A complete, printable checklist for Australian families — covering power outages, bushfires, floods, and supply disruptions with Australian-specific items and contacts.
🇦🇺 Quick Answer
A complete Australian household emergency kit covers five areas: water (3L per person per day, minimum 3 days), food (non-perishable, 3-day minimum), power and lighting, communications, and documents and cash. Total cost for a family of 4 starting from scratch: approximately AUD $150–250. Most households already have many items and need to fill specific gaps. Print this checklist and work through it section by section.
Why Australian Emergency Kits Are Different
Most emergency preparedness advice is written for American or European audiences and assumes cold-weather threats, earthquake risk, or hurricane seasons as primary hazards. Australian households face a different risk profile: extreme heat events, bushfires, flooding, and power outages from storm damage to regional infrastructure.
This checklist is written specifically for Australian households, with items and contacts relevant to Australian conditions. A few key Australian differences:
Heat is a primary risk. Australia's most dangerous weather events are heatwaves — not cold snaps. Emergency kit planning needs to include heat management, not just staying warm.
Carbon monoxide from generators kills people every summer. This is a significant and preventable cause of death during Australian blackouts that doesn't get enough attention.
Bush fire evacuation is a real scenario. If you live in a fire-risk area, your kit needs to be packable in under 3 minutes.
"Most emergency advice is written for Americans preparing for earthquakes and hurricanes. Australian families face heatwaves, bushfires, and infrastructure blackouts — different problems, different kit."
The Complete Checklist
Print this page and work through it section by section. Tick items as you acquire them. Revisit every 6 months to check expiry dates and rotate stock.
💧 Water
3 litres of water per person per day, minimum 3 days
Family of 4 = minimum 36 litres. Store in sealed food-grade containers.
Water storage containers — sealed, food-grade
Large Jerry cans or water bricks. Label with fill date.
Water purification tablets
Backup for if stored water runs out. Available at camping stores.
Portable water filter (e.g. LifeStraw or Sawyer)
For extended emergencies or if water source quality is unknown.
🍎 Food
3-day supply of non-perishable food per person
Rice, pasta, canned protein, canned vegetables. Things you actually eat.
Manual can opener — tested and working
Keep in the same place as your emergency kit. Electric opener is useless in a blackout.
Camp stove (gas) with full gas bottle
NEVER use indoors — carbon monoxide risk. Keep outside or in well-ventilated area.
Disposable plates, cups, cutlery
Reduces water needed for washing up during a crisis.
Baby formula / infant food (if applicable)
2-week supply. Formula is often the first thing sold out in supermarkets during disruptions.
Pet food (if applicable)
3-day supply. Often forgotten in emergency planning.
🔦 Power and Lighting
At least 2 torches — tested, batteries not flat
One per adult. Cheap torches with fresh batteries outperform expensive torches with flat ones.
At least 1 head torch
Hands-free lighting is significantly more useful than a handheld torch in most situations.
Spare batteries for all torches
Check expiry date. Store in a sealed bag with the torch.
Power bank (minimum 10,000 mAh) — kept charged
Charge monthly. Can charge most phones 3–5 times. Essential for phone communications during blackouts.
Car phone charger — verified working
$10–20
Candles and matches / lighter
Keep out of reach of children. Never leave unattended.
Solar garden lights — can bring indoors as lighting
Cheap and surprisingly effective. Keep charged outdoors during day, bring in at night.
Backup generator or DIY power system
For extended outages. DIY approach: approximately AUD $180–256 in parts. See Ultimate Energizer review.
📻 Communication and Information
Battery-powered or hand-crank AM/FM radio
ABC local radio is the official emergency broadcast in Australia. When phones and internet fail, this works.
Spare batteries for radio
$5–10Emergency contacts — PRINTED, not just on phone
Energy provider fault line, SES (132 500), GP, family, neighbours. If your phone dies, you need this.
Energy provider fault line number saved and printed
Ausgrid: 13 13 88 · Endeavour: 131 003 · Essential: 132 080 · Energex: 13 62 62 · SA Power: 13 13 66
Whistle — for attracting attention if needed
$2–5
🏥 First Aid and Medical
First aid kit — stocked, not expired
Check expiry on antiseptic, bandages, and medications annually.
Prescription medications — minimum 7-day supply on hand
Critical: arrange with GP to maintain adequate supply. Some medications require refrigeration — plan specifically for this.
Refrigerated medications: insulated cooler + ice packs
Insulin and some other medications require refrigeration. A quality insulated cooler extends viability during blackouts.
Battery backup plan for powered medical equipment
CPAP, nebuliser, electric wheelchair. Contact your equipment provider about backup power options.
Dust masks (P2 rated) — for bushfire smoke
Standard surgical masks are inadequate for smoke particles. P2/N95 rated masks are required.
Sunscreen, insect repellent
Particularly important if spending extended time outdoors during emergency.
🌡️ Heat Management (Australian Priority)
Battery-powered fan
Essential for summer blackouts in most of Australia. Heat stroke risk rises quickly without ventilation.
Know your nearest council cooling centre
Most councils open air-conditioned centres during extreme heat events. Find yours now, not during a crisis.
Spray bottles filled with water — for cooling
Misting skin with water and using a fan significantly reduces heat stress.
Identify coolest room in your home
Often a bathroom or internal room. In summer blackouts, concentrating in one cool space reduces heat load.
Extra blankets and warm clothing (for winter)
$20–50
💳 Documents and Money
Cash — AUD $100–200 in small notes
ATMs and EFTPOS fail during extended blackouts. Small notes because change may not be available.
Copies of important documents — stored offline
Passports, birth certificates, insurance policies, property documents, Medicare cards. Waterproof bag or folder.
Home insurance policy number and contact
FreeUSB drive with digital copies of key documents
Supplement to physical copies. Keep with the physical documents.
🔥 Bushfire-Specific (if in fire risk area)
Bushfire survival plan — documented
NSW RFS recommends having a clear plan: will you stay and defend, or leave early? Decide before fire season.
Go-bag prepared — can be loaded in 3 minutes
Documents, medications, phone charger, clothes, water, valuables. Pre-packed in a bag near the door.
Registered on NSW RFS email/SMS alerts
alerts.rfs.nsw.gov.au — receive fire alerts for your area automatically.
Hazardreduction burn schedule known for your area
Free
⚠️ Carbon monoxide warning — this causes deaths every summer
Never use a petrol generator, gas BBQ, camp stove, or any combustion device indoors, in an enclosed garage, or in a carport. Carbon monoxide is odourless and colourless — you won't know it's there until it's too late. Always at least 5 metres from any open window or door.
Australian Emergency Numbers
The official Australian Government Emergency Management portal and your state's State Emergency Service (SES) are the primary resources for preparedness guidance and real-time emergency alerts.
| Service | Number | When to call |
|---|
| Emergency (police/fire/ambulance) | 000 | Immediate danger to life or property |
| SES (flood, storm, tree on roof) | 132 500 | Non-life-threatening storm/flood damage |
| NSW RFS (bushfire) | 1800 679 737 | Bushfire information line (non-emergency) |
| Ausgrid (power outage NSW) | 13 13 88 | Report or check power outages |
| Endeavour Energy (NSW) | 131 003 | Report or check power outages |
| Essential Energy (regional NSW) | 132 080 | Report or check power outages |
| Energex (QLD) | 13 62 62 | Report or check power outages |
| SA Power Networks | 13 13 66 | Report or check power outages |
| Western Power (WA) | 13 10 87 | Report or check power outages |
| Poison Information | 13 11 26 | Accidental poisoning, 24hrs |
Maintenance Schedule
An emergency kit only works if it's maintained. Set a calendar reminder for every 6 months to:
Check and replace expired food items. Test all torches and replace flat batteries. Recharge power banks. Check water storage containers for leaks or contamination. Review and update the printed emergency contact list. Check first aid kit for expired items. Rotate cash if it's been sitting a long time.
💡 Download the detailed checklist
For a more detailed version of this checklist including the During and After sections, download the PreparedFamilyGuide.com blackout preparation checklist PDF — 72 items covering everything before, during, and after a power outage. Free with your email address.
Want to go further? Backup power for extended outages.
For regional NSW families in high-outage areas, a backup electricity system is the most impactful single preparedness investment. The Ultimate Energizer guide runs approximately AUD $256 in parts — here's my honest analysis of it.
Read the Ultimate Energizer review →
Frequently Asked Questions
What should an Australian household emergency kit contain?
At minimum: 3 litres of water per person per day for 3 days, non-perishable food for 3 days, manual can opener, torches with spare batteries, first aid kit, battery radio, copies of important documents, AUD $100–200 in cash, and a printed list of emergency contacts including your energy provider's fault line.
How much does a complete Australian household emergency kit cost?
For a family of four starting largely from scratch, approximately AUD $150–250. Most households already have some items — first aid kits, torches, camp stoves — and need to fill specific gaps rather than buy everything from scratch.
What makes Australian emergency kits different from generic advice?
Australian households primarily face heat events, bushfires, and power outages from storm damage — not earthquakes, hurricanes, or extended cold snaps. Australian-specific considerations include heat management items, P2 dust masks for bushfire smoke, ABC radio for emergency broadcasts, and Australian energy provider fault line numbers.
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