A calm, practical way to get through 3 to 5 days at home when the power, the internet, the weather or the world throws you a curveball.
Most emergencies in Canada aren't movie disasters. They look like a big ice storm, a long power outage, a cyber or telecom outage that knocks out internet and debit, or an order to stay inside for a while. In almost all of them, the best place to be is home, with a little prep done ahead of time.
Storms, ice, heat, outages, cyber hiccups. Here are the six that matter most.
Who calls whom, where you meet, where the kit lives. Fill in the private family plan below.
Canada says be ready for at least 72 hours on your own. We aim for 3 to 5 days.
The three steps come from Public Safety Canada's Get Prepared program.
That many were still without power across Ontario on the third day of the March 2025 ice storm, according to Hydro One's outage map. Some hard-hit areas were told it could take until the end of that week.
Source: The Canadian Press, March 31, 2025In the July 2022 Rogers outage, Interac debit went down nationwide and some 911 calls failed. Lots of people suddenly couldn't pay with a card or reach anyone online.
Source: news coverage of the July 8, 2022 outageSix real-world curveballs and the first moves for each. One kit covers all of them.
Tell us who's in your household and how many days you want to cover. The list does the math, and your checkmarks are saved on this device only.
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Water, medication and food-safety numbers follow Health Canada and Get Prepared. Item counts are suggested amounts; adjust for what your family actually eats and uses.
Health Canada says 2 L a day to drink, plus 2 more litres for cooking and cleaning. Get Prepared's kit video lands on the same 4 L, and the US Ready.gov rule (1 gallon, about 3.8 L) agrees. Add extra for pets.
Ontario tip: when an outage starts, fill the bathtub for flushing toilets.
Tap water unsafe? Boil it. If you can't, Health Canada says add 2 drops of unscented 5.25% household bleach per litre, stir and wait 30 minutes.
Buy what you already like, and rotate it into normal meals so nothing expires.
How long food stays safe with the doors kept closed, per Health Canada:
Toss anything at room temperature for 2+ hours. When in doubt, throw it out. Never store food outside, even in winter.
You can't see or smell it. Never use a BBQ, camp stove, propane heater or fuel generator indoors, including the garage, even with the door open. Don't idle the car in the garage. A gas stove is for cooking, not heating. If the CO alarm goes off: everyone out, call 911 from outside, and don't go back in until a pro says it's safe.
A cyber attack, a ransomware hit on a big company or a carrier glitch can take out internet, cell service and card payments all at once.
Officials may ask everyone to stay indoors if something like a chemical release happens nearby. It sounds dramatic, but it's a short, simple drill:
Canada's emergency alerts are broadcast to compatible LTE phones in the affected area, plus TV and radio. There's no sign-up, and you can't opt out of threat-to-life alerts. When that loud tone goes off, read it and follow it.
Kids handle this best when grown-ups stay calm and treat it like an adventure. Give them jobs: flashlight captain, snack keeper, radio DJ.
The free kit gets every household ready. Plus is for families who want it fitted to them exactly, kept fresh for them, and shared across the whole household.
Allergies, celiac, halal, kosher, vegetarian, picky eaters. Swaps every food on your list and builds a day-by-day no-cook menu.
Formula and diaper math, mobility and medication planning, and a battery calculator for CPAPs and other powered devices.
Log what you bought; we email you before water, food, batteries or meds expire, plus a twice-a-year kit check.
When a weather warning hits your area, get a short "next 24 hours" checklist so you top up before the stores get busy.
One shared kit for both parents' phones, plus extra kits for the car, the cottage or Grandma's place, and who's buying what.
A personalized fridge poster with your family's name, a wallet card, and a "Junior Ready Ranger" activity booklet for the kids.
Fill it in, print it, and tape it inside a cupboard door. Phones die; paper doesn't.
The Red Cross says check and update your kit twice a year; Get Prepared says replace food, water, batteries and medications at least once a year. Eat the old snacks, buy new ones.
Every safety number on this page comes from official guidance, cross-checked across more than one source. Where sources differ (water is the classic one), we use the amount most of them land on.