The 20-minute family emergency plan
The plan that works is the one everyone can remember at 2 AM with no signal. It fits on a card.
Do this now
- Pick two rally points: one right outside the house (fire), one outside the neighborhood (evacuation).
- Pick one out-of-area contact — a relative in another state everyone reports to.
- Agree that in a disaster, everyone texts, nobody calls. Texts get through jammed networks; calls don't.
- Walk the house once: point at the water, gas, and breaker shutoffs so every adult and teen has touched them.
- Write it all on paper cards — one per wallet and backpack.
Why out-of-area?
Local networks jam in a local disaster. A text out of the area often gets through when a call across town won't — so the family reports to Aunt Kim in another state, and Aunt Kim relays. One hub, no circular searching.
What goes on the card
- Both rally points, written as addresses
- The out-of-area contact's name and number
- Each family member's cell, school, and workplace
- Medical notes that matter: allergies, medications, conditions
- Policy numbers: home/renters, auto, health
Phones die, and the numbers you actually know by heart probably stop at two. Paper doesn't need a charger.
Practice is the plan
Run it once: everyone walks to rally point one, everyone sends the out-of-area text. Ten minutes, once a year — that's the difference between a plan and a document.
Do not
- Don't make the plan live only in one parent's head — or one parent's phone.
- Don't pick a rally point nobody can walk to.
- Don't rely on calling each other — networks jam; text the hub instead.
- Don't store the only copy digitally.
Common questions
What should a family emergency plan include?
Two meeting places (near home and out of the neighborhood), one out-of-area contact everyone reports to by text, each person's key phone numbers, medical notes, and where the utility shutoffs are — all written on paper cards.
Why do texts work when calls don't in a disaster?
Voice calls need a continuous open channel on congested networks; a text is a tiny burst that can queue and retry. That's why the plan says text the hub, don't call around.
How often should we practice the plan?
Once a year is enough to keep it real — walk to the rally point and have everyone send the out-of-area text.
Sources — official guidance
Before you lose signal
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