How to Prepare for a Winter Storm: Home, Car, Power Outage and Generator Safety Checklists

The best time to prepare for a winter storm is before the first watch is issued, when stores are quiet and roads are clear. This part of our Winter Weather Guide 2026–27 turns official guidance from ready.gov, the National Weather Service, the CDC and the American Red Cross into practical checklists: how to prepare for a winter storm at home, a winter car emergency kit, a power outage plan, generator and carbon monoxide safety, how to keep pipes from freezing, and how to protect pets. Every item below comes from those sources; nothing here requires buying expensive gear.

Why winter storms are dangerous

Ready.gov lists the main ways winter storms hurt people: car accidents, hypothermia, frostbite, carbon monoxide poisoning and heart attacks from overexertion. Storms can bring extreme cold, freezing rain, snow, ice and high winds, and they can knock out heat, power and communications for days. Most of these risks are preventable with a little planning. The checklists below follow the order in which you will need them: before the storm, during it, and if the power goes out.

Before the storm: your home checklist

Ready.gov's core advice is to prepare your home to keep out the cold with insulation, caulking and weather stripping; learn how to keep pipes from freezing; and gather supplies in case you need to stay home for several days without power, keeping in mind each person's specific needs, including medication, and the needs of your pets. The NWS winter preparedness page adds these supplies for home (and for work):

Item	Why it matters
Flashlight and extra batteries	Safer than candles during outages
Battery-powered NOAA Weather Radio and portable radio	Alerts keep coming when power and cell service fail
Food that needs no cooking or refrigeration, and water	Dried fruit, nuts, granola bars and similar
Extra prescription medicine	Pharmacies and roads may be closed for days
Baby items (diapers, formula)	Hard to find during and after a storm
First-aid supplies	For minor injuries when help is slow
Heating fuel, refilled before you run low	Fuel deliveries may not reach you for days after a storm
Safe emergency heat source	Fireplace, wood stove or properly ventilated space heater
Fire extinguisher and working smoke alarms	Test smoke alarms monthly
Carbon monoxide detectors with battery backup	On every level of the home, in central locations
Extra pet food and a warm shelter for pets	Pets need water and warmth too
Phone chargers and power banks	Charge everything when a watch is issued

If heating costs or weatherization are out of reach, ready.gov points households to the federal Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) for help with heating bills and energy-related repairs.

When a winter storm watch is issued

• Charge phones, laptops and power banks.
• Fill the car's gas tank; the NWS suggests keeping at least half a tank during Extreme Cold Watches.
• Refill prescriptions and buy a few days of food that needs no cooking.
• Move pets and livestock to shelter and stock extra water and feed.
• Check your alert sources: weather.gov, NOAA Weather Radio and phone alerts.

Keep pipes from freezing (and what to do if they freeze)

Burst pipes are one of the most expensive winter surprises. The American Red Cross recommends:

• Let cold water drip from faucets served by exposed pipes during very cold weather. Running water, even at a trickle, helps prevent freezing.
• Keep the thermostat at the same temperature day and night. You may pay a little more for heat, but you can prevent a much more costly repair.
• If you go away, leave the heat on, set no lower than 55°F.

If a pipe freezes, the Red Cross advises keeping the faucet open and applying heat to the frozen section with an electric heating pad, a hair dryer, a portable space heater kept away from flammable materials, or towels soaked in hot water, until full water pressure returns. Never use a blowtorch, kerosene or propane heater, charcoal stove or any other open flame. Running water through the pipe as it thaws helps melt the remaining ice. Remember that wind chill does not make pipes colder than the air temperature, as explained in our wind chill guide; it only cools them faster.

Your car winter survival kit

Ready.gov's minimum car kit is short: jumper cables, sand, a flashlight, warm clothes, blankets, bottled water and non-perishable snacks, plus a full tank of gas. The NWS recommends a more complete Winter Storm Survival Kit:

Car winter survival kit item	Car winter survival kit item
Mobile phone, charger, batteries	Blankets or sleeping bags
Flashlight with extra batteries	First-aid kit
Knife	High-calorie, non-perishable food
Extra clothing to keep dry	Large empty can for an emergency toilet, tissues, toilet paper, paper towels
Small can and waterproof matches to melt snow	Sack of sand or cat litter for traction
Shovel	Windshield scraper and brush
Tool kit	Tow rope
Battery booster (jumper) cables	Water container
Candle and matches	Compass and paper road maps

The NWS also advises carrying a compass and paper road maps rather than depending only on mobile devices with limited battery life.

If you get stranded in your car

The NWS rules are simple and have saved many lives:

1. Stay in the vehicle. If you leave, you can become disoriented quickly in wind-driven snow and cold.
2. Run the motor about 10 minutes each hour for heat, and open a window a little for fresh air while it runs.
3. Clear snow from the exhaust pipe to avoid carbon monoxide poisoning.
4. Be visible: turn on the dome light at night when the engine is running, tie a bright cloth (preferably red) to the antenna or door, and raise the hood after the snow stops to signal you need help.

Better still, do not drive into a blizzard warning, and if you are caught in freezing rain, follow the driving rules in our freezing rain vs. sleet part.

Power outage plan for winter

Ice storms and wind-driven snow are a common cause of long outages. Ready.gov's power outage guidance:

• Keep the refrigerator and freezer closed. A refrigerator keeps food cold for about four hours; a full freezer holds its temperature for about 48 hours. Use coolers with ice if needed and check with a thermometer.
• Throw out food that has been at 40°F or higher for two hours or more, or that has an unusual odor, color or texture. "When in doubt, throw it out."
• Disconnect appliances and electronics so surges do not damage them when power returns.
• Plan for medicines and medical devices that need refrigeration or power. If power is out for more than a day, discard refrigerated medicine unless its label says otherwise, and ask your doctor or pharmacist for a new supply.
• Ask local officials about warming centers near you.
• Never use a gas stove or oven to heat your home. It raises the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning and fire.

If your heat goes out

The NWS suggests closing off rooms you do not need, stuffing towels or rags in cracks under doors, and closing blinds or curtains to hold in heat. Eat and drink regularly, since food gives your body energy to produce heat, and drink plenty of water and other non-caffeinated, non-alcoholic drinks, because cold air is very dry. Wear layers of loose-fitting, lightweight, warm clothing and remove layers before you start to sweat.

Generator and carbon monoxide safety

Generators save lives in long outages, and they also kill people every winter when used wrongly. The CDC and ready.gov agree on the essentials:

• Outdoors only, at least 20 feet away from windows, doors, vents and attached garages. Never inside a home, basement or garage, even with the door open.
• Install CO detectors with battery backup on every level of your home. The CDC suggests checking detector batteries when you change your clocks each spring and fall, and replacing the detector according to the manufacturer's instructions or every 5 years.
• Keep the generator dry and protected from rain; touching a wet generator or connected devices can cause electric shock.
• Use heavy-duty extension cords to connect appliances, and follow the manufacturer's instructions.
• Let it cool before refueling; fuel spilled on hot engine parts can ignite.
• Camp stoves and charcoal grills belong outdoors too, never inside for heat or cooking.

Cars are a CO risk as well. The CDC warns never to run a car or truck inside a garage attached to a house, even with the garage door open, and to have the exhaust system checked every year. After a heavy snow, clear the tailpipe before starting the engine.

During the storm: staying safe at home and outside

• Stay off the roads if at all possible (ready.gov).
• Limit time outside. Wear layers, a hat, mittens, a scarf or face mask and water-resistant boots, as the CDC recommends, and watch for frostbite and hypothermia.
• Shovel with care. Ready.gov warns that overexertion while shoveling or walking in deep snow increases the risk of heart attack. Take breaks; wet snow and sleet are especially heavy.
• Keep vents clear. The NWS advises making sure a gas furnace vent is not blocked by a snowdrift as soon as it is safe to go out.
• Use space heaters safely, with fire safeguards and proper ventilation, and keep them away from anything that can burn.

Know the signs. Ready.gov describes frostbite as numbness and white or grayish-yellow, firm or waxy skin; hypothermia as shivering, exhaustion, confusion, fumbling hands, memory loss, slurred speech or drowsiness, with a body temperature below 95°F being an emergency. Our wind chill chart shows how fast frostbite can occur.

Pets and livestock in winter storms

The NWS asks owners to move animals to sheltered areas or bring pets inside, and to make sure pets have plenty of food, water and a warm shelter. For livestock, it notes that properly laid out shelter belts often protect cattle better than confining sheds, that extra feed should be hauled to nearby feeding areas ahead of the storm, and that water must be available, because most animals that die in winter storms die from dehydration. Animals feel wind chill just as people do, so Extreme Cold alerts apply to them too.

Preparing in an apartment

Apartment residents searching "how to prepare for a winter storm in an apartment" face the same risks with less control over heat and plumbing. Keep the same home kit in a smaller box, ask your building manager how heat outages and burst pipes are handled, let faucets on exterior walls drip during deep cold, as the Red Cross recommends, and never use a generator, grill or camp stove on a balcony or inside. If heat fails, move everyone into one room and ask local officials about warming centers.

After the storm

• Check on neighbors, especially older adults and people living alone.
• Throw out spoiled food and refrigerated medicine as described above.
• Keep the generator outside and the CO detectors on until power is fully restored.
• Stay off icy roads until they are treated; refreezing at night creates black ice.
• Restock your kits before the next storm, which in an active El Niño winter may not be far behind.

For school closures, see how snow days are decided, or return to the Winter Weather Guide hub.

Cover image: A North Dakota resident shovels snow off his sidewalk. FEMA photo by Andrea Booher via Wikimedia Commons, public domain (U.S. government work).