How many hours should a go-bag cover?

Seventy-two. That is the working assumption of most US emergency-management agencies for the gap between an evacuation and the arrival of organized aid. If you can stretch to five days, better.

One go-bag or one per person?

One per person plus a household bag. Kids can carry small bags with their own comfort items; adults carry the medical, documents, and water weight.

Where should I store it?

By the door you'd use to leave the house — usually the front door or the door to the garage. Not in the attic. If you can't grab it in 20 seconds, it might as well not exist.

How often should I rotate the contents?

Twice a year. Set a reminder for daylight-savings weekends. Rotate water, food bars, batteries, and any prescriptions inside expiration windows.

A separate pet go-bag with carrier, 3 days of food and water, leash, vaccination records, meds, and a photo of you with the pet in case you're separated.

Emergency go-bag checklist: the 72-hour kit.

A specific packing list for the bag you grab on the way out — enough to keep a household of adults, kids, and pets on their own for three days.

The bag

A 25-40 liter backpack per person, stored by the door you would use to leave the house. If it lives in the garage attic or the back of a closet, it is not a go-bag; it is a memento of one. Everyone in the household — including capable teenagers — carries their own.

Water and food (72 hours)

3 liters of water per person (drinking; hygiene is a bonus).
3,000 calories per person in shelf-stable bars — Clif, Millennium, or similar. Not MREs; too heavy.
Manual can opener if you also stash canned goods in the car.
Water purification tablets or a Sawyer Mini filter for a longer horizon.

Documents pouch

A waterproof zip pouch, tucked in the top of the bag:

Photocopies of driver's licenses, passports, birth certificates.
Insurance card, deed or lease, mortgage payoff letter.
Prescription list with dosages and prescriber contact.
Bank and credit card account numbers on a printed sheet.
Out-of-area emergency contact card — the person everyone will text on arrival.
$200-$500 cash in small bills. ATMs and card readers go down.
A USB drive with family photos and scans of the above.

Medical

7 days of prescription medications. Rotate ahead of expiration; keep the pharmacy label attached.
Basic first-aid kit: adhesive bandages, gauze, tape, tweezers, antibiotic ointment, ibuprofen, acetaminophen, antihistamines, hydrocortisone, electrolyte packets.
N95 masks — one per person plus 4 extras. Fit-tested if you can.
Glasses (spare) or contact lens supplies for 7 days.
Menstrual supplies for 7 days.
Two pairs of nitrile gloves per person.

Power and communications

LED headlamp (hands-free beats a flashlight) with spare batteries.
10,000+ mAh USB power bank, charged to full and topped off quarterly.
Phone charging cables — one Lightning, one USB-C, one micro-USB.
Hand-crank NOAA weather radio.
Whistle per person.

Tools

Multitool (Leatherman or similar).
Roll of duct tape (flatten first, wrap around a pencil).
50 feet of paracord.
Bic lighter and stormproof matches in a waterproof case.
Trash bags (double as ponchos, waterproofing, ground cover).

Clothing and shelter

One full change of cotton or wool clothing per person; synthetics melt on skin in fire.
Sturdy closed-toe shoes — the ones you would walk 10 miles in. Not flip-flops.
Rain shell.
Work gloves (leather palm).
Mylar emergency blanket per person.
Bandana or buff.

Pets (separate bag)

Carrier or leash and collar with ID tag showing your out-of-area contact.
3 days of food in a sealed container; 3 liters of water.
Vaccination records and prescription list.
Photo of you with the pet, in case you're separated.

Rotation

Twice a year, on daylight-savings weekends: check water for cloudiness, cycle food bars into the pantry and replace, run the power bank down to 20% and recharge, replace batteries, and check prescriptions against their expiration dates.

The 72-hour go-bag.