Self-Reliance · Shelter · Shelter-in-Place
Guidance for the times when staying indoors is the correct protective action — severe weather, hazmat events, wildfire smoke, poor air quality, and public safety incidents. Protocols differ by hazard; this section covers each one.
All guides in this area
When staying home is the right call. Each guide stands alone and links to related topics across the site.
The difference between shelter-in-place, lockdown, and evacuation — and how to decide which applies when alerts go out.
How to choose, prepare, and stock an interior room for chemical or air quality events that require sealing against outdoor air.
Tornado, hurricane, and severe thunderstorm protocols. Interior rooms, lowest floors, and what to do when warnings come in fast.
How to seal a room, when to ventilate after, and how to read emergency instructions for chemical spill or industrial incident events.
Wildfire smoke, dust events, and air quality index guidance. When to seal the home and how to filter indoor air.
When law enforcement or emergency management issues a shelter-in-place advisory for a public safety reason. What to do and what to monitor.
Start here
The foundational explainer — the difference between staying home, sheltering in place, and evacuating, and how to read an alert correctly.
Part of the Shelter & Home Security section
Back to Shelter & Home Security