A family of 3 people indoors with a grab bag ready to go. A concerned parent holding a baby is pointing out of the room

Grab Bags

A grab bag or getaway kit is a small backpack of essential items you can grab if you need to evacuate your home or workplace with little or no warning.

It's especially important to have a grab bag if you have to walk a long way to get home during an emergency.

Download Grab Bag Checklist

Remember not to include so many items that your bag becomes too heavy, especially if you have a lot of distance to cover to get home or to your safe meeting place.

Evacuation to do list: Go around your house and list the items you''ll want to pack during an emergency (valuables, pets, important documents, and the things you can’t live without). Then create a list of actions to do before evacuating (turning off utilities, closing and locking the doors).

Grab bag options

Woman placing first aid kit inside bag. On the table is a radio/torch and a pair of running shoes

Option One: Make your own Grab Bag

The most cost-effective option is making your own grab bag: Get a sturdy backpack which would be comfortable to carry a long distance, then fill it with the items you need.

Remember to change the food/water in your bag at regular intervals.

Grab bag and contents including hi-vis vest, garden gloves, pocket knife, whistl, glow sticks, rain poncho, dust mask, wind up radio/torch, scraper, foil blanket, water bottles, notebook and pen, playing cards, first aid kit

Option Two: Buy a pre-made grab bag

WREMO has partnered with Grab&Go to make getaway kits available at a reasonable price.

You will still need to add personal items such as sturdy shoes, hygiene items and your own food.

Grab&Go bags are available online through the Grab&Go website. 

They are also available from many retail outlets around the Wellington Region.

Grab bag items:

Must-have essential items

Water and water purification tablets
Snacks
Walking shoes
Cash
First aid kit
Hand sanitizer
Face-covering or mask
Any medication you rely on, along with a copy of the prescription
Copies of important documents (e.g identification, prescriptions etc.)
Rain jacket and poncho
Warm jacket
Emergency blanket
Torch
Radio (battery or wind-up)
Notebook and pen
Toiletries
Baby supplies
Pet supplies

Useful 'should-have' items

Portable phone charger
Spare underwear
Gloves
Dust mask
Extra batteries
Whistle

'Nice to have' items

Entertainment (pack of cards, book, music player, etc)
Glow sticks
Matches
Flash drive with photos of all the rooms and contents
Small shovel
Hi-vis vest
Swiss army knife
Waste disposal bags

Essentials Checklist

Download a checklist for the essential Grab Bag items:

Translated resources

View and download translated information in multiple languages about emergency survival items and grab bags.

Toggle between languages from the top right button on the website: getready.govt.nz

Go to our Resource Library