How do I prepare for an emergency when I have a baby?

When you have a baby, "being prepared" changes its meaning.

It's no longer just about having a kit for yourself. It's about ensuring basic comfort, hygiene, food, and calm for someone who can't adapt on their own to a power outage, a cold house, delays in accessing stores, or an unexpected displacement.

And this is not a rare scenario. Just look at the last few days: storms, prolonged power outages, floods, and resettlements in various parts of the country.

What changes in a kit when there's a baby?

Change the priority and change the pace.

An adult can manage somehow. A baby needs routine: feeding, changing, keeping warm, calming, sleeping.

This even shows up in the water. The Portuguese Red Cross draws attention to the fact that children and breastfeeding mothers may need to drink more water.

The 72-hour logic remains a good basis, especially since it is the benchmark that the European Commission points to as the minimum autonomy in emergencies.

Water and hygiene with simple numbers (so you don't have to guess).

A practical recommendation, per person per day, from a Red Cross preparedness list (in Portuguese), is to separate:

Drinking water: at least 1 liter per person/day (and the note itself indicates 2 liters if there are pets).
Water for cleaning and hygiene: 2 liters per person/day.

With a baby, this margin may need to be increased slightly due to extra washing and more frequent hygiene. The idea isn't for you to be perfect. It's about you not being caught without the basics.

Baby feeding: don't improvise on the day you run out of everything.

If your baby is formula-fed, consider these 3 points:

1. Enough formula for at least 3 days (ideally more).
2. Bottled water that you can safely use to prepare baby bottles if you don't have reliable tap water.
3. A way to heat water or sterilize it, if necessary.

The same Red Cross list explicitly includes "baby food" and "baby products (diapers, formula, food, toys) sufficient for at least 3 days".

Diapers, hygiene and comfort: what really makes a difference?

There's no glamour here, but there is peace.

• Diapers and wipes for at least 3 days (and, if the baby has sensitive skin, include the usual cream). The logic of "essential items" for babies is part of the preparation lists.
• Trash bags and hand sanitizer. Not because you're going to live in hospital mode, but because, in an emergency, simple hygiene prevents further problems.
• An extra blanket and a change of clothes beyond what you consider "normal." The Red Cross includes a change of clothes and blankets for each member of the household as items to be considered.
• Your baby calms down with what they know. Therefore, bring one small toy or a comfort object. Even these things appear on the lists: toys, games, books, and playing cards are suggested as items that help during periods of isolation.

And if there's a power outage, what do I do in practice?

If you have a baby, a power outage isn't just about "being in the dark." It means losing heat, losing charging power, and sometimes even losing access to hot water.

In the last week, E-REDES reported peaks of around 1 million customers without power, and some areas experienced many days without electricity.

Therefore, it's worth having:

Light: flashlight and batteries, and a simple nightlight (so you don't wake the baby with bright light).
Charging: charged power bank and extra cable.
Information: battery-powered radio, because when there is no network, it is one of the most reliable ways to keep up with alerts.

Internal links to products that fit well in a baby setting.

When you have a baby, the advantage of a ready-made kit is that it takes a mental load off your shoulders. You have the energy to personalize it with "what's your baby's," instead of starting from scratch.

A simple and easy-to-store base for any home: Essential Survival Kit . The kit contains items such as a water filter (up to 5,000 liters), a flashlight, a radio, and first aid supplies, making it a good base for any home.

If you want a family-friendly solution with extra power and utensils (very useful for preparing water and food): Advanced Survival Kit . The product includes a solar panel, power bank, and cooking equipment, among other things.

If you want to have your emergency food organized (and later add specific baby extras): Traditional Food Survival Kit or Vegan Food Survival Kit . The kit contains 12 meals and about 500 kcal per meal, plus energy bars and coffee.

A final note that soothes, rather than weighs down.

Preparing for a baby isn't about trying to foresee everything. It's about ensuring that, for 72 hours, you can keep your baby fed, clean, and relatively comfortable, even if your home is without power, has limited water, or difficult access.

This is not fear. It's caution. And it is precisely this culture of preparedness that the European Union is trying to normalize, with its recommendation of stockpiling essential goods for 72 hours.