Emergency kit

Family emergency plan: what to agree now so you don't improvise later

Meeting points, an out-of-town contact, who picks up the kids, what happens to pets. A simple one-page plan any family can make in an evening.

Updated , 3 min read

In short

  • Agree on two meeting points: one near home and one in another neighborhood.
  • Choose a contact person in another city whom everyone in the family checks in with.
  • Everyone, including children, should know where the go bags are and how to shut off gas and water.
  • Practice once a year. A plan nobody remembers is as useful as no plan.

In the first hours after an earthquake or flood, phone networks are overloaded, roads may be blocked and family members are often in different places: at work, at school, on the road. Without a plan agreed in advance, everyone improvises, and improvising under stress leads to bad decisions.

Want to do it now? Fill in the family emergency plan generator and print a fridge sheet plus a wallet card for everyone in the family. It takes 10 minutes.

A family emergency plan isn’t complicated. It fits on one sheet and you can make it in an evening.

1. How you’ll contact each other

  • An out-of-town contact. After a local disaster it’s sometimes easier to call another region than the next street. Choose a relative or friend and tell them they’re the family “hub”. Everyone calls or texts them once they’re safe.
  • Texts rather than calls. Text messages get through more easily than calls when the network is busy. Agree a short message: “I’m OK, I’m at…”.
  • Numbers on paper. Every family member keeps a list of important numbers in their wallet or school bag.

2. Where you’ll meet

Agree two meeting points:

  1. Near home: an open space away from buildings and power lines, where you gather if you have to get out fast (a fire, after an earthquake). A corner of a park, a parking lot.
  2. Outside your neighborhood: a relative’s house, a school, a place of worship, for when you can’t get back home.

3. Who does what

Write it down:

  • who collects the children from school or daycare (and check the school’s own emergency plan);
  • who goes to elderly parents or neighbors;
  • who takes the pets;
  • who grabs the go bags.

4. What everyone needs to know

  • where the go bags and supplies are;
  • where the gas shut-off, main water valve and electrical panel are and how to use them;
  • where the fire extinguisher is and how to use it;
  • your local emergency number and what to say when you call: who you are, where you are, what happened, how many people are hurt.

5. Special needs

If your household includes people with disabilities, chronic illness, babies or elderly relatives, the plan must cover their medicines, equipment (walking aids, wheelchair, oxygen concentrator) and who helps them. If someone depends on an electrical medical device, talk to their doctor about backup power, and ask your electricity supplier whether it keeps a priority register for vulnerable customers.

6. Practice

Once a year, run a drill: call your out-of-town contact, walk to the meeting point, check the go bags. For children, make it a game. A 30-minute practice helps everyone react automatically when it really matters.

A template to fill in

Copy the list below onto a sheet, fill it in and put it on the fridge and in every go bag:

  • Out-of-town contact: name, phone
  • Meeting point near home:
  • Meeting point in another neighborhood:
  • Children’s school or daycare: address, phone
  • Family doctor: phone
  • Trusted neighbor: name, phone
  • The gas shut-off is:
  • The main water valve is:
  • The electrical panel is:
  • The go bags are:

Next step: the 72-hour emergency kit.

Frequently asked questions

At what age should children be involved?

From 4 or 5 they can learn the emergency number, their address and their parents' names. From 7 or 8 they can know the meeting point and what to do in an earthquake. Explain calmly, as a safety rule, like crossing the road.

What if I live alone?

A plan matters just as much. Agree with a neighbor or close friend to check on each other after a major event and leave them a spare key.

Sources and further reading

Preper is for general education and does not replace instructions from your local authorities or advice from a doctor. In an emergency, call your local emergency number.

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