Family Disaster Plan

Disaster can strike quickly and without warning. It can force you to evacuate your neighborhood or confine you to your home. What would you do if basic services--water, gas, electricity or telephones--were cut off? Local officials and relief workers will be on the scene after a disaster, but they cannot reach everyone right away.

Families can--and do--cope with disaster by preparing in advance and working together as a team. Follow the steps listed in this brochure to create your family's disaster plan. Knowing what to do is your best protection and your responsibility.

How do I create a family disaster plan?

There are several things you can do to gets started:

1. Conduct a home hazard hunt

   • Make a game out of it, and see how many hazards each family member can identify, or break up into teams
   • Discuss ways to mitigate or avoids these hazards
2. Identify and out-of-town contact
   • It is sometimes easier to make a long distance phone call after a disaster, than to make a local phone call.
   • Identify someone for all family members to call and check in with, in case you are not together at the time of disaster, or you get seperated.
3. Designate a meeting Place
   •  Everyone in your family needs to know where to meet outside of during an emergency.
   • You can choose someone's house, or a public place.
   • Designate a place in your neighborhood, one out of your neighborhood, and a place to meet if you have to evacuate.
4.  Collect up-to-date phone numbers and addresses for:
   • Schools
   • Places of work
   • Doctors/ Pharmacists
   • Places you frequently go to
   • Hotels you may use during an evacuation

Include any information you think may be useful. Your plan should be tailored to meet the needs of your unique situation. If you have family members with special medical needs find out how to plan for them as well.

4 STEPS TO SAFETY

1. Find out what can happen to you
2. Create a disaster plan
3. Prepare yourself and your family

4. Practice and maintain your plans

Planning Resources

   Download PDF Family Emergency Plan

  Download XLS Family Emergency Plan

Interative Planning Tool