On May 17, the World Health Organization declared the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda a Public Health Emergency of International Concern — only the highest-tier designation WHO issues. This particular outbreak involves the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, which complicates the response significantly: unlike the better-known Zaire strain, there is no licensed vaccine or specific therapeutic for Bundibugyo. Early supportive care is currently the primary treatment option.
As of late May, more than 1,200 suspected and confirmed cases and at least 264 deaths have been reported. Cross-border spread has already occurred, with an imported case confirmed in Uganda's capital, Kampala. U.S. airports including JFK have activated enhanced traveler screening protocols. The CDC and WHO both note that domestic risk to Americans remains low — but the PHEIC declaration signals that international coordination has been formally triggered, which happens rarely and for good reason.
The absence of a licensed treatment is the detail most worth tracking. Containment in this outbreak depends entirely on public health infrastructure: case detection, contact tracing, isolation, and safe burial practices — all of which are being conducted in one of the world's most conflict-affected and remote regions.
The Biological Attack and Pandemic scenarios in MyPlann both address household readiness for pathogen events — from isolation planning and supply buffers to communication protocols and medication management.
The U.S.-Iran conflict that began in late February triggered an Iranian closure of the Strait of Hormuz — the passage through which roughly 20 percent of the world's oil supply moves. A ceasefire reached in early April briefly eased tensions, but that agreement broke down in late May when Iran resumed military activity near the strait and the U.S. responded with what it called defensive strikes. Both sides are now accusing the other of violations as diplomatic talks continue under significant pressure.
The Strait of Hormuz isn't just an energy story. When this chokepoint is disrupted, the effects ripple outward: fuel costs rise, global freight becomes more expensive and less reliable, and the supply chains that move everyday goods — food, medicine, manufactured products — all absorb that pressure. The disruption is already being described as contributing to a global fuel crisis, and experts monitoring food security note that Iran-war-related price spikes for fuel and fertilizer are adding to existing supply vulnerabilities.
The situation remains active and unresolved. How it develops over the coming weeks will determine whether this becomes a short-term market disruption or something households need to prepare for more concretely.
The Grid Down scenario addresses extended supply chain disruption, fuel scarcity, and building household resilience when the infrastructure that daily life depends on becomes unreliable.
Multiple major forecasting agencies — NOAA, the UK Met Office, and the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts — are warning of a potentially historic El Niño event taking shape in 2026. Pacific Ocean surface temperatures are running well above normal, and some projections suggest this could challenge records held by the strongest El Niño events in modern history. NOAA gives a one-in-four chance of it reaching "very strong" intensity — a threshold crossed only a handful of times ever.
For U.S. households, a Super El Niño raises risk across several categories simultaneously: more severe heat waves, elevated wildfire risk across the Northwest and Great Plains, increased drought in some regions, heavier flooding and storms in others, and potential crop yield impacts that affect food prices. Climate scientists note that effects could persist into 2027, and that the combination of a strong El Niño layered on top of an already-warming baseline could produce conditions without modern precedent.
This isn't a single event to prepare for — it's a period of elevated probability across multiple weather-driven risks, running through at least the end of the year.
The Hurricane and extreme weather scenarios address power outages, heat emergencies, water supply disruption, and household readiness when severe weather events drive an extended crisis.
MyPlann maps your real preparedness level against every scenario in this brief — and shows you exactly what to address first. Free during early access.
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