A hurricane preparedness checklist works in five phases: what you set up at the start of hurricane season, what you do in the 72 hours before landfall, the final 24 hours, getting through the storm itself, and the days after it passes. Each phase has a short, specific list rather than one long one, because the tasks that matter 72 hours out (fuel, cash, water) are different from the tasks that matter 24 hours out (shutters up, everything charged) and different again from what matters once the power is out. The sections below give a real list for each phase, plus the power section most checklists skim past: generator carbon monoxide safety, and how many days a properly sized battery actually covers for a fridge, phones and a CPAP machine.
Hurricane preparedness checklist: start of season
Hurricane season in the Atlantic runs June 1 through November 30. Before it starts, or as early into it as possible, work through the setup tasks that are hard to do quickly once a storm is named:
- Know your evacuation zone. Coastal counties assign storm surge evacuation zones (commonly A through D or E, with A at the highest surge risk) through the National Hurricane Center’s storm surge mapping; look yours up on your county or state emergency management site, not a guess based on how far you are from the beach.
- Test and service any generator now. Run it under load, change the oil if it is due, and confirm you have a place to store it outdoors that is at least 20 feet from windows, doors and vents, per CPSC and CDC guidance. See our generator maintenance guide for a full service schedule.
- Inspect shutters, panels or plywood and confirm they fit the openings you have; buy fasteners now, not the week a storm forms.
- Review your homeowners or renters policy for windstorm and flood coverage; flood damage is excluded from most standard policies and needs a separate National Flood Insurance Program or private flood policy that typically has a 30-day waiting period before it takes effect.
- Build or restock a kit: nonperishable food and water for at least 3 days (2 weeks is the safer target for a hurricane, since roads and stores can stay disrupted well past a typical outage), a battery or hand-crank radio, a first aid kit, a manual can opener, and a list of medications and dosages.
72 hours before landfall
Once a storm is forecast to affect your area, the 72-hour window is when supplies are still on shelves and gas stations still have fuel. Priorities:
- Fill your vehicle’s gas tank and any approved fuel containers for a generator; gas station lines and outages are common in the final 24 hours and after.
- Withdraw a few days of cash. Card readers and ATMs commonly go down with the power grid.
- Store water: one gallon per person per day is the Ready.gov and CDC guideline, covering drinking and basic hygiene. For a 3-day supply that is 3 gallons per person; for the safer 14-day target it is 14 gallons per person.
- Refill prescriptions and confirm you have at least a week’s supply of any medication, plus copies of prescriptions.
- Gather and waterproof important documents: ID, insurance policies, property deed, medical records and a home inventory with photos, in a sealed bag or portable safe.
- Charge every phone, power bank and rechargeable device to 100 percent, and charge any portable power station fully.
| Household size | 3-day water supply | 14-day water supply |
|---|---|---|
| 1 person | 3 gallons | 14 gallons |
| 2 people | 6 gallons | 28 gallons |
| 4 people | 12 gallons | 56 gallons |
| 6 people | 18 gallons | 84 gallons |
24 hours before landfall
Tropical-storm-force winds, 39 mph and up, can arrive well ahead of the storm’s center and make shutter installation dangerous, so this is the deadline for outdoor work:
- Put up shutters, plywood or impact panels; bring in or tie down anything in the yard that can become a projectile: furniture, planters, trash cans, grills.
- Freeze water in sealed containers or bags to fill empty freezer space; frozen jugs keep a freezer cold longer during an outage and double as extra drinking water once they thaw.
- Set refrigerator and freezer to their coldest settings so they hold temperature longer once power fails; a full freezer keeps food safe for about 48 hours without power, a half-full one about 24 hours, and an unopened refrigerator door only about 4 hours.
- Decide evacuate or shelter in place based on your zone and any official evacuation order for it; do not wait for the order if you are in a mobile home, flood-prone area or the highest-risk zone.
- Confirm your generator is positioned outdoors, fueled, and ready, but do not run it yet.
During the storm
Stay away from windows and glass doors, shelter in an interior room on the lowest safe floor, and do not go outside during the calm of the eye; the wind returns from the opposite direction with little warning. If you lose power, leave the refrigerator and freezer closed. Never run a generator, camp stove or charcoal grill indoors, in a garage, carport, porch or near a window, even with doors open; carbon monoxide from fuel-burning equipment is colorless and odorless and can kill within minutes, and it is the single most common cause of death after a hurricane besides drowning. Keep it at least 20 feet from the house with the exhaust pointed away from any window, door or vent, per CPSC and CDC guidance, and install battery-backed carbon monoxide alarms on every level ahead of time.
After the storm
Do not touch downed power lines or standing water near them, and assume every downed line is live. Photograph damage before cleaning up, for the insurance claim. Check on neighbors, particularly anyone on medical equipment. Boil water advisories are common where treatment plants lost power; follow your local utility’s notice rather than assuming tap water is safe. If you ran a generator, keep following the same 20-foot, outdoors-only rule for as long as it runs, including overnight.
The power section: generators, batteries and solar
A portable power station avoids the carbon monoxide risk entirely since it has no combustion and can run inside, which is why many households now pair a smaller battery for essentials with a generator or nothing at all for a short outage. Sizing one starts with the load. Using the standard formula, runtime in hours equals the battery’s capacity in watt-hours times 0.85 for inverter loss, divided by the load in watts. A compact EcoFlow RIVER 2 (240) Portable Power Station holds 240 Wh for $199: at 0.85 efficiency that is about 204Wh usable, enough for roughly 13 full phone charges at 15Wh each, or to keep a phone and a Wi-Fi router topped up through a multi-day outage. A CPAP machine without a heated humidifier draws roughly 30 to 40W on average (see our portable power station for CPAP guide for model-specific figures); the mid-size BLUETTI AC70 Portable Power Station, with 768 Wh and priced at $359, works out to roughly 652Wh usable at 40W, or about 16 hours, covering two full nights before it needs a recharge. A refrigerator is the biggest of the three loads because it runs around the clock; a modern Energy Star-rated fridge averages roughly 1 to 1.5 kWh a day, which works out to about 40 to 60W averaged continuously, while an older or larger unit can average 80 to 100W or more. On a larger unit like BLUETTI AC200L Portable Power Station (2,048 Wh, $899), 0.85 efficiency gives about 1,741Wh usable, which covers an efficient fridge for roughly a day to a day and a quarter, or an older, less efficient one for closer to 17 to 20 hours. See how long a power station runs a refrigerator for sizing against your specific model’s nameplate rating. None of these figures need a generator’s fuel supply chain, which is the trade a lot of hurricane-prone households are now making: a battery that runs out but needs no gasoline, versus a generator that keeps going as long as fuel keeps arriving. Our power station vs. generator comparison and home battery backup lineup cover the larger, whole-home end of that choice.
Once the storm passes and skies clear, a power station with a solar input can recharge in the days after landfall even if grid power is still out, which matters most in areas where restoration can take a week or more. Charging time depends on panel wattage and sun hours; a 200W panel in good midday sun delivers roughly 150 to 170W after real-world losses, so recharging a 768Wh unit from empty takes roughly 4 to 5 hours of strong sun, spread across a day if clouds or storm debris shade the panels. Keep panels flat and clear of flying debris risk until winds have fully died down, and never connect a power station to household wiring; anything beyond its own AC outlets is a job for a licensed electrician using a transfer switch.
Frequently asked questions
How much water do I need for a hurricane?
One gallon per person per day, per Ready.gov and CDC guidance, for at least 3 days and ideally 2 weeks given how long roads and utilities can stay disrupted after a major hurricane. A household of four should store at least 12 gallons, and 56 gallons for the 2-week target.
Is it safe to run a generator in a garage with the door open?
No. CPSC and CDC guidance is explicit that a generator should never run in a garage, carport or any enclosed or partially enclosed space, even with doors and windows open, because carbon monoxide can still build up to lethal levels. Keep it outdoors, at least 20 feet from the house, with exhaust pointed away from windows, doors and vents.
How do I find my hurricane evacuation zone?
Evacuation zones are assigned by county or state emergency management agencies based on National Hurricane Center storm surge mapping, not by how close you live to the coast. Search your county’s official emergency management site or the state’s “know your zone” tool and enter your address before a storm is bearing down, since lookup sites can be slow or unavailable once one is active.
How long does food stay safe in a fridge or freezer without power?
A full freezer holds a safe temperature for about 48 hours unopened, a half-full freezer for about 24 hours, and a closed refrigerator for about 4 hours. Keeping the doors shut is what makes those numbers hold; every opening lets cold air out.
Should I evacuate or shelter in place?
Follow the official evacuation order for your specific zone rather than deciding on your own; officials issue zone-by-zone orders based on expected storm surge, not general storm strength. Mobile homes, homes in the highest-risk surge zones, and flood-prone areas should evacuate whenever an order includes their zone, even for a storm that seems modest.