Surv · Guides
What to keep in an offline emergency kit, starting with your phone
A practical checklist for power, information, contacts and basic supplies when networks or electricity are unreliable.
In this guide5
Start with the failure you are planning for
A storm, outage, evacuation or travel disruption does not remove the same resources. Write down the likely gap first: no signal, no power, no transport, no safe water or no access to a shop.
Make information available offline
Keep essential addresses, phone numbers, instructions, maps and medical information available without a live connection. Check that the files actually open in airplane mode before you depend on them.
Treat power as a separate item
A phone is only useful while it has charge. A cable, power bank and a way to recharge it belong in the same plan, with a note about how often the bank itself needs checking.
Add supplies for the people, not just the device
Water, food, medications, light, warmth, first aid and a way to receive official alerts may matter more than another app. Requirements vary by household, climate, mobility and local guidance.
Review after every real disruption
Replace expired items, update contacts and remove notes that no longer apply. Preparedness is a small maintenance habit, not a one-time shopping list or a promise that every event can be predicted.
Questions
Does an offline app replace official alerts?
No. Keep a way to receive current official information when it is available. Offline notes are a fallback for gaps, not a substitute for local instructions.
How often should I check an emergency kit?
Choose a recurring review that fits your supplies and household. Check batteries, medicines, water, contacts and documents after any real event.
What should Surv store?
Store only information that helps your preparedness plan, and review it when circumstances change. Do not treat the app as a guarantee of safety.
Further reading
Guides
Prepare your phone to be useful when the network is not there
What survives a network outage, why text beats calls when everyone is dialling, how to keep documents readable offline, and how to make a phone last when there is nothing to charge it with.
An emergency kit inventory you will actually maintain
Why kits fail at maintenance rather than at assembly, how to build a list by walking through the box, what to record for each item, and how to run an annual review that takes under an hour.
A home emergency kit: the Ready.gov list, explained
What the United States government actually recommends storing, how much water and food, how to treat suspicious water, what to do when the power goes out, and how to keep the kit current.
What to put in a go-bag: an evacuation checklist
What an evacuation go-bag should hold, using the Red Cross and Ready.gov lists: water, food, medicines, documents, cash, and what each person adds.
How to purify water in an emergency: boil or disinfect
The EPA’s exact steps for boiling water and disinfecting it with unscented bleach, what these methods cannot remove, and how to store treated water.
Power outage checklist: before, during and after
What to prepare before a blackout, how long food stays safe, generator and carbon monoxide rules, and medical devices, from Ready.gov and the Red Cross.
How to use a compass: bearings, maps and declination
The parts of a baseplate compass, how to take and follow a bearing, orient a map, correct for magnetic declination, and avoid readings disturbed by metal.
First aid kit checklist: what the Red Cross recommends
The American Red Cross list for a family first aid kit, item by item, plus personal medicines, where to keep kits, checking expiry dates and getting trained.
How to prepare for an earthquake: Drop, Cover, Hold On
How to secure your home, what to do during the shaking with Drop, Cover, and Hold On, and what to check afterwards, from Ready.gov, ShakeOut and the Red Cross.
Wildfire evacuation checklist you can prepare in an hour
What Ready.gov asks you to have before a wildfire warning, how to split the list between go-bag, car and house, and why the plan must work with the network down.
Heat wave checklist: staying safe when the power fails
How to prepare a home for extreme heat, what to do when the air conditioning stops, and the warning signs of heat exhaustion and heatstroke to watch for.
Offline emergency preparedness apps, compared
Alert apps, offline reference guides, checklist tools and paper: which ones still work when the network does not, and what to check before you need them.