A family emergency plan records how the people in your home will get information, contact one another, and manage evacuation or shelter arrangements. It should name the people responsible for each task and explain what happens if the first arrangement falls through.
Build it with the people who use it, including children and regular caregivers. Start with a short page everyone can find and understand. Keep detailed care instructions, document copies, and supply inventories alongside it where appropriate.
Start with local risks and official information
List the emergencies relevant to your area and building. Check your local emergency-management agency's guidance, evacuation information, and alert options. Ask your building manager about arrangements that affect your home.
The CDC recommends signing up for local notifications where available and enabling Wireless Emergency Alerts on your phone. Record another source of official information in case your usual device or connection is unavailable.
For each likely hazard, write down where to find the specific instructions. Evacuation, sheltering, and a sudden home fire require different actions. Follow current directions from local officials and emergency services; a household worksheet cannot determine the safe response to every event.
Choose contacts and a check-in method
Record household phone numbers and a trusted out-of-area contact who has agreed to help exchange updates. Ask what the person can realistically do, and confirm their number directly.
The American Red Cross recommends keeping emergency contacts in writing and on your phone. Make sure regular caregivers have the details they need. Our wallet emergency contact card guide offers a compact format for carrying them.
Agree on a short check-in message. For example:
"I am at [location]. I am with [names]. I need [help, or none]. My next update will be [time, if practical]."
This is an example to adapt, not a promise that messages will be delivered. The CDC advises having multiple ways to communicate; texts may get through when calls do not. Decide which alternatives your household can actually use and who will collect updates.
Keep emergency-service calls for real emergencies. Arrange any practice messages with the people receiving them.
Record meeting places and travel arrangements
Choose a meeting place outside your home for a sudden emergency and another outside your neighborhood if you cannot return. The Red Cross includes both in its planning guidance.
Give each place an exact description. Check whether everyone can reach and recognize it. A meeting place is usable only when the route and location are safe for the situation; follow official restrictions and instructions.
For evacuation planning, record:
- A possible destination and an alternative.
- Planned routes and where to find official route updates.
- Transport arrangements, including an alternative if the usual driver is away.
- Access, care, or equipment needs that affect travel.
- What must be collected separately, when there is time to do so safely.
Confirm arrangements with anyone whose home or vehicle you intend to use. Keep useful route information available on paper as well as on your device. Our household evacuation plan guide develops the destination, route, and transport checks.
Plan for the people who need support
Discuss the plan with the people it serves. Ask about communication preferences, mobility, hearing or vision needs, language, and tasks that require help. Record who has agreed to provide support and what the alternative is if that person is unavailable.
For ongoing health needs, the CDC recommends identifying relevant care facilities near home and along an evacuation route. Ask the care team or equipment supplier about individual medication, refrigeration, power, or transport arrangements. Keep those instructions current and protect private medical details.
Parents and guardians should obtain the school's or daycare's emergency communication and reunification procedures. The CDC's information guidance specifically recommends this. Confirm authorized pickup arrangements with the institution; a name on your household page does not change its release procedures.
Include regular visitors and people who stay only part of the year. Update the plan when a caregiver, household member, or support arrangement changes.
Coordinate school pickup and family reunification
Ask each school, daycare, or regular activity provider how it will notify you, where reunification may take place, and which adults are authorized to collect your child. Check the identification requirements with the institution and keep your contact details current.
The CDC's reunification guidance recommends involving children in planning, giving them contact cards to carry in a school bag, and helping older children learn important names and phone numbers.
For each child, record these arrangements privately:
| Arrangement | What to confirm |
|---|---|
| Usual location | School, childcare, or activity contact |
| Main pickup adult | Authorization confirmed with the provider |
| Alternative adult | Authorization and availability checked |
| Updates | Official notification method and where changes appear |
| Care needs | Location of current instructions and agreed support |
| Contact card | Numbers checked and suitable details included |
Discuss how adults will tell one another that a pickup has happened. A hypothetical family might assign one adult to collect a child and another to update the out-of-area contact. Confirm those roles together; do not assume both people will be available.
Families using more than one home should agree which version of the plan is current and what information each caregiver needs. Follow the school's procedures and any applicable care arrangements.
Help children understand their part
Use simple explanations matched to your child's understanding and communication needs. The Red Cross recommends learning the emergency plans at places children regularly attend and reinforcing them at home.
An adult can show a younger child the contact card and explain who will help. An older child can practice finding a number or explaining the agreed check-in method. Keep decisions about transport, supervision, and hazardous tasks with responsible adults.
Invite questions and correct misunderstandings. After a disaster, the CDC recommends truthful, understandable answers and opportunities for children to discuss concerns. Include familiar routines and comfort needs when discussing a temporary change of location.
Include pets in the destination plan
Check where your animals can stay before treating a destination as confirmed. The Red Cross pet-preparedness guidance notes that hotels and shelters may have restrictions and that pets at Red Cross shelters may need accommodation in a separate location.
Record the person responsible for each animal, the carrier or leash location, and contact details for a backup caregiver or boarding option. Include food, water, medications, and relevant records in the pet-supply check. Discuss species-specific needs with your veterinarian.
Copy this family emergency plan template
Fill in the fields together. Keep the main page brief enough to use, with separate notes for details that need more space.
| Plan field | What to record |
|---|---|
| Household and date | People covered, date checked, next review |
| Official information | Local alert service and alternative information source |
| Contacts | Household numbers, agreed out-of-area contact, backup |
| Check-ins | Message method, who receives updates, alternatives |
| Meeting places | Outside-home and outside-neighborhood locations, with exact descriptions |
| Evacuation | Destination options, routes, transport, confirmed support |
| Shelter arrangements | Where to find hazard-specific local instructions |
| Children and care | Institution procedures, authorized pickup adults, and agreed caregiver roles |
| Health and access | Location of private instructions and confirmed support arrangements |
| Pets | Destination, transport, responsible person, supplies |
| Equipment and supplies | Kit locations and items collected separately |
| Unfinished tasks | Action, responsible person, completion date |
Keep a printed copy in a known place and give suitable copies to the people involved. Review what each person needs to know before sharing sensitive information. A general household copy can point to protected records without reproducing identification numbers or detailed medical histories.
Connect responsibilities to actual supplies
Use your emergency supply inventory checklist to confirm where equipment is and whether it is usable.
Replace vague tasks with specific arrangements. "Bring the bag" needs a named person, an exact bag location, and an alternative if that person is away. Identify anything stored separately because of its care or storage requirements.
Keep an unfinished-action list. For example, "confirm accessible transport with the provider" stays open until the arrangement is agreed. Do not treat a proposed helper as confirmed.
Test the plan and revise it
Begin with a calm discussion around the table. Ask each person to find a contact, explain which meeting place applies in an example scenario, and identify one assigned task. Check whether the plan works when household members are in different places.
Practice safe, relevant elements using local guidance. Do not call emergency services for a drill or create a hazardous situation to test a response.
Write down what caused confusion. Correct missing numbers, unclear locations, inaccessible information, or responsibilities that depend on someone who is often away. Choose a review date and update all copies after changes.
Finish by confirming one open arrangement and showing another household member where the current plan is kept. Record its date so everyone can identify the latest copy.
