businesses and households very differently.
But the basic principle is the same:
Preparation needs to happen before the power goes out.
The National Weather Service identifies building and maintaining an emergency supply kit as one of its key preparedness steps. Households should have necessary food and supplies available until power returns or assistance arrives.
Businesses need their own version of a preparedness toolkit.
For Businesses: Build a Power-Readiness Toolkit
Your organization’s “kit” isn’t necessarily something stored in a closet.
It’s the information, maintenance and resources your team will need when something goes wrong.
Consider including:
- Current preventative maintenance records
- Generator information
- Critical equipment documentation
- Emergency contacts
- Site information
- Internal escalation procedures
- Critical-system priorities
- Backup-power procedures
And most importantly:
Make sure your team knows where this information is.
For Families: Build an Emergency Supply Kit
Households should maintain supplies that can support family members until power returns or help arrives.
Follow current government recommendations when determining what belongs in your family’s emergency kit.
Ready.gov preparedness resources provide additional guidance for creating and maintaining an emergency plan and supplies.
If You Use a Portable Generator, Plan for Safety Beforehand
A generator can provide backup power during an outage, but improper operation creates serious risks.
EPA advises homeowners to determine before an emergency where a generator will be operated.
Generators should always be outdoors and well away from doors, windows and vents. EPA warns never to operate one inside a home, basement, garage, crawlspace, shed, tent or other enclosed area because generator exhaust contains carbon monoxide, which can build up quickly and can be deadly.
That makes generator safety part of preparedness—not something to figure out after the power fails.
Preparedness Is a Habit
Whether you’re responsible for a commercial facility or your family’s home, preparedness is about taking small steps before they’re urgently needed.
Know your risks.
Have a plan.
Prepare the right resources.
Maintain critical equipment.
Know who to contact.
Those steps can make an enormous difference when the unexpected happens.
For Businesses
Make sure your critical-power systems are ready.
For Families
Visit Ready.gov and EPA Preparedness Month resources for additional emergency preparedness and generator-safety information.