Verified and updated: November 12, 2026, at 05:26 UTC. Canada’s federal guidance advises households to be ready to manage for at least 72 hours without essential services such as electricity or tap water. A useful plan pairs supplies with clear decisions: who contacts whom, where everyone meets, and what to take if authorities advise evacuation. No specific new nationwide emergency event is confirmed in the guidance reviewed for this article; the 72-hour recommendation is standing preparedness advice.
That preparation matters because an outage or evacuation can interrupt access to food, water, communications and medication. Start with your household’s needs, keep essentials easy to find, and review local risks and instructions from your province, territory and municipality.
Make the plan usable before buying a large collection of equipment. Count everyone who may rely on the household, including children, older adults, people with disabilities, anyone with medical needs, and pets or service animals. Consider whether someone uses powered medical equipment, needs refrigerated medicine, requires mobility support, or may need help understanding alerts.
Then choose a portable storage place everyone can reach. Canada’s emergency-kit guidance recommends keeping supplies organized and accessible, and using separate grab-and-go bags when that makes a household’s kit easier to carry. In an apartment, keep the bag away from a potential flood area and know the building’s exits. In a rural or remote community, consider longer travel distances and local advice about extra supplies.
The current federal checklist specifies two litres of water per person per day for drinking, cooking and hygiene. That is a baseline of six litres per person for three days. It also suggests keeping an additional two litres per person per day for cooking and cleaning if possible. For four people, the baseline is 24 litres for three days, plus up to another 24 litres for those additional uses. Bottles in smaller sizes are easier to handle.
Choose familiar non-perishable food that can be eaten with little or no cooking, and include a manual can opener. Account for allergies, dietary needs, infant formula, and pet food. Rotate food and other items with expiry dates as part of ordinary household shopping. Health Canada’s emergency food and water guidance also recommends planning for safe handling and keeping extra water-purification supplies where appropriate.
Include a battery-powered or wind-up flashlight and radio, spare batteries, a charged power bank and phone charger, first-aid supplies, hygiene items, warm clothing and blankets. Keep cash in small denominations, spare keys, and copies of essential identification and insurance information protected in a waterproof bag. Add a written medication list with doses and purposes, relevant health numbers, and contact details for care providers.
These details help when phones run low, networks are disrupted, or household members are separated. Store an offline copy of important information and write down the phone numbers and addresses that family members may otherwise only know from their contacts app. Keep essential medicines in their usual safe storage; ask a pharmacist or clinician how to plan for any specific medication or temperature requirements.
Canada’s online emergency-plan form is designed to take about 20 minutes. Record two ways out of each room where practical, a nearby meeting point and an out-of-area contact. Decide who can pick up children if parents or caregivers are delayed, how to help a household member with access needs, and where pets can go. Share the plan with everyone involved and keep a printed copy with the kit.
Make sure household members know where the water shut-off, electrical panel, heating controls and fire extinguisher are, but only operate utilities if it is safe and authorities or qualified professionals advise it. For a possible evacuation, keep a smaller bag ready with medications, documents, chargers, keys and items needed immediately. The federal plan guidance covers escape routes, contacts, meeting places, health information and pet arrangements.
Use Environment and Climate Change Canada’s official weather alerts and your local or provincial emergency-management channels. The federal weather-alert page explains that watches mean conditions may develop, advisories cover significant weather, and warnings call for action. Read the full alert for the hazard, area and protective steps.
Alert Ready distributes critical public alerts through compatible wireless devices, television and radio. Keep a radio available in case power or mobile service is interrupted. If authorities issue an evacuation instruction, follow it promptly and use the route they identify. Preparedness can reduce scrambling and help a household act more quickly; it cannot guarantee that a disruption will last only 72 hours or predict what local responders will ask residents to do.
Use the spring and fall time changes as reminders to test flashlights and radios, replace batteries, recharge power banks, refresh food and water, and confirm that contact information is current. Tailor clothing and equipment to local conditions: winter may require warm layers, gloves and traction aids, while warmer months may call for sun protection and insect repellent. Check the federal checklist and your local authority’s advice for region-specific additions.
Federal sources reviewed: Government of Canada emergency kit checklist; Make an emergency plan; Weather alerts; and Health Canada food and drinking water safety in an emergency.
Use the federal baseline of two litres per person per day for drinking, cooking and hygiene: six litres per person for three days. Add more for cooking and cleaning if you can.
No. It is a preparedness target for household self-sufficiency, not a promise about how long an emergency or service disruption will last.
Check Environment and Climate Change Canada for weather alerts and follow your local, provincial or territorial emergency-management channels for instructions.
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