Emergency Tips Every Family Needs
Today it’s all about a few emergency tips every family needs. When an emergency comes our way, it’s how we respond at that moment that may determine whether everyone in your family gets out alive.
Whether it’s a house fire, flood, or an F5 tornado that’s ripping and tearing its way down your street, everyone in your family needs to be ready for it.
You may not like the idea of scaring your 5-year-old about emergencies, but storms, fires, and floods aren’t going to wait around for them to grow up. Keep reading to discover emergency tips every family needs.
Talking with your children now about these emergencies and discussing a plan of action for each scenario is crucial. By preparing them for these deadly encounters now, you’ll help them better cope during these situations so that they’re not left with their feet frozen to the floor. Check out these emergency tips that every family needs.
When you have smaller children, it’s important that they know some basic information if they were to ever get lost or separated from you after an emergency has taken place. They should be able to tell first responders their first and last name, their phone number, and their home address.
A reader, Jan, gave me this awesome tip: get dog tags for your little ones with their address and phone number on it. Thread the dog tags on their shoelaces. She also mentioned teach them their address by making a song out of it. Brilliant tip!
While you don’t want to scare your children about emergencies and threats, it’s important that they are aware of them so they can respond correctly if that type of emergency were to ever happen.
It’s best to always plan ahead and prepare your children what to do during an emergency instead of hoping for the best. Here are a few ways in which you can develop a family emergency plan that every member of your family should know about. In case you missed this post: How to Put an Evacuation Plan Together
Practice each and every one of these emergency scenarios every couple of months just to keep things fresh in your childrens’ minds.
Keep a list of important phone numbers in a place that your children will always be able to easily find. These numbers include fire, police, poison control, school, relatives, and mom and/or dad’s work and cell number.
It also wouldn’t hurt to leave your address written down so your child can quickly inform emergency respondents. Printable: FSM Emergency Contact Info
Walk your family around the house and discuss every possible escape route for every room. It’s a good idea to not only go over it, but to practice these escape routes every once in a while so that your children will know how to put them into action.
Also, make sure to have a number of a relative or friend that lives outside your immediate area. That’s because you want a contact who hopefully wasn’t affected by the emergency. That way they can know where you are after a natural disaster has occurred. They will be your point person that can alert others of your condition and whereabouts.
Purchasing a small safe that is fire rated and waterproof to store your important documents. You could also consider a rated filing cabinet for your important documents, although it may not protect them as well.
Put in this safe place all of your family’s social security cards, birth certificates, marriage certificate, health insurance information, bank, credit card, and investment account numbers, latest tax return, copies of medical records, pictures, and other things of importance.
Food Storage Moms FREE Printable Emergency Binder Download (Please be patient it takes a little time to download to your computer as a PDF)
Every home should have an emergency kit and your children should know where to find it. It’s not a bad idea to have one ready in your home, and also one that’s kept in your car. Here’s a checklist of a 72-hour emergency kit for reference.
Depending on the age of family members, try to determine and go over with your family at least three meeting spots in case of certain emergencies. One for fire in your home, another if you need to move outside your neighborhood, and one that’s further away from the affected area if you all need to quickly evacuate.
Always be sure to have up-to-date batteries in your smoke detectors, and make certain that you have them on every floor of your home. Keep one close to the kitchen (where most fires start), near or in every bedroom (based on local codes), and even in the basement. Smoke Detectors and Carbon Monoxide Monitors
There are certain people who make the decision not to maintain their home, car, or property insurance because of financial strain, but the truth is, you really can’t afford not to.
Don’t be one of those people. An emergency is already devastating enough on a family, but not being able to replace what you lost could leave your family in a far more threatening financial position.
Preparing your family for emergencies can be the difference between life and death. You may not like the idea of sharing this type of information with your children because you believe that it may cause too much anxiety for them.
Think about how much worse it would be if that emergency did happen and how much more scared they would be because they didn’t know what to do.
What are some other emergency tips that families should know about that may not have made this list? Has your family ever been put in one of these situations? If so, how did each family member respond? Please keep prepping. May God bless this world.
Copyright Images: House Damaged Deposit photos_7761549_s-2019
We’re in Tornado Alley, Central Oklahoma. Our long-time favorite TV meteorologist trained generations to ‘put your shoes on during storms in case of walking on broken glass’. He’d tell kids to ‘go get your bike helmets and put those on’. We have a central big closet with blankets, big pillows, flashlights and a weather radio that cranks for power. We play card games – sometimes by flashlight! – until storms blow over. It’s our fraidy-hole, and we’ll even find our dog in there when it thunders!
I’m right there with ya Linda. I’ve never regretted going and waiting. I even ran a power cord down there for a fan and phone charger at least until we do lose the power. I’d rather be there and nothing happen than be out when it hits.
I’m over on the west side of city area. Gary England was good at what he did.
Hi Matt, great comment as always!! Linda
Hiya, Fellow-Okie, Matt! Gary England left us some kind of super-wonderful legacy, touched countless lived, and obviously saved countless lives with his ‘training’ over the years. I like your idea of the fan and power-backup, and have been looking at options. Thanks for that. Best, and thanks again. Okie-Linda
Hi Linda, I love your term fraidy-hole!! Oh, the thunder and the dogs, ohhhhh!!! I love hearing you are prepared with the stuff you will need in case of a tornado or other disaster! Way to go! Linda
You’re a terrific cheerleader to all your folks out here in cyberspace. Keep up the awesome work, girl!
Hi Linda, awww, you are so kind! Thank you so much! It’s people like you who keep me going! Hugs from Utah, Linda
Wonderful planning. So many houses not being built with basements.
I loved that your dog understood.
We had a Sheltie who HATED baths. Our bath tub was our designated shelter.
I walked by the bathroom one day, looked in, and the dog was standing in the tub.
Went immediately to check the weather….
Hi Mary, oh my gosh, pets are amazing!!!! I love this! Linda
Hi Linda, when my kids were too little to know phone number and address, I got them dog tags and threaded them on their shoe laces. Also to teach them the address make it into a tune to help them remember. Stay safe!
Hi Jan, oh my gosh, what a great idea!!!!!! The song is another great tip! I’m adding this idea to my post! I LOVE it!!!! Thank you, Linda
It is important to look at all the scenarios that constitute emergencies where you live. For example, I live in Washington State: we have volcanoes (it has been 40 years since Mt St Helens erupted), earthquakes (not as often as California but we could have the Big One!), flooding on the local rivers if the rain is very heavy, possibility of tsunamis, along with the “minor” ones such as power outage, snow storms, etc.
Sometimes when I think of all the things that could happen, it gets overwhelming! But, I do have a bag under my bed with shoes, flashlight/batteries, gloves, hard hat and my bug out bags (just updated them) are next to the front door along with my car keys, a coat and my handbag. If I have to leave in an emergency – it is grab and go.
I am prepared to go or stay depending on the event so I don’t really get as overwhelmed as someone who is just now preparing! Still, I go over my preps periodically just to make sure I have what I want/need in given situations.
Fabulous stuff. We don’t have kids in my house, but they should know what to do. The people on the news always do their sort of corny preparedness segments where they place a few items and the crappiest flashlights you can buy in a plastic container. I feel that they kind of trivialize bad weather events when it comes to the preparation. They advise we put together some items in a box and we’re done.
That isn’t enough of course, it’s not some school project or exercise that is done and over in a few minutes. There is the actual storm to follow. Without scaring kids or adults, it needs to be treated as serious and everyone needs to understand what might and will happen. And emergency gear should be plentiful and accessible to everyone such as flashlights. And I think people should dress and be ready unless they be caught in their jammies or without shoes and out of reach of life saving gear when a tornado or the worse part of a hurricane hits. Even if one gets comfy, they need to be ready to evacuate or move and take cover.
Right before a storm or hurricane approaches, I prepare clean clothing, wash linen, select comfortable clothing to wear , make sure everyone is set, pets are secured and then just wait. If everything is in place and you’re ready and hopefully nothing bad happens you’re all set and can ride it out fairly comfortable and with less anxiety.
Hi Frank, great comment as always. I love it! You are so right, the shoebox or small container will not cut getting prepared for the long term! Oh and the cheap flashlights drive me crazy! I always say “buy right the first time”. Don’t waste your money on flimsy stuff. When I want a flashlight to use it better work! Okay, off my rant!! LOL! Keep prepping my friend, Linda
Excellent article. May I have permission to use this for my preparedness class? Hurricane season is next month and June.
Hi Judy, you can use anything on my website to teach others, Thank you for asking. Linda Here are so more FREE Printables: https://www.foodstoragemoms.com/food-storage-moms-survival-tips/
Thank you very much.
Hi Judy, if you need something and can’t find it, let me know. Linda
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I’m Linda Loosli. I’m the owner and editor of Food Storage Moms. I’m so happy you’ve found us. Our goal at Food Storage Moms is to help “one family at a time.”
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Emergency Tips Every Family Needs
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