Emergency Kit Checklist by Country: Official Lists

01 · Your country's guide

Everything your government asks you to prepare.

We compared the official emergency lists of 62 governments. 41 of them list 112 as an emergency number, and 29 build household supplies around 72 hours (3 days), the most common target; Germany asks for 10 days and Austria for 14. Choose your country to see its own list.

All 62 countriesAll countries →

What official lists ask forPhaenyx count across 60 official lists

60 lists

Drinking water · 60 of 60 lists
Radio · 58 of 60 lists
Torch or flashlight · 57 of 60 lists
Spare batteries · 55 of 60 lists
Medicines · 53 of 60 lists
First-aid kit · 50 of 60 lists
Cash · 49 of 60 lists
Documents · 49 of 60 lists

How we counted, country by country →Choose your country ↑

Call112an emergency number in 41 of 62 countries Stock72 hoursthe most common target (29 of 62 governments) Food

Food · on all 60 official lists

First aid and medicine

First-aid kit · on 50 of 60 official lists
Medicines · on 53 of 60 official lists

Light, power and radio

Radio · on 58 of 60 official lists
Torch or flashlight · on 57 of 60 official lists
Spare batteries · on 55 of 60 official lists

Documents and cash

Cash · on 49 of 60 official lists
Documents · on 49 of 60 official lists

Alerts

Sirens, phone alerts, radio and apps: how each government warns its population.

ShelterPublic or private

Some countries plan a shelter place for everyone; most have no public network.

02 · Guides

What are you preparing for?

67 guides on power cuts, water, storms, sirens and radiation. Each opens with a short answer and cites the agency behind every figure.

Power cut

Fridge, light, heat and cooking for the first 48 hours.

Siren, attack or chemical release

Where to go and what to do in the first minutes.

Radiation and iodine

Fallout, doses, and what actually protects you.

Water and food

How much to store, make it safe, and how long it keeps.

Cold, heat and fire

Keep one room warm without fire. Heatwaves and smoke.

Storm, flood or earthquake

Natural hazards at home and what to prepare.

Family, babies and pets

The people and animals who need their own list.

Kit, documents and first aid

What goes in the bag, and what to keep ready.

All 67 guides →

03 · Questions people ask

The short answers.

Each answer is the opening of a verified guide. Follow the link for the full sources.

2-5 Lper person, per day

How much water to store per person per day?

Official figures run from 2 to 5 litres of water per person per day: Germany 2 litres for drinking and cooking only ⁴, Switzerland 3 litres ⁵, Canada about 4 litres ³, Sweden 3 to 5 litres ⁶, and the US one gallon (about 3.8 litres) ¹².

Full guide →

72 hthe usual minimum

72-hour emergency kit list: what Canada and the EU ask for

A 72-hour emergency kit holds drinking water, non-perishable food, a manual can opener, a flashlight, a battery or hand-crank radio, spare batteries, a first aid kit, personal medication, cash and copies of key documents.

Full guide →

2 wkthe target, step by step

Two-week emergency supply list: water and food per person

The US CDC asks for at least 1 gallon (about 3.8 L) of water per person per day for 3 days and suggests a 2-week supply if possible ¹.

Full guide →

4 ha closed fridge stays safe

How do you prepare for a long power outage?

Keep the fridge and freezer closed: the CDC says food stays safe up to 4 hours in a refrigerator, 48 hours in a full freezer and 24 in a half-full one ¹⁰¹.

Full guide →

2-5 yrlow-acid canned food

How long does emergency food last, and how do you rotate it?

Commercially canned low-acid foods such as meat and vegetables keep their quality for two to five years, and high-acid cans such as tomatoes and fruit for up to 18 months ².

Full guide →

5things to agree on

How do I make a family emergency plan?

A family emergency plan is a short written agreement on five things: how you will get alerts, where you will meet if you cannot go home, who everyone calls (including one contact outside your area), where your key documents are, and who handles children, medication and pets.

Full guide →

04 · If an alert sounds

The first minutes matter most.

For an air-raid siren, a chemical release or a nuclear detonation, the first official instruction is the same: get inside a solid building.

What official agencies tell you to do, in their words.

Air-raid siren

Act immediately: go to the nearest designated shelter, a sturdy building or an underground space ¹⁵.

Cabinet Secretariat of Japan · Israel Home Front Command

Full guide →

Chemical release

When told to shelter in place for a chemical release, go indoors, close and lock windows and doors, turn off fans, air conditioning and the furnace, and seal a room on the highest floor possible with few or no windows ¹.

U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · Ready.gov · U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

Full guide →

Nuclear detonation

Get inside, stay inside, stay tuned ¹².

Ready.gov · Federal Emergency Management Agency · Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Full guide →

If it is nuclear · get inside, stay inside, stay tuned

The first 24 hours.

1Minute 0

The alert sounds. Go inside the nearest solid building.

210 minutes

About the time before fallout arrives. Basement, or the centre of the building.

324 hours

Stay in the most protective place unless officials say otherwise.

4Days

Stay tuned. Leave only on an all-clear or an evacuation order.

For a nuclear detonation, from Ready.gov (FEMA) and the CDC. Read the guide

Where to shelter in a building: a basement or the middle of a large brick or concrete building, away from the roof, windows and outer walls. Stay at least 24 hours unless officials say otherwise. Source: nuclear explosion guide, citing Ready.gov (FEMA).

Where · minute 0 to 10

Get inside within 10 minutes.

Get inside, stay inside, stay tuned ¹². After a detonation you will have 10 minutes or more to reach adequate shelter before fallout arrives ¹. Go to a basement or the middle of a large brick or concrete building, away from windows and outer walls ¹². Stay there at least 24 hours unless officials say otherwise or the building is on fire or unsafe ¹³.

Shelter or evacuate? →

Why · hours to weeks

The 7-10 rule.

Fallout from a nuclear detonation weakens fast. By the "7-10 rule", every sevenfold increase in time after the explosion cuts the dose rate tenfold: about one-tenth of the 1-hour level at 7 hours, one-hundredth at 49 hours (about 2 days) and one-thousandth at about 2 weeks ¹. U.S. and Canadian agencies say to get inside and stay sheltered for at least 24 hours ³⁴⁵.

Read the guide →

05 · Good to know

What a buried shelter module involves.

A standard shipping container collapses under the weight of soil. A module meant for burial has to be reinforced, coated and documented. Installation and permits stay with a local professional. This is information, Phaenyx does not sell one today.

Illustrative cross-section. Soil cover, reinforcement and permits are set by a local engineer.

Typical external size (20 ft)6.06 × 2.44 × 2.59 m

Occupants4 to 6 people

Soil coverper engineer's sheet

Ventilationcertified NBC filtration

Design life, buried10 to 15 years

Deliveryex-works (EXW) or port (FOB)

Installation and permitsby a local pro, paid by the buyer

Good to know

What a shelter module adds

Protection a room at home cannot give, and filtered ventilation for long stays. Know the official standards before you compare anything.

Information onlyRead the guide →

Good to know

What a ready-made kit adds

One bag instead of thirty purchases, one expiry date to track, built on your country's official list. You can assemble the same from the list yourself.

Information onlyRead the guide →

06 · Our sources