Cornell Cooperative Extension

Allegany County
Photograph from FEMA taken in Florida following Hurricane Andrew, August 24, 1992
Image by Bob Epstein, FEMA

Sign to FEMA provided supplies following Hurricane Andrew (1992)

Water is staged at Lakeland for air transport to Ocala in advance of Hurricane Ivan (Sept. 2004)
Image by Michael Rieger, FEMA

Emergency water supplies

Photograph from FEMA taken in Florida following Hurricane Andrew, August 24, 1992
Image by Bob Epstein, FEMA

Sign to FEMA provided supplies following Hurricane Andrew (1992)

Water is staged at Lakeland for air transport to Ocala in advance of Hurricane Ivan (Sept. 2004)
Image by Michael Rieger, FEMA

Emergency water supplies

Food & Water in Emergencies

Emergency Food Supplies

Make An Emergency Food Supply Kit - This section the FEMA Ready.gov website includes a list of suggested foods to include among your emergency food supplies, food safety steps to take following a disaster, alternative ways to cook food, and how to manage food when your power is out.  See: http://www.ready.gov/food

Food Safety 

"Keep Your Food Safe During Emergencies: Power Outages, Floods & Fires" on the USDA website  covers how tp manage your home refrigerator and freezer during and after a power outage, and what refrigerated or frozen foods will still be safe to eat; and what food and utensils can and cannot be saved after a flood or a fire.  This information also available as an illustrated 13-page PDF.

These CDC Guidelines cover how to be sure your food and water is safe after an emergency.

An Emergency Food Worker’s Guide to Food Safety from Cornell University's Dept. of Food Science, is a 31-page booklet that provides basic food safety instruction for Emergency Workers and Volunteers.

A Guide to Food Safety in Emergencies is a 24-page booklet for restaurant and institutional food operators, prepared by the Connecticut Dept. of Consumer Protection / Food & Standards Division.  It covers immediate steps that must be taken to ensure food safety in a variety of situations, including power outage, flood or sewerage back-up, fire, water service disruption or contamination, and other emergencies; what products can be salvaged or reconditioned; pest control following disasters, and other useful topics.  

FoodSafety.gov has information on how to keep food safe during and after an emergency, including charts on what foods you should throw away after a power outage, for Refrigerated Foods and Frozen Foods.

Water Safety

Safe Drinking Water - this section of the CDC website covers how to make your water safe to drink after a disaster by boiling, using disinfectants, and filters; finding emergency water sources inside and outside the home, some water sources that are unsafe; and useful links.

Dealing with a Boil Water Order - 2-page document from Cornell University Cooperative Extension on boiling and/or disinfecting water to make it safe to use.

Build a Kit – Water on the FEMA Ready.gov website includes tips for storing water in preparation for an emergency.

Managing Water, also on the FEMA Ready.gov website provides guidance on safe and unsafe sources of water and water treatment methods.

Please visit our pages in this section on Water & Septic Issues.

Last updated March 11, 2020

Emergency Preparedness

Should I Throw it Out?

FoodSafety.gov logo

Find charts on what to save and what to throw away following a power outage, at Foodsafety.gov: 

Refrigerated Foods Chart

Frozen Foods Chart

USDA Meat & Poultry Hotline

For additional information about food safety during an emergency, in English and Spanish, call:

USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline
1-888-MPHotline (1-888-674-6854)

New York EDEN Extension Disaster Education Network logo

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