A household plan you can actually use

Start with the people, places and decisions that matter most.

Write down your people
List household members, trusted contacts and an out-of-area contact. Include accessibility needs, language preferences, mobility help and service animals. Keep medical details in a separate protected record.

Choose meeting places
Pick one meeting point near home and another outside your neighborhood. Write the actual addresses, alternate routes and who can collect children or help a neighbor. Ask schools and care providers about their release procedures.

Plan for a lost connection
Agree when and how to check in, who will relay messages and where a paper copy of the plan lives. Keep phone numbers on paper. Texts may sometimes get through when voice calls do not; no communication method is guaranteed.

Know your evacuation triggers
Follow current instructions from local authorities. Identify several routes and transport options. Plan for fuel, medications, mobility equipment and pets. Do not wait for this software or a map to confirm an official evacuation order.

Practice and update
Walk through your plan together. Check contact details, supplies, batteries and document copies after a move or household change, and on a regular schedule. Keep the plan available offline.

Plan for an ordinary weekday as well as a night at home
Write down where household members are normally located at different times. A plan that assumes everyone is already in the living room may not work when someone is at school, at a workplace or using public transport. Discuss the relevant collection and release arrangements with the organization involved. Identify who has permission to collect a child or assist a dependent adult. Do not assume that a person can leave work immediately or drive through a closed area. Add a simple alternate arrangement that does not depend on a single vehicle, phone or helper. Keep the relevant contact information available to the people who have agreed to those roles.

Separate a household preference from an official instruction
Mark which decisions the household can make in advance and which must respond to current conditions. You can choose contacts, prepare bags and identify possible destinations. You cannot decide ahead of time that a closed road is usable or that remaining at home will always be safe. Write the local official information sources into the plan and explain how instructions can change the household’s preferred route or destination. Stored references and maps support preparation; they do not override emergency directions. If information conflicts, seek current authoritative clarification when possible rather than using a confident AI answer as the deciding authority.

Give each person a usable version
A long master plan is not the right format for every household member. Prepare an age-appropriate explanation for children and the accessible formats the household needs, with the person’s participation. A short contact card, a large-print page or a translated summary may be more useful than another dense document. Keep shared copies limited to the information necessary for their purpose. Place the plan somewhere people can actually find it and explain the meaning of any labels. Ask someone other than the main organizer to describe the first steps using only their copy. Correct what is unclear instead of assuming everyone remembers the original discussion.

Turn gaps into small assigned tasks
After the first discussion, make a separate action list. A gap might be confirming a destination, obtaining a suitable pet carrier, checking an accessible transport option or replacing an unreadable contact sheet. Give each task an owner and a realistic review date. Mark arrangements as unconfirmed until they have actually been checked. This prevents a beautifully printed plan from implying that every dependency is already solved. Review the remaining tasks during normal household routines and after important changes. Keep the plan concise while allowing the supporting notes to hold details. Progress is easier to maintain when the next action is concrete and small.

Fill in your plan
Near-home meeting point: __________________
Outside-area meeting point: __________________
Out-of-area contact: __________________
Transport / assistance: __________________
School / care arrangements: __________________
Next practice date: __________________

Original Best Survival App guide and worksheet. Share with attribution. General preparation information; check current local guidance. Reviewed November 1, 2026. Further reading (internet required): https://www.ready.gov/plan