A red emergency supply bag with water, food and other preparedness supplies.

Safety learning collection

SAFETY QUIZZES

Emergency preparedness.

Practice everyday decisions about emergency plans, supplies and staying safe during common hazards.

20 QUESTIONS · NO TIMER

Put your knowledge into practice.

Choose one answer for each question. We’ll explain the correct answer before you move on. At the end, review your results or take the quiz again.

Your answers stay on this page and are not submitted. Reloading starts a new attempt.

Enable JavaScript for the interactive quiz, or use the questions and answer explanations below.

1. Where should your household emergency plan begin?

Identify local hazards, household needs and ways to communicate.
Buy identical supplies for every household.
Choose one meeting place without discussing it.
Assume relatives will know where to find you.

Correct answer: Identify local hazards, household needs and ways to communicate.

A useful plan reflects local risks and the people who will use it, including assistance and communication needs.

2. What is the CDC minimum starting point for stored emergency water?

One gallon per household for a week.
One gallon per person per day for at least three days.
One cup per person per day.
Only enough water for drinking on the first day.

Correct answer: One gallon per person per day for at least three days.

Water is also needed for food and hygiene. Try to store two weeks if possible, with extra for individual needs.

3. Which outage-kit lighting is safer?

A battery flashlight.
Unattended candles.
A fuel lantern in a bedroom.
Matches beside curtains.

Correct answer: A battery flashlight.

Portable electric light avoids an open flame. Include spare batteries or suitable charging.

4. Cellular calls are not connecting because networks are congested. What may help?

Repeatedly call every contact without pausing.
Assume a messaging app works without any connection.
Use 911 to tell relatives you are safe.
Send a brief text and use the household communication plan.

Correct answer: Send a brief text and use the household communication plan.

Brief texts may get through when calls cannot. They still require service; agree on contacts and meeting arrangements in advance.

5. A fire starts at home. What comes first?

Get out, stay out and call 911.
Collect documents.
Find the cause.
Open every window.

Correct answer: Get out, stay out and call 911.

Use a safe route to your meeting place. Tell responders if someone is missing.

6. An earthquake starts while you are indoors. What is the recommended response?

Run outside while the building is shaking.
Drop, cover and hold on.
Stand beside a large window.
Always stand in a doorway.

Correct answer: Drop, cover and hold on.

Get low and protect your head and neck, using sturdy cover if available. Stay inside until shaking stops.

7. You have a basic three-day emergency kit. What should you do next?

Assume all services will return exactly 72 hours later.
Remove medicine because it is not a basic supply.
Adapt it for household needs and potentially longer disruptions.
Use the same contents regardless of season or health needs.

Correct answer: Adapt it for household needs and potentially longer disruptions.

A supply target is a planning tool, not a promise that help or utilities will arrive on a fixed schedule.

8. Floodwater covers the road ahead. What should you do?

Drive through slowly behind another vehicle.
Walk ahead to measure the depth.
Move a barricade if the road looks familiar.
Turn around and use a safe alternative route.

Correct answer: Turn around and use a safe alternative route.

Water can hide damaged pavement and dangerous currents. Never walk or drive through floodwater or around road barriers.

9. A tornado warning is issued. Which location offers the best protection among these options?

A basement or small interior room on the lowest level of a sturdy building.
A room with large windows for watching the storm.
Under a highway overpass.
Inside a parked mobile home.

Correct answer: A basement or small interior room on the lowest level of a sturdy building.

Move away from windows and protect your head and neck. A mobile home is not a safe tornado shelter.

10. While visiting the coast, officials order your area to evacuate for a hurricane. What should you do?

Wait until water reaches the street.
Leave as directed using official evacuation instructions.
Stay until the forecast track is certain.
Use an unfamiliar flooded shortcut to save time.

Correct answer: Leave as directed using official evacuation instructions.

Follow evacuation orders promptly. Waiting for visible danger can leave routes blocked or unsafe.

11. How should you maintain an emergency kit?

Check dates, replace used items and update needs.
Never open it.
Keep expired medicines.
Wait until disaster strikes.

Correct answer: Check dates, replace used items and update needs.

Review supplies regularly, including medication arrangements, batteries and changing household needs.

12. You notice a strong natural-gas odor inside. What should you do?

Switch lights on to find the leak.
Use a lighter to check the appliance.
Stay inside and telephone beside the suspected leak.
Leave without operating switches or electronics, then call for help from a safe location.

Correct answer: Leave without operating switches or electronics, then call for help from a safe location.

Avoid sparks and flames. From safely away, contact 911 or the gas utility; do not try to locate or repair the leak.

13. Where should a portable generator operate?

Outdoors, more than 20 feet from doors, windows and vents.
In a garage with the door open.
In a basement near a window.
On an enclosed porch beside the house.

Correct answer: Outdoors, more than 20 feet from doors, windows and vents.

Generator exhaust can cause fatal carbon monoxide poisoning. Use battery-powered or battery-backup CO alarms, too.

14. Your vehicle becomes stranded in a winter storm, with no immediate threat inside. What is generally safest?

Walk into blowing snow to find help.
Stay with the vehicle, call for help and make yourself visible.
Leave the vehicle without telling anyone.
Run the engine continuously without checking the exhaust.

Correct answer: Stay with the vehicle, call for help and make yourself visible.

A vehicle provides shelter and is easier for rescuers to find. Prevent exhaust blockage and carbon monoxide exposure.

15. You hear thunder while outdoors. Where should you go?

Under the tallest nearby tree.
Inside an open-sided picnic shelter.
A substantial enclosed building or fully enclosed hardtop vehicle.
Lie flat on an open field.

Correct answer: A substantial enclosed building or fully enclosed hardtop vehicle.

No outdoor location is safe during a thunderstorm. Seek proper shelter immediately rather than relying on a posture or tree.

16. Why include cash in small bills?

All shops must remain open.
ATMs and electronic payments may fail.
It replaces food and water.
It guarantees purchases.

Correct answer: ATMs and electronic payments may fail.

A modest reserve offers another payment option. It cannot guarantee that services are available.

17. What belongs in a pet emergency kit?

Food, water, medicines, identification records and an appropriate carrier or leash.
Only a favorite toy.
Food but no water because people can share later.
Medicine without instructions or veterinary records.

Correct answer: Food, water, medicines, identification records and an appropriate carrier or leash.

Plan for pets before an emergency. Include care instructions, identification and supplies suited to each animal.

18. You find someone with life-threatening external bleeding and the scene is safe. What should you do?

Wait to see whether heavy bleeding stops by itself.
Call 911 and apply firm direct pressure, using a protective barrier if available.
Remove any deeply embedded object first.
Give the person food before seeking help.

Correct answer: Call 911 and apply firm direct pressure, using a protective barrier if available.

Heavy bleeding needs immediate action. Follow dispatcher instructions and use bleeding-control techniques you have been trained to perform.

19. How should document copies be prepared for evacuation?

Leave them loose outdoors.
Post them publicly.
Keep only one device copy.
Protect portable copies from water and maintain secure backups.

Correct answer: Protect portable copies from water and maintain secure backups.

Accessible records help with identification and recovery. Keep sensitive information secure.

20. Which habit reduces the chance of a heating fire?

Dry clothing over a portable heater.
Place a heater beside bedding.
Cover a heater to warm a room faster.
Keep things that can burn at least three feet from heating equipment.

Correct answer: Keep things that can burn at least three feet from heating equipment.

Give heaters clear space and follow manufacturer instructions. Smoke alarms provide warning; they do not prevent ignition.

Educational practice. This quiz is not a certification or a substitute for hands-on training. For emergency assistance, call 911.

Guidance behind this quiz

Answers reviewed November 2026 against the following public guidance.