Family emergency planning — communication plans, evacuation decisions, documents, and rehearsal that doesn't take over your life.
The paperwork and the conversations: family communication plans, evacuation decision-making, documents worth copying, and how to rehearse a plan in an afternoon.
FEMA's 2026 theme is "Americans Stand Ready." Four weeks, four sessions, and a finished household plan — built so the second week actually happens.
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The 2026 Great ShakeOut runs October 15 at 10:15 a.m. local time. USGS puts nearly 75% of the U.S. in reach of damaging shaking — here's how to run the drill.
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How to build a family evacuation and communication plan — destinations, routes, meeting points, documents, and the decisions that matter before any order comes.
Read more →A family communication plan is four specific decisions, a printed card, and one brief practice. Here's how to build one in a single sitting.
Read more →Pets change every emergency planning decision — from evacuation timing to shelter options. Here's what a complete pet preparedness plan includes and the shelter …
Read more →Which documents belong in an emergency file, how to store them so they survive an emergency, and why a digital backup isn't enough on its own.
Read more →September is National Preparedness Month. Here's a four-week structure that turns the awareness occasion into completed household preparedness — one manageable …
Read more →Shelter-in-place instructions cover multiple different hazard types — and the right household actions differ by hazard. Here's what to do for wind events, …
Read more →The out-of-area contact is the simplest piece of emergency communication planning that most households skip. Here's why it works and how to set one up.
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