Personal and Family Preparedness

The Maricopa County Department of Emergency Management does a lot of planning and practicing year round to ensure the County is ready to respond to a variety of emergency situations, but there is absolutely nothing that can take the place of personal readiness. We encourage individuals and families to be prepared in the event of a disaster. That means having a go bag, an emergency kit and a family emergency plan.

  1. Be Informed
  2. Have a Plan
  3. Be Ready to Stay
  4. Be Ready to Go

Do you know what hazards affect Maricopa County the most? Where would you go for information? The more you know about hazards in your community, the better you can prepare for any and all possibilities.

  • Have a Plan!  
    • Create your plan.
    • Practice your plan.
    • Stay up to date on local news and emergency information.
  • Find out about emergency plans where you work and at school.
    • If there is not a plan in place, offer to help create one.
  • Know your risk.
  • Sign up to receive emergency notifications via your cell phone.

  • In your emergency supply kit, have:
    • crank-, solar-, or battery-powered radios (with extra batteries)
    • solar chargers for your cell phones
  • Talk to your neighbors about working together in an emergency.
    • If you have neighbors who might need special assistance, help them make a plan.
  • Turn to your local media for information and instructions.
    • The Emergency Broadcast System (EAS) relays messages through TV and radio.
    • The Wireless Emergency Alert (WEA) system provides messages directly to your cell phone.
    • Listen to and follow all instructions given by local First Responders and Emergency Management Officials who are monitoring the situation.
  • You can get more preparedness information from our social media sites: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. We are also signed up as an agency on Nextdoor.