Add to your home screenWorks offline — even in an emergency.
Tāmaki Makaurau & Aotearoa NZ
Prepared is peaceful.
A few hours of preparation now means calm confidence when heavy rain, floods, or landslides arrive. You've got this.
Start Here
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Build Your Go-Bag
Checklist inside
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Family Emergency Plan
Takes 15 minutes
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Know Your Hazards
Floods & landslides
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First Aid Kit
What to include
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For official Civil Defence updates visit civildefence.govt.nz. In an emergency always call 111.
Why Prepare Now?
New Zealand has always had powerful weather — but flooding and landslides have become more frequent and more intense. Events like Cyclone Gabrielle (2023) and Auckland's January floods reminded us that these aren't distant risks.
The good news: communities that prepare together recover faster. Knowing your plan before the rain arrives means you spend the emergency calm and focused, not searching for batteries in the dark.
This app holds everything you need — and works fully offline, so it's always there when you need it.
NZ Civil Defence recommends every household be able to look after itself for at least three days without outside help. This is because emergency services are stretched in major events and may not reach everyone immediately.
Three days of water, food, medication and a plan is a realistic and achievable goal. Use the Kit tab to build yours step by step — there's no rush, and every item you add makes a difference.
Emergency Supplies
Your Go-Bag & Home Kit
A grab-bag you can take in 90 seconds, plus supplies to shelter at home for three days.
Go-Bag Essentials
Packed0%
Documents & ID
Copies of important documents
Passport, insurance, medications list — in a waterproof bag
Emergency cash (small notes)
ATMs and EFTPOS may be unavailable
Household emergency contact card
Water & Food
Water — 3 litres per person
Sealed bottles in the bag; refresh every 6 months
High-energy snacks (muesli bars, nuts, dried fruit)
Enough for 72 hours per person
Manual can opener
Reusable water bottle per person
Light & Power
Torch + spare batteries
Test monthly; LED torches last longer
Portable phone charger (power bank) — charged
Battery or hand-crank radio
Civil Defence uses RNZ National for emergency broadcasts
Candles and waterproof matches / lighter
Warmth & Shelter
Emergency Mylar blanket (x2)
Compact, light, retains body heat effectively
Waterproof jacket or poncho per person
Warm layer (fleece or wool) per person
NZ nights get cold even in summer after rain
Sturdy shoes per person (kept with bag)
Sanitation & Safety
Hand sanitiser & toilet paper
Dust/face masks (N95 or P2 rated)
For post-flood air quality and landslide dust
Sturdy rubbish bags (heavy-duty, x5)
Whistle (signal for help if trapped)
Medications & Pets
Prescription medications (3–7 day supply)
Rotate regularly; speak to your GP or pharmacist
Glasses, hearing aids or medical devices + spares
Pet food, water, leash, carrier (if applicable)
Children's needs: nappies, formula, comfort item
✅ Go-bag complete — well done!
3-Day Home Supplies
Store at least 3 litres per person per day — ideally 9+ litres each for three days. Don't forget pets. Keep water in sealed, food-grade containers away from sunlight.
After a flood, tap water may not be safe. Listen for Civil Defence "boil water" notices on RNZ National (101 FM in Auckland). If in doubt, boil for at least one minute before drinking.
Sealed commercial water bottles keep for 1–2 years. If you're filling your own containers, refresh them every 6 months. Mark the fill date with a marker.
Choose shelf-stable foods your household already eats. Rotate stock regularly so nothing expires. Aim for items that don't need cooking — you may not have power or gas.
Good choices: canned fish, beans and vegetables; peanut butter; crackers and rice cakes; muesli bars and nuts; long-life milk; instant porridge sachets; dried fruit; baby food and formula if needed.
A single 72-hour "emergency food box" for two adults takes up about one grocery bag of space. Store it somewhere you'll remember — under the stairs, top of a wardrobe.
Know Before It Happens
Floods & Landslides
Understanding your risk gives you a head start. Most flood injuries are avoidable with early action.
Floods
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Watch / Advisory
Heavy rain forecast. Monitor weather.govt.nz and your local council alerts. Check your go-bag. Move valuables off the floor. Know where your household will go.
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Flood Warning Issued
Flooding is likely in your area. Move to higher ground in your home. Avoid low-lying roads. Charge devices. Be ready to evacuate within minutes.
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Evacuate Now
Leave immediately if told to. Don't wait for water to enter your home. Take your go-bag. Drive only if roads are safe — 15 cm of moving water can knock a person down; 60 cm can sweep away a car.
Never drive through floodwater. You cannot judge depth from inside a vehicle. Roads can be washed away beneath the surface. Just 30 cm of fast-moving water can carry a small car.
If your car stalls in rising water, leave it immediately. Abandon the vehicle and move to higher ground on foot. The car is replaceable — you are not.
If you are trapped in a sinking vehicle, open the window as soon as possible. Doors may not open until the pressure equalises. Stay calm, take a breath, and exit once water stops rising.
1
Wait for the all-clear
Return only when Civil Defence and your local council say it's safe. Floodwater may still be contaminated or structurally unsafe.
2
Check structure before entering
Look for sagging roofs, cracks in walls, subsidence under the foundations. If in doubt, stay out and contact a builder or council.
3
Turn off power at the mains
Before entering, turn off the main power switch if you can do so safely. Do not touch electrical equipment that may have been wet.
4
Wear protection
Rubber boots, gloves, and an N95 mask. Floodwater contains sewage, chemicals and bacteria. Wash hands thoroughly and often.
5
Boil water notice
Follow your local council's advice on tap water safety. When in doubt, boil for at least 1 minute before drinking, cooking or brushing teeth.
6
Document damage before cleaning
Take photos and video before moving anything — your insurer will need this. Keep records of all costs and damaged items.
Landslides
Landslides often give warning signs before they happen. If you notice any of these, move to safety immediately:
🔹 Cracks appearing in the ground, road, or foundation
🔹 Doors or windows suddenly sticking or jamming
🔹 Tilting fences, retaining walls, or trees
🔹 New springs or seeps where water wasn't before
🔹 Unusual rumbling or crackling sounds from slopes
🔹 Ground bulging at the base of a slope
You don't need certainty to act. If something feels wrong on a hill after heavy rain, leave first, check later.
1
Move away quickly
Move perpendicular to the slide path — not uphill in its direction. Get as far to the side as possible. Do not run downhill.
2
If you can't escape — curl up
Protect your head with your arms. Curl into a ball. Move with the debris rather than fighting it if swept up.
3
After it stops — call 111
Report the landslide even if no one is hurt. Secondary slides are common. Stay away from the debris area.
4
Check on neighbours
Elderly neighbours and those with disabilities may need help evacuating. Community care saves lives.
NZ councils publish flood and hazard maps. Search for "[your city] flood hazard map" or visit your regional council's website to find out if your home or evacuation route is in a risk zone.
Auckland: aklcity.govt.nz/geomaps
Wellington: gw.govt.nz/hazards
Christchurch: ccc.govt.nz/hazards
National LiMaP maps: lris.scinfo.org.nz
Knowing your zone before an event means you can choose your evacuation route calmly now, rather than during rainfall.
Medical Preparedness
First Aid Kit
A well-stocked kit and basic knowledge gives your household real resilience when medical services are stretched.
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Consider taking a St John First Aid course — it's one of the highest-value things you can do for your household. Visit stjohn.org.nz/first-aid
Sunscreen SPF 50+ (NZ sun is intense even in cloud)
Printed first aid guide (St John or NZ Red Cross)
Digital guides need power — a printed copy is a backup
Household medications and allergy list
Laminated card for every member of household
GP and Healthline contact card (0800 611 116)
Your Household
Emergency Plan
A plan agreed in advance means everyone stays calm and knows what to do without needing to think.
The Five Plan Questions
Choose two meeting places:
📍 Local: Somewhere near your home — a neighbour's house, a school gate, a specific intersection — in case you can't return home but everyone is nearby.
📍 Out-of-area: A friend or family member's home further away, in case your whole neighbourhood must evacuate. Make sure everyone knows this address by heart.
Local meeting point
Out-of-area contact / address
Identify two different routes out of your home and neighbourhood. Roads can flood, bridges close, or landslides block roads — having an alternative means no one is stuck.
Walk or drive your routes in daylight now, so you know them in the dark or stress. Identify high ground along the way.
Primary evacuation route
Backup evacuation route
Cell networks often fail or become overloaded in emergencies. Plan for this:
🔹 Text uses less bandwidth than calls — try texting first.
🔹 Nominate an out-of-area contact everyone checks in with — it's often easier to reach someone outside the emergency zone.
🔹 Know which local radio station broadcasts Civil Defence updates. In most of NZ it's RNZ National.
🔹 Tell children which trusted adult they go to if they can't reach a parent.
Out-of-area contact person + phone number
Think about people on your street or in your building who may need help evacuating — elderly neighbours, people with disabilities, households with very young children, or people who live alone.
Have a gentle conversation with them now, when it's not an emergency. Ask if they'd like to be part of your informal network. Exchanging phone numbers takes two minutes and can make a real difference.
If someone in your household has specific medical or mobility needs, note what equipment or assistance they'd require during evacuation.
Neighbours / people who may need assistance
Emergency shelters often cannot take pets. Plan ahead so you're not forced to choose under pressure:
🔹 Identify a pet-friendly place to stay — a friend, family member, or pet-friendly motel outside the risk zone.
🔹 Keep a pet grab-bag ready: food, water, medications, vet records, leash, carrier, and a recent photo in case you become separated.
🔹 Microchip and register your pet. In the chaos after Gabrielle, reuniting pets with owners was greatly helped by microchips.
🔹 If you must leave a pet behind, leave them inside with food, water, and a note on the door for animal rescue teams.
Save Your Plan
Once you've filled in your plan above, tap Save to Device to store it in your browser's local memory on this device. Share this app link with your household so everyone has access.
Also consider printing a copy — it only takes a moment and works when batteries are dead.