Nebraska weather and other emergencies can affect electricity, transportation, communication, medications, equipment, and caregiver schedules. Planning before a warning arrives gives the person receiving care, family, and support team a shared starting point.
This checklist supports general preparedness for households using non-medical home care. It does not replace instructions from emergency officials, clinicians, equipment suppliers, utilities, Nebraska DHHS, or an individualized emergency or service plan.
Emergency-plan essentials
- Two ways to receive reliable local alerts.
- Emergency contacts, meeting places, and an out-of-area contact.
- A shelter plan and an accessible evacuation plan.
- Medication, allergy, equipment, and communication information.
- Supplies matched to the household's daily needs.
- Backup support when a scheduled caregiver cannot safely arrive.
1. Start with the person's daily needs
Ready.gov advises caregivers to tailor plans and kits to the person they support. Write down mobility, vision, hearing, communication, cognitive, dietary, personal-care, and equipment needs. Identify what the person can do independently and what assistance is needed if regular services are interrupted.
Keep the person involved in decisions to the greatest extent possible. An emergency plan should respect preferences, privacy, dignity, communication style, and decision-making rights.
2. Know Nebraska hazards and official alerts
Nebraska households may need to prepare for tornadoes, severe thunderstorms, flooding, winter weather, extreme heat, wildfire smoke, power outages, and other local hazards. The Nebraska Emergency Management Agency recommends knowing which emergencies could affect the area and whether they could require evacuation or sheltering in place.
Use more than one alert method. Options may include Wireless Emergency Alerts, local notifications, a NOAA Weather Radio with battery backup, local television or radio, and the FEMA app. Do not depend on only one phone, caregiver, or power source.
3. Write a household communication plan
List household members, emergency contacts, clinicians, pharmacy, equipment suppliers, utility contacts, home-care provider, transportation options, and one out-of-area contact. Choose a nearby meeting place and another outside the neighborhood. Decide who will check on the person if telephone service is disrupted.
Keep one printed copy in a waterproof container and a secure electronic copy that an authorized person can reach. Share sensitive information only with people who need it.
4. Plan for both sheltering and evacuation
Identify the safest accessible place in the home for severe weather. Keep the route clear and confirm that needed mobility devices can fit. For evacuation, identify routes, accessible transportation, a destination, and what must leave with the person.
Do not wait for an evacuation order to discover that a wheelchair, oxygen equipment, pet, or essential item cannot fit in the available vehicle. Follow local instructions and call 911 for an immediate threat to life or safety.
5. Build an emergency supply kit around real needs
In its September 1, 2026 guidance, NEMA recommended at least one gallon of water per person per day for three days, a three-day supply of nonperishable food, a manual can opener, first-aid supplies, necessary medications and medical items, flashlights and batteries, chargers and a power bank, pet supplies, and important documents.
Add supplies needed for the person's routine, such as continence products, hygiene items, adaptive utensils, hearing-aid batteries, communication boards, masks, gloves, or comfort items. Check expiration dates and replace used supplies.
6. Prepare medication and health information
Keep an updated list of prescriptions, over-the-counter products, allergies, doses, schedules, prescribers, and pharmacy contact information. Ask the prescriber, pharmacist, payer, and pharmacy how to prepare within refill limits and storage requirements.
Some medicines require refrigeration, temperature control, monitoring, or secure storage. Do not stockpile, share, ration, restart, stop, or change a medicine without qualified guidance.
7. Plan for electricity-dependent equipment
List each device that depends on electricity or charging, including its purpose, battery duration, charging method, supplier, and emergency contact. Ask the equipment company and clinician for device-specific outage and evacuation instructions.
Know how to use backup power safely. Never operate a generator, grill, camp stove, or gasoline engine inside a home, garage, basement, or enclosed area. Follow manufacturer and emergency-official instructions.
8. Create a caregiver backup plan
Severe weather or road closures may prevent a caregiver from traveling safely. Identify which family members, neighbors, or authorized backup caregivers may be able to check in, what they may do, and whom to call when scheduled support is disrupted.
A home-care agency cannot guarantee that every visit will occur during an emergency. Ask how closures, delays, missed visits, and operational updates are communicated. Call 911—not a routine office line—for an immediate emergency.
9. Include pets and service animals
Plan for food, water, medicines, identification, carriers or leashes, waste supplies, and veterinary records. Know which shelters, hotels, transportation services, and emergency destinations can accommodate animals.
10. Practice and update the plan
Walk through shelter and evacuation routes. Test how long it takes to gather the go kit and move essential equipment. Confirm that contact numbers work and that authorized backup people understand their roles.
Review the plan whenever health, mobility, communication, medication, equipment, address, household members, transportation, staffing, or contacts change.
What information should families share with Besqueens?
Tell Besqueens about relevant mobility, communication, access, equipment, emergency-contact, and safety needs during intake and when those needs change. Home-care services remain subject to assessment, authorization when applicable, caregiver training, staffing, schedule, location, safety, and availability.
Explore our Nebraska home-care services, review our Bellevue and Norfolk locations, or submit a care inquiry. Relatives interested in authorized care can review our family caregiver information.
Authoritative resources
- Nebraska Emergency Management Agency: Disaster Preparation
- NEMA: Prepare Before Disaster Strikes — September 1, 2026 emergency-kit recommendations.
- Ready.gov: Caregivers Preparedness Guide
- Ready.gov: Disaster Preparedness Guide for Older Adults
- Ready.gov: Emergency Supply Kit Checklist
Frequently asked questions
What should a home-care emergency plan include?
Include emergency contacts, two ways to receive alerts, evacuation and shelter plans, a meeting place, transportation options, medication and equipment information, communication needs, backup caregivers, and supplies matched to the person's needs.
How much food and water should be in a Nebraska emergency kit?
Nebraska Emergency Management Agency recommends at least one gallon of water per person per day for three days and a three-day supply of nonperishable food, along with a manual can opener. Individual needs or official instructions may require more.
Should medications be placed in an emergency kit?
Plan for necessary medications and medical items, but follow prescriber, pharmacist, insurance, storage, and refill requirements. Keep an updated medication list and pharmacy information with the plan.
Is a home-care caregiver an emergency responder?
No. Call 911 for an immediate threat to life or safety. Home-care visits can support routine preparedness only within the person's plan, provider policies, caregiver training, staffing, and service availability.
How often should the emergency plan be reviewed?
Review it whenever health, mobility, equipment, medication, address, contacts, transportation, staffing, or household needs change. It is also useful to review supplies and practice the plan at regular intervals.
This article is educational and does not provide emergency, medical, legal, benefits, employment, or individualized care advice. Follow current instructions from emergency officials and qualified professionals. Services, duties, eligibility, authorization, staffing, schedules, and availability vary. Call 911 for an immediate threat to life or safety.