Governments across Europe are encouraging households to prepare basic emergency kits like these, ready for potential crises or disruptions. Credit : Shutterstock, speedshutter Photography
From emergency kits to survival leaflets, governments want you ready. But for most people, life goes on as usual.
Across Europe, officials are sounding the alarm – not with sirens, but with advice. The message is everywhere now: get prepared. Whether it’s war, a cyberattack or a natural disaster, citizens are being told it’s time to take responsibility for their own safety.
But while governments rush to hand out leaflets, update plans and talk about ‘resilience’, much of the public seems… distracted. Between busy commutes, rising living costs and the endless scroll of social media, preparing for the worst just doesn’t seem to be on most people’s radar.
Survival guides, bunker checks, and emergency kits
Some governments aren’t holding back. In Sweden, a survival guide titled “If Crisis or War Comes” has landed in millions of letterboxes, spelling out what to do if bombs fall, power goes out or water supplies are disrupted. It’s blunt, practical and direct. Citizens are told to go indoors, seal windows and turn off ventilation. If they’re caught outside, they’re advised to lie in a ditch and listen to the radio for instructions.
Finland, which shares a long border with Russia, has been quietly preparing for decades. Bomb shelters have been mandatory under homes and offices since the 1950s, and the country now has space for nearly its entire population underground. Since the invasion of Ukraine, Finland’s government has updated guidance for surviving long power cuts, communication blackouts and military emergencies.
Even Germany has dusted off its Cold War contingency plans, updating its civil defence framework to reflect today’s threats – both digital and military.
But this isn’t just about the big players. Across Europe, a growing number of countries are urging their people to prepare for the unexpected, whether it’s a heatwave, a flood, or something far worse.
In the Netherlands, the government has encouraged residents to build 72-hour emergency kits with essentials like canned food, water, batteries and even cash. It’s about being self-sufficient, even briefly, if systems fail.
In France, the Red Cross has called on families to prepare a ‘go-bag’ that could sustain them for 24 to 48 hours in the face of extreme weather or displacement.
Belgium’s Crisis Centre offers similar advice: keep a torch, a basic first aid kit, bottled water and a battery-powered radio at home, just in case.
Even in Spain, where the government hasn’t issued formal advice, public concern is growing. A recent poll showed that 40 per cent of Spaniards are considering preparing emergency kits amid rising fears of war and climate disaster.
Governments push preparedness, but most people aren’t listening
Despite all these efforts, the reality is this: most people aren’t preparing. And many simply don’t feel the urgency.
It’s not that they don’t care. It’s that the threats, while real, feel abstract. For countries like Finland or the Baltics, the memory of invasion is still fresh. But for others – like the UK, Italy or Portugal – the idea of war on their doorstep feels distant, even impossible.
Claudia Major, a leading expert on security and defence, says to CNN that this is the biggest challenge of all. “You can update protocols and shelters, but if the public isn’t ready – mentally and emotionally – it won’t matter.” According to her, the real vulnerability in many Western countries lies in the ‘grey zone’ between peace and war: cyberattacks, disinformation campaigns, supply chain disruption.
And while leaders like NATO’s Secretary-General are calling for a ‘wartime mindset‘, Major warns that fear won’t be enough. “It’s not about scaring people. It’s about shifting the culture. And that takes time.”
Europe’s biggest risk: thinking crisis could never come
For many, preparing for war still feels like something from the past – or from someone else’s problem. But history has a way of catching up.
Back in the Cold War, Britain’s ‘Protect and Survive’ campaign told people to whitewash their windows and build shelters out of kitchen doors. It was widely mocked, especially because it arrived during a period when most people didn’t believe a nuclear war was even possible.
Today, the advice is more grounded, more psychological, and more focused on small, practical steps. But the public’s reaction? Often the same: disbelief, scepticism, or just plain distraction.
So as governments across Europe quietly ramp up their readiness plans, the question lingers: are we actually ready to listen?
Because no matter how advanced the warning system or how detailed the guide, it won’t matter if no one bothers to read it.
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