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Essential guide · Base level · 8 min
Essential guideBase level · open to all8 min read
Grab bag: what to pack to leave home in minutes
One bag per person, ready by the door: the 5 Cs, the full list, how to pack the rucksack and adapt it for babies, older people and pets.
Reviewed 23 Oct 2026
10·AA grab bag ready to go
In 30 seconds
The essentials, in four points.
5 min
may be all you have to leave home in a wildfire, a flood or a tsunami. The bag has to be packed beforehand, by the door.
1 each
Every adult carries their own. Children carry a small one sized for them. Don't put the whole family in one rucksack.
72 h
of self-sufficiency is what the European Commission has recommended since 2025. The bag holds what keeps you going in the first hours away from home.
6 months
Check the bag twice a year: expiry dates, batteries, medicines and seasonal clothing.
01What it's for
Three kits, three different jobs. This is the one for leaving.
Almost every emergency comes down to two decisions: stay at home or leave home. In a blackout or a storm, staying is usually safest — that's what home supplies are for. When a wildfire approaches, in a flood, a gas leak or a tsunami warning, you have to leave, fast. That's where a grab bag makes the difference: you won't have time to think about what to take.
In March 2025 the European Commission asked all citizens to be ready to cope for at least 72 hours. Portugal's civil protection authority (ANEPC) recommends keeping the emergency kit somewhere accessible and known to everyone at home, including children.
The three kits of a prepared home
| Kit | What for | Where | Lasts |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grab bag | Leave home quickly | By the door | First hours to 72 h |
| Home supplies | Stay at home without services | Store cupboard | 3 days or more |
| Car and work kit | Get home | Car and desk | 24 h |
Home supplies and the car kit have their own guide in this module.
02The 5 Cs
Five functions no grab bag can forget.
A practical way to organise the bag is the 5 Cs: five functions that let you protect your body, have safe water and improvise when something is missing. In an evacuation in Portugal, the goal isn't to live in the wild — it's to reach relatives or a shelter safely, with what you need on the way.
1 · Cover
Protect the body
Waterproof jacket, a warm layer, hat, emergency blanket. In a Portuguese winter the enemy is damp cold; in summer, sun and heat.
2 · Container
Carry and treat water
A metal bottle or canteen that can go on a flame, and dry bags to keep everything else out of the rain.
3 · Cutting tool
Cut and repair
A simple penknife or multitool. For opening packs, cutting tape and small repairs.
4 · Combustion
Fire and light
Two independent ways: a lighter and waterproof matches. Kept in a dry bag.
5 · Cordage
Tie and improvise
A few metres of strong cord and wide duct tape: to rig a tarp, close a bag or make a support.
What the 5 Cs don't cover
It goes in the bag tooGrab-bag list (per adult)
| Category | What | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Water | 1.5 L in a bottle + tablets or a filter | More is too heavy: treat water you find |
| Food | Bars, nuts, ring-pull tins | Things you can eat without cooking |
| Medicines | Daily medicines for 3 days + copy of prescription | And spare glasses |
| First aid | Plasters, dressings, bandage, antiseptic, gloves | A small kit is enough |
| Documents | Copies of ID card, vaccination record, insurance | In a dry bag |
| Cash | Small notes and coins | Without power, cards don't work |
| Contacts | Paper list of family and meeting point | Your phone may be flat |
| Light and radio | Head torch, battery radio, spare batteries | And a whistle to call for help |
| Power | Charged power bank and cable | Recharge it every 3 months |
| Hygiene | Hand gel, wipes, toilet paper, masks | Pads or a menstrual cup |
| Clothing | A full change, socks and sturdy shoes | Adjust to the season |
| Extras | Spare house and car keys | And a recent photo of each family member |
Based on ANEPC and Ready.gov (FEMA) recommendations. Adapt to each person's needs — see section 04.
03Putting the bag together
Choose. Pack. Test on foot.
Step 1
Choose
A hiking rucksack with a padded hip belt and wide straps. Size is decided by the weight you can carry, not by what fits inside.
Step 2
Pack
Heavy things — water, food — in the middle, against your back. Things you need fast — torch, documents, whistle, first aid — in the pockets and at the top.
Step 3
Test
Put the bag on and walk for an hour. If it hurts or throws you off balance, take things out. A bag you can't carry is no use.
Plate 10·B — Where everything goesRucksack cross-section · bottom to top
04Adapting to who's leaving
Everyone at home needs something different.
Babies
Baby supplies
Nappies, wipes, formula and water to make it up, a bottle, a change of clothes and a comforting toy.
Children
A bag their size
Small and light: water, a snack, jacket, torch, whistle and a card with their name, contacts and the meeting point.
Older people
Health first
Medicines for more days, a list of conditions and doses, glasses, hearing aid and batteries, walking stick or frame.
Reduced mobility
Planned in advance
Who helps them out, which way, and how the wheelchair or equipment is moved. Agree it with the neighbours.
Pets
They leave too
Lead or carrier, food and water for 3 days, bowl, bags, vaccination record and a photo of the animal.
05Keeping the bag alive
A bag forgotten in a cupboard is an empty bag.
1
Two checks a year, for example when the clocks change in March and October. Swap winter clothes for summer ones at the same time.
2
Expiry dates: water, food, medicines, disinfection tablets. Anything close to expiry goes to the kitchen and gets replaced.
3
Batteries and power bank: test the torch and radio and recharge the power bank. Batteries kept out of devices last longer and don't leak.
4
Documents and contacts: update the copies when you renew your ID card and whenever a phone number changes.
5
Everyone knows where it is. The bag stays by the exit, always in the same place, and nothing is taken out of it for everyday use.
06Six costly mistakes
Grab-bag myths — and what to do instead.
Myth
“A ready-made kit sorts it all out.”
It can be a good start, but it won't have your medicines, your documents or clothes that fit you. Check everything inside.
Myth
“The more stuff, the better prepared.”
A bag that's too heavy gets left at home or dumped on the way. Take the essentials and learn to improvise.
Myth
“One bag is enough for the whole family.”
If the family gets separated, whoever doesn't have the bag has nothing. One per adult, and a small one per child.
Myth
“It's all on my phone: documents, contacts, maps.”
With no battery or signal, you have nothing. Paper copies, in a dry bag.
Myth
“I don't need cash, I pay for everything by card.”
In the 28 April 2025 blackout, electronic payments stopped. Carry small notes and coins.
Myth
“Grab bags are for survivalists.”
The European Commission and ANEPC recommend one for every family. It's like a fire extinguisher: you hope never to use it.
07Recommended equipment
The core of the bag, item by item.
You already have plenty at home: bottles, torches, clothes, documents. These items complete the bag and were chosen for the job they do in each of the 5 Cs and the list above.
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DocumentosSecção 02
Saco estanque para documentos
Why: cópias dos documentos, dinheiro e contactos secos mesmo à chuva.
ContentorSecção 02
Pastilhas de dióxido de cloro
Why: tornam segura a água que encontrares pelo caminho — pesam gramas, em vez de litros.
LuzSecção 02
Lanterna frontal LED
Why: mãos livres para andar, arrumar e ajudar alguém no escuro.
InformaçãoSecção 02
Rádio a pilhas e manivela
Why: para ouvires as indicações das autoridades quando a rede móvel falha.
SinalizarSecção 02
Apito de emergência
Why: ouve-se muito mais longe do que a voz. Um por pessoa, preso à mala.
SaúdeSecção 02
Estojo de primeiros socorros pequeno
Why: pensos, compressas, ligadura e desinfetante num estojo que cabe no bolso da tampa.
CoberturaSecção 02
Mantas térmicas
Why: leves e pequenas: ajudam a conservar o calor do corpo em caso de frio ou choque.
Quick card
Print it. Stick it inside the bag's lid.
Stick this sheet inside the lid of the rucksack. At each six-monthly check, it's your checklist.
Grab bag · K72 sheet
1Water 1.5 L + tablets or a filter.
2Medicines for 3 days + copy of prescription.
3Copies of documents, cash and paper contacts.
4Torch, radio, batteries, whistle, power bank.
5Waterproof jacket, warm layer, emergency blanket.
6Check in March and October. Always by the door.
10·A · k72plus.comEMERGENCY: 112
- ANEPC / Portuguese Insurers Association — Earthquakes: prepare and protect yourself (leaflet, 2018, in Portuguese) — kit accessible and known to everyone, including children
- Ready.gov (FEMA) — Build a kit — basic list, work and car kits, maintenance
- European Commission — Preparedness Union Strategy (March 2025) — 72-hour self-sufficiency
- REI — How to pack a backpack — weight centred and close to the back
- ERSE — Investigation into the Iberian blackout of 28 April 2025 (in Portuguese)
Reviewed 23 Oct 2026 · Next review: Mar 2027 · Spotted a mistake? Tell us.
This guide does not replace instructions from the authorities or your municipality's emergency plan. In an emergency, call 112.