In addition to your Disaster Supplies Kit basics and Evacuation Supplies Kit, gathering the following items will help your family endure home confinement, which often happens following disasters and may include the loss of utilities.

• Wrench to turn off household gas and water. Keep it near the shut-off valves.
• A week's supply of food and water.
• Additional blankets and sleeping bags.

NOAA Weather Radios
Also, consider using a NOAA Weather Radio with the tone-alert feature in your home. NOAA Weather Radio is the best means for receiving warnings from the National Weather Service. The National Weather Service continuously broadcasts updated weather warnings and forecasts that can be received by NOAA Weather Radios sold in many stores. NOAA Weather Radio now broadcasts warning and postevent information for all types of hazards-both natural (such as earthquakes and volcanic activity) and technological (such as chemical releases or oil spills). Working with other federal agencies and the Federal Communications Commission's new Emergency Alert System, NOAA Weather Radio is an "all hazards" radio network, making it the single source for the most comprehensive weather and emergency information available to the public.

Your National Weather Service recommends purchasing a radio that has both a battery backup and a Specific Area Message Encoder (SAME) feature, which automatically alerts you when a watch or warning is issued for your county, giving you immediate information about a life-threatening situation. The average range is 40 miles, depending on topography; the National Weather Radio signal is a line-of-sight signal, which does not bore through hills or mountains.