What should your family safety plan include?

A family safety plan is hugely important for folks who live in areas prone to natural disaster, such as places that experience tornadoes, floods, hurricanes, or blizzard conditions regularly. But it’s also critical to have a safety plan for things that can happen anywhere in the country, like fire or burglary. The American Academy of Pediatrics notes that, essentially, a family safety plan is a tool that helps you collect your thoughts and prepares you in case of emergency -- no matter what that emergency looks like.

Guiding Little Hands takes a look at a few things you should include in your family plan as you think about creating one or revisiting the one you already have.

Identify meeting areas both inside and outside

During inclement weather, it’s important to shelter in the safest place in your home. For most homes, that is in a central location or basement, if you have one. Ideally, there are no windows (like a bathroom or a walk-in closet). A long hallway can also work.

If an emergency happens and your family is separated, you also need to have an agreed-upon outside meeting spot so you can reunite after the fact. The Insurance Information Institute points out that outside meeting places are also a huge part of evacuation plans. This can be a landmark like a gas station, your favorite restaurant, or simply the big tree in your backyard -- wherever the safest option is at the time of the emergency. Set two or three places to ensure at least one will be safe.

Create an emergency preparedness kit

During and after an emergency, you may not have time to run around the house and grab the things you need to survive. Having a disaster readiness kit on hand that you can snatch at a moment’s notice can mean the difference between having the necessities and having nothing, in the most disastrous circumstances. Your kit should include:

Water and canned food (enough for three days for each person), along with a can opener

Toilet paper

First-aid kit

Copies of important documents

Prescription medications

Small tools such as scissors, pliers, etc.

Extra smartphone chargers

Change of clothes

Every kit will be different, but those are the basics you will need in order to survive on your own if necessary.

Do home repairs in a timely manner

As the weather ebbs and flows, no matter the season, the danger of severe storms increases. For folks in storm-prone areas, it’s important to have home repairs taken care of before inclement weather happens.

For example, you can search “window leak repair near me” on your favorite internet search engine to find a company that will meet your needs and your budget. Evaluate these kinds of companies by first reading reviews online and then by requesting quotes. Don’t forget to make sure they’re insured and licensed. The cost of window repair can range anywhere from $150 to $600, depending on what you need done and what kind of windows you have.

Practice makes perfect

You need to ensure that everyone knows every step of the strategy so that if you are separated, each member of the family will be able to survive on their own until they are reunited with the group. Practicing the plan means designating roles and responsibilities, making sure each family member is equipped with the knowledge of the outside meeting places, and has the phone information of emergency contacts just in case. Run through the plan several times (on a regular basis) to reinforce the information.

Author: Daniel Sherwin of dadsolo.com

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