Food Storage and Emergency Prep in Utah Valley: The Home Storage Centers, the Earthquake Reality and the Ward Plan

Abigail Giordano Senior Writer, Provo.com How we make Provo.com

In much of the country, food storage is a hobby. In Utah Valley it is closer to a civic habit, with roots in the teachings of the largest local church, a statewide preparedness campaign behind it, and a fault line under the east bench that gives the whole thing a reason.

This guide explains how the pieces fit, for members and non-members alike: what the Church asks for, where the home storage centers are, what the earthquake forecast does and does not mean for a household, and how a ward's emergency plan works. For the science of the fault itself, see our earthquake preparedness guide, which goes deep on the forecast, unreinforced masonry and the gas-shutoff question.

What the Church asks, in its own words

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints frames home storage in four parts, and its guidance is more moderate than its reputation:

1. A three-month supply of "foods that are a part of your normal diet." Start with one week and build from there.
2. Drinking water, in "sturdy, leak-proof, breakage-resistant containers," away from heat and sunlight. Water from a good, pretreated source needs no extra purification; otherwise treat it before use.
3. A longer-term supply of staples "such as wheat, rice, pasta, oats, beans, and potatoes that can last 30 years or more."
4. A financial reserve: "some money in savings."

The same page asks members to "be wise, and do not go to extremes," and says that going into debt to build food storage all at once is not prudent. Develop it gradually, so it does not become "a financial burden."

Two practical readings follow. The three-month supply is not survival food; it is a deeper pantry of what you already eat, rotated through normal cooking. And the long-term supply is a separate shelf of dry staples, the part people picture when they hear "food storage."

The home storage centers

The Church runs home storage centers that sell prepackaged staples for the long-term supply. Its page says anyone can buy from them, "not just Church members," and lists wheat, beans, rice, oats and powdered milk among the products. Products are sold by the case; the Church's current list shows cases such as hard red wheat and white rice in cases of six cans, and nonfat dry milk in cases of twelve pouches. Most items can also be ordered through the Church's online store.

There is no home storage center inside Provo or Orem city limits. Google's listings in October 2026 show these nearby:

Hours change, so check the Church's home storage center location finder before you go. The Lindon and Saratoga Springs centers share buildings with a bishops' storehouse, which is a different operation for people receiving help through a bishop; our guide to the bishops' storehouse, Welfare Square and Deseret Industries explains the difference.

For the three-month supply, ordinary grocery stores do the job; our grocery store guide covers the case-lot sales that many Utah stores run.

The earthquake reality

Utah's preparedness culture predates any forecast, but the forecast is what makes it practical rather than theoretical.

The numbers. The Working Group on Utah Earthquake Probabilities, a joint effort of the Utah Geological Survey and the U.S. Geological Survey, estimated a 43 percent probability of one or more magnitude 6.75 or larger earthquakes in the Wasatch Front region in the next 50 years, and 57 percent for magnitude 6.0 or larger, as summarized in a 2016 USGS fact sheet. The UGS puts the chance of a magnitude 6.75 or larger on the Wasatch fault zone itself at 18 percent over the same period; the rest comes from other faults and background earthquakes.

What it means for a household. A large earthquake anywhere on the Wasatch Front could interrupt water, power, gas, roads and phone service across a wide area, and help would be stretched thin at first. That is the reason for every item below: water stored at home because the mains may be broken, food that does not need a working refrigerator, cash because card readers need power and networks, and a plan for finding each other when phones are jammed.

The forecast does not say when, and it is not a reason for panic buying. It is a reason to do the ordinary things on this page before you need them. Insurance is a separate decision; our guide to earthquake insurance and the brick-house question covers it.

The kit, the pantry and the water

The state's preparedness campaign, Be Ready Utah, has moved past the old "72-hour kit" language. It now encourages a disaster supply kit with "as much as a five-day supply of food, water and other emergency supplies and tools." It also says the safest place in most emergencies, unless you need to evacuate, is home, which is why it pairs the kit with longer-term supplies kept at home.

A layered setup, built over time:

• Pocket: a few items you carry every day to get through "an unexpected event for a few hours," in Be Ready Utah's words, such as a phone charger, a small light, any daily medication and some cash.
• Car: a kit in each vehicle for breakdowns and storms, with items that tolerate heat and cold. Be Ready Utah says car-kit items may need rotating more often because of temperature extremes.
• Grab-and-go kit: up to five days of food, water and supplies per person, in a bag you can carry.
• Home: the three-month pantry, stored water, and the long-term staples.

Water. Ready.gov says to store at least one gallon per person per day "for several days," and more depending on age, health, activity and heat. Commercially bottled water can stay sealed in its original container. Water you store yourself goes in food-grade containers, sanitized first, and Ready.gov says to replace it every six months. A family of four storing five days of water needs at least 20 gallons.

Rotation. Be Ready Utah suggests checking kits twice a year and replacing expired or broken items. An easy way to remember: do it at the April ShakeOut and again in the fall.

The apartment version

Food storage advice usually assumes a house with a basement. In a small student apartment, it needs editing:

• Water first. A few cases of bottled water under a bed or in a closet cover the first days. That matters more than a year of wheat.
• A deeper pantry, not a separate one. Buy two of the canned goods, rice and peanut butter you already eat, and use the older one first.
• A small long-term shelf. A handful of cans from a home storage center fits on a closet shelf.
• Cash and documents. A little cash and copies of IDs and insurance in your grab-and-go bag.
• Know the building. Find the exits, the gas meter and the water shutoff, and ask the manager what the complex's plan is.

If your contract is short, invest in the portable parts (water, a kit, a light, a radio) and leave the heavy shelving for later.

Drills, classes and alerts

• The Great Utah ShakeOut is a statewide drill held each April. The 2026 drill was April 16 at 10:15 a.m.; participants practiced drop, cover and hold on. Households can register at ShakeOut.org. To volunteer beyond your own household, see our CERT and emergency volunteering guide.
• Neighborhood Preparedness classes. Provo and Orem have run a combined monthly class, 6 to 7 p.m. on third Thursdays, at the Orem City Emergency Operations Center (56 North State Street) and Provo Fire Station No. 2 (2737 North Canyon Road). 2026 topics included fire extinguishers, ham radio basics and financial preparedness. Both cities say the remaining 2026 classes were canceled, and Provo says it plans quarterly meetings starting in 2027, with schedules announced at the start of the year.
• CERT. Orem says Community Emergency Response Team training is taught online by the University of Utah, at your own pace, covering fire safety, light search and rescue and disaster medical operations.
• Ham radio. Provo runs a Neighborhood Ham Radio Program to help with communications in an emergency; sign up through the city's emergency management page. Provo also offers preparedness presentations at 801-852-6455.
• Alerts. Sign up for Provo's emergency notifications through the city's Everbridge link. Our power outage guide explains when to call the city and when not to.

The ward plan

For Latter-day Saints, preparedness is also organized. The Church's guidelines for emergency response say stake leaders "counsel members to prepare themselves and follow the direction of civic authorities," and that stakes and wards, "particularly those in disaster-prone areas, may wish to perform an annual readiness assessment" and update their plans. After a disaster, stake presidents send regular status reports to the Area Seventy, and "for immediate needs, bishops may provide fast-offering assistance."

The Church's planning guide for stake and ward councils (a 2011 document still posted by the Church) shows what a ward plan contains:

• The likely disasters for the area, and what each would require.
• Critical information: contact data for members and missionaries, a map of where they live, a list of members with special needs such as the elderly and disabled, a list of members with critical skills or equipment, and contacts for police, fire, medical services and relief organizations.
• Assignments: who checks on whom, and a primary and backup gathering place for leaders after a disaster.
• First tasks: determine and report the condition of members and missionaries, reunite separated families, get injured people medical care, coordinate with civil authorities, and arrange food, shelter, sanitation and clothing "for members and others."
• Backup communication: text messages, internet, amateur radio, and in-person contact on foot or bicycle when phones fail.

The 2011 guide describes reports flowing from home teachers to quorum leaders to the bishop. Home and visiting teaching were replaced by ministering in 2018, and in practice the same idea now runs through ministering assignments: someone in the ward is supposed to know if you are safe.

What that means for you as a ward member or a neighbor:

• Make sure the ward can reach you. Keep your contact information current with the ward clerk.
• Tell someone if you will need help. If you use a wheelchair, oxygen or a medication that needs refrigeration, the ward plan's special-needs list exists for you.
• Offer what you have. Medical training, a generator, a truck, a ham radio license: wards list these.
• You do not have to be a member. The planning guide tells councils to arrange basic provisions "for members and others" and to coordinate with civil authorities and community relief organizations, so a ward's response is not limited to its own rolls.

For how wards are organized and why the neighbors knock, see our ward explainer.

A one-month start

• Week one: store water for everyone in the home for at least three days, and put a kit in the car.
• Week two: buy a week of extra groceries you normally eat and rotate them.
• Week three: build a grab-and-go bag; add copies of documents and a little cash.
• Week four: sign up for city alerts, find your gas and water shutoffs, and agree on a family meeting place and an out-of-state contact.
• Then, slowly: extend the pantry toward three months, add a few long-term staples from a home storage center, and practice in the April ShakeOut. Our hardware store guide is useful for shutoff wrenches, water containers and shelving.

Abigail Giordano

Senior Writer

Abigail Giordano is a senior writer at Provo.com covering student life, family resources, and community events across Utah Valley. Her writing focuses on making Provo more accessible and navigable for newcomers, students, and families — the practical guides that help people feel at home faster.

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