There’s a chance that your family will not all be together when an emergency happens – planning how you will contact each other is critical. Please keep in mind that phone systems may be down and the power may be out as well. Select one family member as a primary out-of-state contact. Phone lines congested with calls of relatives checking on you as well as local calls may flood much needed phone line usage for emergency personnel. If you are able to make a call, keep it brief – or text if you can. Another idea is to post to your Facebook account and to let out-of-state friends and relatives know that it will be one of your points of contact.
For immediate family in Sitka – fill in contact cards with numbers and addresses ahead of time, especially for children as they may forget numbers that they have known for years in a panic. Having these numbers written down will help them to remain calm and get connected as soon as possible. If they know that your family has a plan and they know where you will be during an emergency, that too, will help keep them more calm.
Print a Communications Plan for your family:
www.ready.gov/sites/default/files/FamEmePlan_2013.pdf
