Things to do - Develop an Emergency Plan to Protect Your Family in a Disaster

According to the 2019 National Household Survey (NHS) done by FEMA, 51% of respondents with one child made an emergency plan. That means almost half of families with a single child had no emergency plan. And worse, those who did not have children or who had two or more children weren’t even that likely to make an emergency plan. To learn more about the 2019 NHS results, click here.

It is important for families to plan and practice what to do during different types of disasters. The first step in planning is to recognize the types of disasters that might occur in your region. Ready.gov lists over two dozen possible types of disasters to plan for. Learn how to get emergency alerts. 

When you create your family plan, think about the needs of individual family members, including pets. Write up the plan and share it with all family members and the contact persons you identified in the plan. Practice the elements of the plan so that all family members can respond quickly and knowledgeably.

For a list of personal preparedness resources, please see this page on the Virtual Ability website: https://virtualability.org/get-ready/.

Be prepared for future disasters. Take responsibility for yourself and your family members by developing and practicing a family emergency plan.