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Storm-prep guide

Wildfire & smoke

Wildfires move fast and their smoke travels hundreds of miles. Be ready to leave, and know how to keep the air inside your home clean.

Be ready to leave

  1. Get the alerts. Sign up for your local government's free alerts, and keep a backup charger or battery radio. Red Cross
  2. Pack a go-kit with 3 days of supplies you can carry, and plan more than one way out of your neighborhood. Red Cross
  3. Leave early. Go when officials tell you to, or sooner if you sense danger. You may not get an official notice. Red Cross

Read the air

  • AQI colors: green 0–50 good; yellow 51–100 moderate; orange 101–150 unhealthy for sensitive groups; red 151–200 unhealthy; purple 201–300 very unhealthy; maroon 301+ hazardous. Check airnow.gov. AirNow
  • Masks: stay inside if you can. If you must go out, wear a tight-fitting NIOSH-approved N95 or P100 respirator. CDC
  • Higher risk: people with asthma, COPD, heart or kidney disease, or diabetes, plus pregnant people and children. CDC

Make a DIY air cleaner

  1. What you need: a 20×20-inch box fan (UL or ETL marked, 2012 or newer) and a 20×20-inch filter rated MERV 13 or higher; 2 to 4 inches thick works best. EPA
  2. Put it together: point the filter's airflow arrow toward the fan so air goes through the filter first, seal gaps with tape, and add a cardboard shroud over the fan's front corners. EPA
  3. Use it safely: no extension cords or damaged fans, and don't leave an older fan running unattended or while you sleep. EPA

Set up a cleaner-air room

  • Close windows and doors (keep a way out), set your HVAC to recirculate with a MERV 13 filter if it can take one, and run an air cleaner on high. EPA
  • Don't add smoke indoors: no candles, incense, smoking, vaping or burning wood or gas, and limit frying. EPA
Routes when roads closeThe kit's offline maps show every road around you, so you can find another way out when the main one is blocked.

The basic kit

Ready.gov's basic kit includes water (one gallon per person per day for several days), several days of food, a battery or hand-crank radio and a NOAA Weather Radio, a flashlight, a first-aid kit, extra batteries, a whistle, a manual can opener, local maps, and a phone with chargers and a backup battery. Ready.gov NOAA Weather Radio broadcasts warnings around the clock from more than 1,000 transmitters. NWS

Sources checked November 8, 2026. This guide summarizes official advice and isn't a substitute for instructions from local emergency officials.