When a hurricane turns toward your coast, a wildfire jumps a ridge, or a flood warning goes out at 2 a.m., there is no time to think about what to pack. An evacuation might give you hours, or minutes. A go-bag (also called a bug-out bag or evacuation kit) is a packed bag for each person that you can grab on the way out the door. This checklist covers what to put in a family go-bag, including the documents most lists forget, and how to keep it ready all year.
Go-bag vs. home emergency kit
These are two different things, and it helps to keep them separate.
- Go-bag: what you carry when you leave. It has to be light enough to grab and carry, and it focuses on the first few days away from home.
- Home kit: supplies for sheltering in place during an outage or storm: more water, more food, a way to cook, and tools.
This article is about the go-bag. A sturdy backpack per adult works better than one big suitcase, because it leaves your hands free for kids, pets or a carrier.
The family go-bag checklist
Water and food
- Water: a common guideline is one gallon per person per day. Carry what is realistic, and a refillable bottle with a filter for later.
- Ready-to-eat food that needs no cooking: protein bars, nut butter, dried fruit, crackers, pouches
- Food for babies and anyone with a special diet
- A manual can opener if you pack cans
Health and medicines
- Prescription medicines for several days, in original labeled bottles when possible. Ask your pharmacist about getting a small extra supply.
- A written medicine list for each person: name, dose, and why it is taken
- Glasses, contact lens supplies, hearing aid batteries, and chargers for medical devices
- A basic first aid kit and over-the-counter pain and allergy medicine
- Masks rated for smoke (such as N95) if you live in wildfire country
- Hand sanitizer, wipes, and any personal hygiene items
Documents and money
After a disaster, people often need to prove who they are, where they live, and what they owned, sometimes to an insurer, a shelter or a relief program. Put copies in a waterproof zip bag:
- Copies of driver's licenses, passports and birth certificates
- Insurance policies (home or renters, auto, health) with the company phone numbers
- Proof of address, such as a utility bill or lease
- Copies of insurance and Medicare cards, front and back
- A list of emergency contacts on paper, in case phones die
- Copies of pet vaccination records and a recent photo of each pet
- Cash in small bills; card readers and ATMs may be down
- A USB drive or encrypted cloud folder with scans of the same documents and a photo inventory of your home
Keep the originals in a fire- and water-resistant box you can grab if there is time, or in a safe place away from home. Our important documents checklist walks through which originals to keep and where.
Light, power and communication
- Flashlight or headlamp with extra batteries
- Battery-powered or hand-crank radio for emergency alerts
- Phone chargers and a charged power bank
- A whistle to signal for help
Clothing and comfort
- A change of clothes and underwear for each person
- Sturdy closed-toe shoes (important after storms and fires, when debris is everywhere)
- Rain gear and a warm layer, even in summer
- Emergency blanket
- Small comfort items for kids: a stuffed animal, a book, a card game
Tools and extras
- Multi-tool or pocket knife
- Duct tape and a few heavy-duty trash bags
- Spare car and house keys
- A paper map of your area with two evacuation routes marked
- Pen and a small notebook
Packing for kids, older adults and pets
| Who | Add to the bag |
|---|---|
| Babies and toddlers | Diapers, wipes, formula or baby food, bottles, a change of clothes for every day |
| School-age kids | Their own small backpack with a snack, water, a comfort item, and a card with your name and phone number |
| Older adults | Mobility aids, extra medicine, copies of a health care power of attorney if they have one, a list of their doctors |
| Pets | Food, water, bowls, leash or carrier, waste bags, medicine, vaccination records and a photo |
Make a plan, not just a bag
A bag without a plan still leaves a family scrambling. Talk through these questions before storm or fire season:
- Where will we go? A friend or relative outside the area, a hotel, or a public shelter. Note that not every shelter accepts pets.
- How will we get there? Know your local evacuation zone and at least two routes out. Keep the car's gas tank at least half full during the season.
- How will we find each other? Choose a meeting place near home and one outside your neighborhood. Pick an out-of-area contact everyone can text, since long-distance messages sometimes get through when local calls do not.
- Who picks up the kids? Know your children's school evacuation plan and who is allowed to pick them up.
- What do we shut off? Know where your water, gas and electric shutoffs are and when you should turn them off. If you are unsure about gas, ask your utility.
Sign up for your county's emergency alerts, and check your local emergency management office or Ready.gov for guidance specific to the hazards where you live.
Keep the bag ready
- Store the bags where you can grab them quickly, such as a hall closet or by the door to the garage
- Check them twice a year, for example when clocks change. Replace water, food, batteries and medicines that have expired.
- Update clothes as kids grow and as the seasons change
- Refresh document copies when a policy, address or ID changes
- Practice once: time how long it takes your family to grab the bags, the pets and the car keys
Printable pages to go in the bag
The checklist above is complete on its own. For the medical part of the bag, get the free ER-Ready Kit: the one-page Emergency Health Summary, the "Where should I go?" guide and interpreter wallet cards, in English and Spanish. Put a printed copy in each bag. For your family's full medical information, the Family Health Binder: Fillable + iPad Edition ($29) keeps medicines, allergies, conditions, doctors and insurance in one binder, every page in English and Spanish.
The Ambos Health team
General information, not legal, financial or medical advice. In an emergency, call 911.