Armed conflict

Actions

• Agree two family meeting points and an out-of-area contactEssential

  Family members may be at work or school when something happens, and networks can be overloaded. Pick one point near home and one outside your district, plus a contact in another region who relays messages — long-distance calls often connect when local ones fail. Rehearse the plan every few months.

• Write key phone numbers on paper

  A dead or lost phone takes every stored contact with it. Note family numbers, your out-of-area contact, your doctor and 112 on paper, and put copies in your wallet, the go-bag and each child's jacket. Update the list whenever a number changes — a five-minute job worth repeating twice a year.

Supplies

• Store water (about 2 L per person per day)Essential

  Water mains can fail when infrastructure is damaged, so cover at least 72 hours for your household — official German guidance suggests up to ten days. Store sealed bottled water cool and dark; carbonated keeps longest. Refill self-filled food-grade containers about every six months, and plan extra for hygiene and pets.

• Keep several days of no-cook foodEssential

  Shops and power can be unavailable for days, so build a stock you can eat cold: canned vegetables and fish, crispbread, nuts, dried fruit, UHT milk. Aim for at least 72 hours — official German guidance suggests up to ten days. Store only what you normally eat, rotate it, and keep a manual can opener with the stock.

• Get a battery or hand-crank radioEssential

  When power and mobile networks fail, broadcast radio is often your only source of official instructions such as shelter or evacuation orders. Choose a set with a dual FM and DAB+ tuner that runs on batteries plus crank or solar, and store spare batteries outside the device to prevent leakage damage.

• Pack a first-aid kit and medicinesEssential

  Help can take longer to reach you in a conflict, so injuries may need treatment at home first. A kit stocked to the DIN 13157 benchmark covers dressings, bandages and gloves — check it yearly for expired sterile items. Add about ten days of regular prescription medicines, arranged ahead with your doctor or pharmacist.

• Prepare a ready-to-go grab bag (backpack) by the doorEssential

  An evacuation order can come at short notice, and packing under stress wastes vital minutes. Fill one backpack per person with water, snacks, medicines, a torch, warm clothing, copies of your documents and some cash — enough for about 72 hours. Review the contents twice a year and after every use.

• Pack work gloves in your grab bag

  Damaged buildings mean glass, twisted metal and rubble. Gloves let you clear a path, move debris or help others without disabling your hands — in a conflict, medical care for a cut hand may be days away. They take almost no space at the bottom of the bag.

• Add torches, power banks and spare batteries

  Outages can accompany fighting, and dark stairwells or cellars are hazardous. LED headlamps keep your hands free; standardise on one battery size such as AA so every spare fits. A 20,000 mAh USB-C power bank recharges a typical phone about three times — top it up on a reminder every three to six months.

• Keep some cash in small notes

  Card terminals and ATMs stop working when power or networks go down, and queues form fast in a crisis. Several EU authorities suggest roughly 70-100 euros per person in small notes and coins, enough for about 72 hours. Keep it dry and discreet in a fixed spot that only trusted household members know.

Skills

• Learn basic first aid (bleeding, CPR)

  Severe bleeding and cardiac arrest are decided in the first minutes, often before responders can arrive in a conflict. Take a hands-on course with a recognised first-aid organisation and refresh it every two years. Firm pressure on a wound and hands-only CPR can keep someone alive until help reaches you.

Know & check

• Copy ID and key documents (paper + digital)Essential

  If you must leave quickly or your home is damaged, proof of identity, ownership and insurance becomes essential for aid and claims. Keep everything in one grab-ready folder — originals or copies — and deposit duplicates with relatives or a bank. Store digital scans encrypted and password-protected.

• Locate local shelters and learn warning signalsEssential

  Solid cover protects most during attacks: basements, underground garages and interior rooms away from windows. Pick the sturdiest cover you can reach quickly, even at night — Germany is only now compiling a shelter directory. In Germany a one-minute rising and falling siren tone means danger; learn your local signals.

• Install your national warning app and enable alertsEssential

  Official warning apps deliver evacuation and shelter instructions straight to your phone; EU-Alert cell broadcast gets through even on congested networks. In Germany that app is NINA; most EU countries run their own. Check that emergency alerts are enabled in your phone settings, and never rely on a single channel.

• Keep a paper map with routes and meeting points marked

  In a conflict, mobile networks and GPS can be congested, cut or jammed exactly when you need to move. Download offline maps in advance and keep a paper map in the grab bag with evacuation routes, both family meeting points and your out-of-area contact's address marked — it works with no network and no battery.