Food
Food safety during power loss
ISS/EpiCentro advice for protecting food and water during disasters, including flooding.
- 1
Keep doors closed
While electricity is off, keep cold-storage doors closed as much as possible.
- 2
Do not assume food stayed safe
The Italian Civil Protection handbook warns that refrigerated food can deteriorate during an outage. A restored supply does not prove that food stayed safe. This guide gives no universal safe storage time.
- 3
After flooding: discard exposed food
Discard food that may have contacted floodwater.
- 4
Check canned products
Discard opened, damaged or bulging canned products.
- 5
Follow drinking-water instructions
Follow local authority notices about drinking water. Do not use contaminated water to prepare food or wash dishes.
- Official sources
- Istituto Superiore di Sanità — EpiCentro: Sicurezza dell’acqua e degli alimenti (traduzione e adattamento)
Page update date not stated; any document edition is identified in its title.
- Dipartimento della Protezione Civile — Protezione Civile in famiglia, pp. 34–35, 50–51 (edizione 2005)
Page update date not stated; any document edition is identified in its title.
- Istituto Superiore di Sanità — EpiCentro: Sicurezza dell’acqua e degli alimenti (traduzione e adattamento)
- Sources checked by OFFLINE READY on
- This is the date we compared the guide with its sources, not their publication or update date. App-specific instructions are separate from authority guidance.
- Where it applies
- Based on official Italian national, regional and municipal guidance. Follow your local authorities and municipal Civil Protection plan. Outside Italy, check the applicable local guidance. Flood-specific instructions apply to flooding, not every outage.
- This is a summary, not medical or legal advice. Follow official instructions in your area.