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Is Your Family Ready?

Categories: General, Natural Disasters

Mother, young son, and father smiling  We’re pleased to welcome Tala Hooban from the Administration on Children and Families to Public Health Matters. Tala works in ACF’s Office of Human Services Emergency Preparedness and Response and understands the importance of keeping families safe and together during a disaster.

I was in high school when 9/11 happened and all I remember was the chaos that ensued after.  I went to school in Northern Virginia, where many of the students’ parents worked in Washington D.C., including at the Pentagon.  It was really sad to see how many students could not get ahold of their parents because phone lines were down; this is even before cell phones were a big deal.  That was exactly the moment where a family emergency plan could have been helpful.  If you can’t get a hold of your family during and after an emergency what do you do?  Where do you meet if you are split up?  How do you reach each other?

Paper labeled emergency evacuation planPlanning for emergencies is important, especially since your family may not be together when disaster hits. Make sure to involve your children in the planning process, when you include children they’re more likely to remember the plan and act on it. Also be sure your children know what to do if they’re at school.

Now that I work for an agency focused on child and family safety I’m even more aware of the importance of being prepared to ensure safety and a smooth recovery process.

Here are some tips you can try with your family:

Communication strategy – how would you contact each other after the event?  Phone lines may be down, but don’t forget social media outlets (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, etc.) to communicate your wellbeing or whereabouts.  Also, memorize a couple of important family cell phone numbers.  You can carry an important contact information card instead and be sure to include things like your child’s school contact information, child care center or Head Start Center’s contact information.  Provide a card to your child with different information, such as parent contact information and emergency contact information.

Evacuation plan – make sure to know multiple ways out of your house and practice evacuating two times pear year.  Have at least two places where your family can meet in case you are split up or just not together at the time, one meeting place in your neighborhood and one away from your neighborhood.

-  Get involved – in your neighborhood watch, parent teacher association, make sure you are aware of your child’s school, child care or Head Start Center’s emergency preparedness and evacuation plans.  If you want your neighborhood or schools to be prepared make sure you partake in the changes.

Emergency kit – a kit for the home in case you have to stay there for a longer period of time.  For a complete shopping list of things you can include in this kit, please visit www.ready.gov.  If you have a baby in the house, make sure you don’t forget to have extra diapers, wipes, bottles, baby food, etc.  It may be helpful to have your child’s favorite toy, book, etc. to keep a calm and happy child whether you have to evacuate or stay home for a prolonged period of time.

ACF logoFollow ACF’s Office of Human Services Emergency Preparedness and Response (OHSEPR) on Facebook and Twitter for preparedness tips all month long.

Public Comments

Comments listed below are posted by individuals not associated with CDC, unless otherwise stated. These comments do not represent the official views of CDC, and CDC does not guarantee that any information posted by individuals on this blog is correct, and disclaims any liability for any loss or damage resulting from reliance on any such information. Read more about our comment policy ».

  1. September 12, 2012 at 1:41 pm ET  -   Michael Williams

    As a child growing up in the 80s, we were always taught to have a “safety” word that only my sister, parents, and I knew. If something happened that required an outside individual to come pick us up or in any way interact with them, they were to pass the “safety” word to us. This let us know that our parents had actually sent them. Is that still sound advice? Or are there new measures?

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  2. September 16, 2012 at 9:24 pm ET  -   A.R.

    I am trying to get in touch with the Public Health Matters blog administrator or editor. Is there an email address I can write to apart from the massive cdcinfo address?

    many thanks!

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  3. September 17, 2012 at 11:09 pm ET  -   Aswin

    Alerting children and families at the time of disaster is essential.Keeping the first aid kit at school,colleges,buses,trains even at highway tollgates and check post must be made compulsory

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  4. September 25, 2012 at 7:32 am ET  -   Baia Mare

    Like Bmcity , me and my familiy will it be ready !

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  5. October 9, 2012 at 1:58 am ET  -   fasting

    Yes, keeping first aid is necessary we don’t no what happen when we are working ,in the disaster time we use first aid. It made compulsory to make advances steps like keeping vehicles to scape immediately.

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