Make A Plan

It’s important to talk to your friends and family about how you will communicate before, during, and after a disaster because they may not be together if and when a disaster strikes. It’s important to know how you’ll contact one another and reconnect if separated. Establishing a family meeting place that’s familiar is essential for making it easy to find one another. Below are four steps for you to create a plan today.

Make sure to update your plan based on the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recommendations due to the coronavirus.

Step 1: Put a plan together by discussing the questions below with your family, friends, or household to start your emergency plan.

1. How will I receive emergency alerts and warnings?
2. What is my shelter plan?
3. What is my evacuation route?
4. What is my family/household communication plan?
5. Do I need to update my emergency preparedness kit?
6. Check with the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and update my emergency plans due to coronavirus.
7. Do you have cloth face coverings (for everyone over 2 years old), and disinfectants?

Step 2: Consider specific needs in your household.

As you prepare your plan, tailor your plans and supplies to your specific daily living needs and responsibilities. Discuss your needs and responsibilities and how people in the network can assist each other with communication, care of children, business, pets, or specific needs like operating medical equipment. Create your network for specific areas where you need assistance. Keep in mind some of these factors when developing your plan:

• Different ages of members within your household
• Responsibilities for assisting others
• Locations frequented
• Dietary needs
• Medical needs including prescriptions and equipment
• Disabilities or access and functional needs including devices and equipment
• Languages spoken
• Cultural and religious considerations
• Pets or service animals
• Households with school-aged children

Step 3: Fill out a Family Emergency Plan

Download and fill out a family emergency plan or use it as a guide to creating your own.

• Emergency Plan for Parents (PDF)

Step 4: Practice your plan with your family/household

This article was repurposed from the Department of Homeland Security and FEMA website “https://www.ready.gov.” To view the original article, visit https://www.ready.gov/plan