How To Create A Family Evacuation Plan

Posted in Earthquake, How To, Hurricanes, Life Hacks, The Backup Plan, Tornadoes, Travel Safety by Laura Greenwald

Updated 3/23/2021

If you and your family had to evacuate your home because of a tornado, an earthquake or wildfire, where would you go?

There’s a lot to consider. “Location A is close enough to home to check on the house if we had to, but what if the entire city is affected? But if we went to Location B, how would I ever get to work?”

Is your head hurting yet?

Not to worry. A – That’s exactly why we want you to go through this exercise now and not when a firefighter is knocking at the door. And B – That’s also why we suggest that you choose three locations and opt for the one that fits your needs if an emergency ever rears its ugly head.

A great #EvacuationPlan has two objectives:

1) To figure out the best location for your evacuation

2) To help you gather your family and get you safely to your location

First we’ll walk you through choosing your locations and sketching out a plan. Once the plans are set, put the details on your family’s emergency wallet cards. If you want, you can also give a card to the person you chose to be your out-of-area contact. And if you don’t have emergency wallet cards, don’t worry – we’ve got you covered!

How To Choose The Perfect Locations

Location One: A location Near Your Home, that you can use if you cannot stay in your home, but the area around it is still safe and secure.

Location Two: A location Outside of Your Immediate Area, that you can use if you cannot stay in your area, but the cities around you are still safe and secure.

Location Three: A location Out of State, if your own state is uninhabitable.

With three locations you’ll be prepared no matter what the emergency. You’ll just go down your list, choose the location you need, and be on your way. You and the members of your immediate family will know where to gather and what to do, even if everyone is away from home in the middle of a busy day.

The Right Location

Before you try to zero in on a perfect location, come up with as many different locations as you can that you and your family would be able to use for evacuation.

As you consider each location, think about:

The needs of the people traveling with you
How you’ll get there (car, bus, plane)
Any pets that will be traveling with you

Does It Have What You Need?

Once you’re pretty certain you have the right places, consider whether this location has what you and your family would actually need.

For instance if would need to stay in that location for two or three weeks, would it be close enough to the stores or services your family might need, like pharmacies, clothing, banks and doctors?
Would you be able to get to work from that location, or are you able to work from home?
Does it have the furniture and supplies necessary for two or three weeks?

We Have A Winner! Make That Three Winners!

No location is perfect, so if you came up with one or two things your location would be lacking, be sure to note them on your Family Evacuation Plan, so that you can take care of it before you get there.

The Staging Area

Now that you’ve chosen your locations, choose two places for you and your family to gather during an emergency, so that you can travel to your evacuation location together. One place should be near your home or work and the other farther from your home in case your area is completely inaccessible.

Put the addresses and phone numbers of these two meeting places on your family’s emergency cards.

Appoint An Out Of Town Contact

It’s also a good idea to appoint an out of town contact to help you while your family deals with the aftermath of an emergency.

Even though you might not be able to call people right in your own area after an emergency, you can often call long distance. A distant friend can be a touch point for the entire family until communication is restored.

Once you choose an out of town relative or friend as a contact, check with them to make sure that they’re willing to help. If so, give them a copy of your emergency plan and wallet card, so they’ll be able to help, if the need ever arises.

Creating Your Plan

Grab a copy of our Family Evacuation Plan, or if you have our book Get Your Stuff Together, you’ll find a copy in the back of the book. Here are a few questions to answer before you draft your plan:

Who Is Evacuating With You?
Who Will Do What?
Temporary Housing
Transportation Plans/Travel Information
Pet Information
Out of State and Local Contacts
Contact Information For Everyone Who Will Be Evacuating With You As Well As Your Out of Town Contact.
- Their cell phone/school/office numbers
- Email addresses
- Twitter and Facebook account names.
- Any other information that can put you in immediate touch with them, even if one or two modes of communication are down.

Making Your Plan Easy To Access

Review the plans with your spouse and adult family members. Once they’re set, put that information on your family’s emergency wallet cards. If you don’t already have your own, click the link to download ours. It might be a good idea to give a card to the person you chose to be your out of area contact, too.

And while you’re at it, store a copy in your family’s cell phones as well, in case an emergency occurs while you’re away from home.

Print, scan or make three copies of the Evacuation Plan, and store it in at least three secure, damage-proof locations. That way if one or two of the locations are inaccessible, you’ll still be able to grab the information you need.

If your Plan is on paper, you can place it:

In your watertight Plastic Evacuation Bin. Only place the documents that you actually need in this bin. If you’ll also have access to copies of your vital documents in your safe deposit box, then don’t take anything with you that you would worry about if it were lost.
In a safe deposit box or water/fireproof safe in your own city.
With your emergency contacts or with relatives in the city where you’ll be evacuating.

If your Plan is on computer, you can place it:

On a password-protected flash drive or portable hard drive, and take them with you during evacuation on a key ring or in your evacuation bin.
On a password-protected online file repository or even the file directory of your family’s personal web site. This way if you need a copy of your information or forms quickly, you can retrieve them from any Internet-enabled computer.
Save a link to the Plan on you and your family’s smartphones, so that you can all instantly access and use the plan whenever you need it.

Anything Else To Add?

Is there any other information you need, to deal with a medical emergency while evacuated or away from home? If so, scan or make copies of that information and place it in the same folder as your completed medical history forms.

If you need help creating Medical History Forms for your family, take a look at our blog post.

Have Fun Getting Your Stuff Together!

Keep Everything You Love Safe | The Book Inspired By The Blog

Keep Everything You Love Safe, is filled with quick, easy, 5 minute steps you can take right now, to get everything that’s important to you organized, safe, sound and accessible. Each section covers a different area, from backing up and fixing family photos, home movies and music, to vital documents, medical and financial information and even getting your digital life in order. Paperback Or Instant Download

At Your Fingertips | Make Your Smartphone Even Smarter

What if I told you, there was something you have with you right now, that can give you the support, information & ability you need to keep everyone and everything you love safe and sound, PLUS the power to gather your family in seconds no matter where they are. What is it? It’s your smartphone! At Your Fingertips is an easy to read, easy to use guide that turns your smartphone into your very own life preserver. Paperback Or Instant Download

How To Choose An Evacuation Location

Posted in Earthquake, How To, Hurricanes, Life Hacks, The Backup Plan, Tornadoes by Laura Greenwald

Updated 3/23/2021

The day after the Nepal Earthquake, the Joplin Tornadoes and Superstorm Sandy millions of people woke up to the reality of having to evacuate their homes and businesses.

The only good thing about Sandy being a hurricane and not an earthquake, was that residents had a few days to figure out where to go and what to do, when they received the order to evacuate.

But as anyone watching even five minutes of either the earthquake, tornado or hurricane coverage quickly realized, thousands of the people who were told to evacuate, stayed right where they were. Others evacuated not because they had a plan of where to go and what to do, but because they had no other choice. They’re currently sitting in a shelter or in a friend’s spare room, with absolutely no idea what they’re going to do next.

What about you? If that was your neighborhood and your family, and the firefighter knocked on YOUR door, where would you go? Why are we asking this question?

Because you have to know where you’re going , before you can get there!

Here’s how to do it quickly and easily.

1. Choose three different locations , because that will give you and your family a variety of choices that will keep you safe, no matter what circumstances you might face.

One location should be near your neighborhood, to be used in an emergency that only impacts your home.
One location should be out of your immediate area but in the same state . This is for a regional emergency.
One location should be out of state, for situations with widespread danger, like a wildfire or an earthquake.

2. How To Choose A Great Location

Before you zero in on the perfect location, come up with as many different locations as you can that you and your family can use for evacuation.

As you consider each location, think about:

The needs of the people traveling with you
How you’ll get there (car, bus, plane)
Any pets that will be traveling with you

3. Do Your Locations Have What You Need?

Once you’re certain you have the right places, consider whether each location will actually work for you and your family.

For instance if would need to stay in that location for two or three weeks, would it have everything that you and your family would need?

Would it be close enough to the stores or services your family might need, like pharmacies, clothing, banks and doctors?

Would you be able to get to work from that location, or are you able to work from home?

Does it have the furniture and supplies you would need to sustain you for two or three weeks?

4. We Have A Winner! Make That Three Winners

No location is perfect, so if you came up with one or two things your location would be lacking, be sure to note that on your Family Evacuation Plan, so that you can take care of it before you get there.

Speaking of your plan, once you have your locations set, grab a copy of our Family Evacuation Plan, or if you have our book Get Your Stuff Together, you’ll find a copy in the back of the book. It will take you through a couple of quick steps to help you create a complete evacuation plan for your family.

5. Making Your Plan Accessible

Print, scan or make three copies of the Evacuation Plan, and store it in at least three secure, damage-proof locations. That way if one or two of the locations are inaccessible, you’ll still be able to grab the information you need.

And store a copy in your cell phone as well, in case an emergency occurs while you’re away from home.

Want to download a copy of these instructions? Click here and save the PDF version to your computer.

Here is the link to part two of this series, How To Create Your Family Evacuation Plan.

Have Fun Getting Your Stuff Together!

Keep Everything You Love Safe | The Book Inspired By The Blog

At Your Fingertips | Make Your Smartphone Even Smarter

How To Access Your Money Wherever & Whenever You Need It

Posted in Earthquake, How To, Hurricanes, Life Hacks, The Backup Plan, Tornadoes, wildfires by Laura Greenwald

Updated 3/22/2021

A firefighter knocks on your door. You open it and he tells you that there’s an emergency in the neighborhood affecting your home and that have only 10 minutes to evacuate. Now. And chances are, you won’t be able to set foot in your home for three or more days.

How much money would you need to take care of yourself and your family until you get back home?

Five hundred dollars?

A thousand?

Do you have that much cash in the house?

And even if you do, is it really safe to carry that much cash around with you during a disaster?

Remember the thousands of people fleeing Hurricane Maria, Hurricane Harvey or California’s Camp, Thomas and Mendocino Wildfires? Definitely not!

What you really need are two different things.

A specific amount of cash & ACCESS to your money.

Let’s find out how much you would need to take care of your family…

Grab a pencil and paper and answer the following questions.

If you needed to leave your area due to a disaster evacuation, could you still access money from your bank in a different neighborhood? A different city? A different state?
Do you know how much money you can take out of your primary bank’s ATM at one location? During one 24 hour period?
If you could only use cash on hand for one to three weeks, how much cash would you and your family need in your wallet to take care of your normal expenses?
Do you know how much credit you have available on your credit cards? Is it possible for you to get an emergency increase? If so, do you know how to get one?
If there was a disaster in your geographical area that affected workplace as well as your home, would you still receive a paycheck from your company? Do you receive you check via direct deposit, via mail or do you physically pick it up?

Well how did you do?

If you’re like most people, you were scratching your head by the second question and running for your statements and calculator by the third.

Here are a few recommendations to make sure that you can access your money, any time and any place that you need it.

Bank Accounts/Access to Cash

Know how much you and your family would most likely need for up to five days and then up to three weeks, without access to your local bank. Here’s a great rule of thumb.

Groceries + Pharmacy + Gasoline + 2 Urgent Care Co-Payments + 25%

What you usually spend in one week on: Groceries, Pharmacy/Drug Store, Gasoline and your co-payment for two urgent care/doctor/ER visits. Once you have that figure, add 25% more to cover unexpected expenses. An easy way to save the money, is to put away a certain amount every week — let’s say $20, until you meet your goal.
If you live in a disaster prone area, consider keeping a certain amount of cash ($200-400), in a safe at home or in your evacuation location.
Know how much you can take out of the bank per ATM and per day.
Place a copy of a bank statement/check from each bank account and copies of your credit cards and debit cards (front and back) on a password protected flash drive in your emergency bin, in your safe deposit box and in a safe deposit box in your evacuation location.
If that new account won’t be your main account, be sure to deposit a little money in it or make a small ATM withdrawal every few months to keep it active.
Make sure that one of your bank accounts is with a major bank that gives you nationwide access to your money. We’ll get into this more in the next section.

Credit Cards

Know your credit limit and the customer service number you would have to call to temporarily raise it. Make sure that you note those limits, customer service numbers and any rules or guidelines on your Vital Information Grab It & Go Form.
If you have more than one credit card or debit card in your wallet, choose at least two different brands. For example a Visa and a MasterCard or Discover card. That way if one is not accepted at a store or restaurant, the other one probably will be. Going from one restaurant to another with a car full of hungry children, isn’t fun!

The most important part of this exercise is…

Knowing how much money you need to have at your fingertips

Where to keep it, so that you can access even more money quickly and easily.

What About Your Bank?

When you chose your current bank, you probably considered things like their good interest rates, proximity to your home or their friendly tellers.

Making sure that you had 24/7 access to your money in an emergency, wherever you are, probably wasn’t in your top ten criteria. Unfortunately good interest rates and friendly tellers aren’t going to help you feed your children and fill up your gas tank in an unfamiliar town.

Fortunately technology is on your side. Most major brick and mortar and online banks give you access to your money wherever you are in the country. With them, you can bank online, transfer money between accounts or to other people, and even deposit checks into an ATM which can be a huge selling point if that paycheck you’re holding is going to help you exist for the coming week. Another perq is nationwide access to ATMs nationwide or fee rebates if you have to use another bank’s ATM. With a debit card, you can even make purchases or get cash back without a fee, if you can’t find an ATM.

Just remember, if this new account won’t be your main account, be sure to use the ATM card or make a deposit every now and then, so it remains open.

And It’s Not Just About Disasters…

By the way, it doesn’t take a natural disaster for you to need immediate access to your money. What about a medical emergency? You’re in the emergency room and need cash, but the hospital only has one ATM, and it’s not for your bank. Or your car could break down a hundred miles away from home. Or, as we’ve all learned the last several years, banks can be taken over by federal regulators, severely limiting depositor access for days or weeks.

So what’s the moral of the story? Actually we have two.

1. Don’t put all your eggs in one basket

2. Make sure you have baskets every place you need them.

Keep these two things in mind when managing your money, and you’ll be in better shape than 95% of your friends. But do me a favor. Once you have things set up for yourself, share what you’ve learned. Your friends will thank you for it.

Have Fun Getting Your Stuff Together!

Keep Everything You Love Safe | The Book Inspired By The Blog

At Your Fingertips | Make Your Smartphone Even Smarter

Living In A Cardboard House

Posted in Earthquake, How To, Life Hacks, The Backup Plan by Laura Greenwald

Updated 3/22/2021

At 9.0 the Fukushima Japan Earthquake was one of the fiercest, most destructive quakes of modern times.

As time goes on, the images and feelings about the quake will fade, but only for those who didn’t experience it. For the people of Japan the reality of that destruction, that DISRUPTION of their lives, is not only crystal clear, it’s ongoing as those families who were hardest hit by the quake, struggle to get back to their daily lives.

Thousands of families are taking refuge in evacuation centers like this one — cardboard walls now cordon off their private living space. The question is, do the people who have now been in this center for a month, have any way of returning to their normal lives?

Although some cities were devastated beyond recognition in the original quake, or multiple aftershocks, most were not. Which means that the families now living within the cardboard walls could probably have gotten out of the city they’re currently in, and on to a different location, within that month. They could have gone to stay with friends or relatives in other cities, where they could have been reunited with the vital documents and information they needed, so they could begin to get in touch with insurance professionals or put the kids in a new temporary school. They could have located their online stash of family photos and keepsakes to make their temporary home, or new life a little more comfortable and cozy.

They could have done all of that if they had only had one thing. A Get Back To Life Plan.

The day WE realized how important that little plan was, was a day that began like any other.

I was a stay at home mom, and had just finished a load of laundry, before getting ready to start dinner. As I opened the cabinet to reach for a dish, the house shuttered. It felt like something had hit the roof — hard. A moment later there was an enormous roar, followed by a shock wave. The kitchen chairs flew across the room and everything was cascading off the countertop . I ran to the living room window and pulled back the curtains. All I could see was orange – everything was orange. I closed the curtains and opened them again thinking I had to be imagining this. But I wasn’t.

As I stared out the window I realized that the orange was actually a ball of fire surrounding what remained of a 737, lying broken, smoke billowing, just across the street and two houses away from where I stood. The houses under the airplane were nothing more than rubble. I immediately searched the distance for my daughter Laura’s school just two blocks away. From what I could see beyond the smoke, it looked okay. Adrenaline took over. We’d need clothes – at least one night and one day’s worth for Laura, my husband and my mother who lived with us. We’d need cash – whatever we had in the house, ID, pictures — at least a few, credit card… By this time I was running from room to room dumping everything I needed on the couch. There was a knock at the door. “We’re evacuating the neighborhood”, said a fireman in full gear. “Take everything you need for the next two or three days.”

“You have ten minutes.”

If an airplane crash, Japan sized earthquake, terrorist attack or medical emergency struck right now, would you be ready?

Where is your spouse, your children, the other people you love? What if they were injured? Would a doctor know what to do to save their lives, with their specific healthcare needs in mind? Would the hospital know to call you?

What about your vital documents? Could you find your bank account number, your homeowner’s policy and your birth certificate, if you suddenly had five minutes to evacuate?

Most people can’t. As human beings as much as we realize should be prepared, we’re just not hard-wired to be disaster-oriented. If that’s all we thought about, we’d never make it through the day – at least not without living under the bed. The good news is, being prepared doesn’t mean we have to be disaster- oriented. Just the opposite! It means that by taking an hour or two to prepare now, we can relax knowing that if a disaster or medical emergency ever strikes, we’ll:

Know what to do

Know what to take

Know where everything is

Know that we’ve done everything possible not just to survive, but to thrive

And isn’t that the point? Having lived through a neighborhood plane crash, a tornado and a few medical emergencies, we can definitely tell you, that it is! The last few years, more than any other, our nation and our world have faced more than its share of natural and man-made disasters. The only good thing about that is, we can use the lessons learned during Hurricane Katrina or floods, tornadoes, the Tsunami or even the London Bombings, to make sure our own families are prepared.

And make sure that if you ever have only five minutes, you can grab what you need and go.

Our family survived the plane crash that day. Those across the street, did not. We were and continue to be very blessed. But those ten minutes to grab whatever I could, were some of the most stressful, most difficult I’ve ever experienced.

That’s why we made sure our newest book/program Keep Everything You Love Safe comes with a Get Back To Life Plan. And if you don’t have the book yet, be sure to stop by the blog post we recently did on creating your own Get Back To Life Plan.

We’ve all seen images of Japan as her citizens struggle to get their lives back. Let’s use those images to remind ourselves of one VERY important thing.

People with a plan don’t usually have to live in a Cardboard House.

Have Fun Getting Your Stuff Together!

Keep Everything You Love Safe | The Book Inspired By The Blog

At Your Fingertips | Make Your Smartphone Even Smarter

Updated 3/23/2021

If you and your family had to evacuate your home because of a tornado, an earthquake or wildfire, where would you go?

There’s a lot to consider. “Location A is close enough to home to check on the house if we had to, but what if the entire city is affected? But if we went to Location B, how would I ever get to work?”

Is your head hurting yet?

Not to worry. A – That’s exactly why we want you to go through this exercise now and not when a firefighter is knocking at the door. And B – That’s also why we suggest that you choose three locations and opt for the one that fits your needs if an emergency ever rears its ugly head.

A great #EvacuationPlan has two objectives:

1) To figure out the best location for your evacuation

2) To help you gather your family and get you safely to your location

How To Choose The Perfect Locations

Location One: A location Near Your Home, that you can use if you cannot stay in your home, but the area around it is still safe and secure.

Location Two: A location Outside of Your Immediate Area, that you can use if you cannot stay in your area, but the cities around you are still safe and secure.

Location Three: A location Out of State, if your own state is uninhabitable.

The Right Location

Before you try to zero in on a perfect location, come up with as many different locations as you can that you and your family would be able to use for evacuation.

As you consider each location, think about:

The needs of the people traveling with you

How you’ll get there (car, bus, plane)

Any pets that will be traveling with you

Does It Have What You Need?

Once you’re pretty certain you have the right places, consider whether this location has what you and your family would actually need.

For instance if would need to stay in that location for two or three weeks, would it be close enough to the stores or services your family might need, like pharmacies, clothing, banks and doctors?

Would you be able to get to work from that location, or are you able to work from home?

Does it have the furniture and supplies necessary for two or three weeks?

We Have A Winner! Make That Three Winners!

No location is perfect, so if you came up with one or two things your location would be lacking, be sure to note them on your Family Evacuation Plan, so that you can take care of it before you get there.

The Staging Area

Put the addresses and phone numbers of these two meeting places on your family’s emergency cards.

Appoint An Out Of Town Contact

It’s also a good idea to appoint an out of town contact to help you while your family deals with the aftermath of an emergency.

Even though you might not be able to call people right in your own area after an emergency, you can often call long distance. A distant friend can be a touch point for the entire family until communication is restored.

Once you choose an out of town relative or friend as a contact, check with them to make sure that they’re willing to help. If so, give them a copy of your emergency plan and wallet card, so they’ll be able to help, if the need ever arises.

Creating Your Plan

Grab a copy of our Family Evacuation Plan, or if you have our book Get Your Stuff Together, you’ll find a copy in the back of the book. Here are a few questions to answer before you draft your plan:

Who Is Evacuating With You?

Who Will Do What?

Temporary Housing

Transportation Plans/Travel Information

Pet Information

Out of State and Local Contacts

Contact Information For Everyone Who Will Be Evacuating With You As Well As Your Out of Town Contact.

Their cell phone/school/office numbers

Email addresses

Twitter and Facebook account names.

Any other information that can put you in immediate touch with them, even if one or two modes of communication are down.

Making Your Plan Easy To Access

And while you’re at it, store a copy in your family’s cell phones as well, in case an emergency occurs while you’re away from home.

Print, scan or make three copies of the Evacuation Plan, and store it in at least three secure, damage-proof locations. That way if one or two of the locations are inaccessible, you’ll still be able to grab the information you need.

If your Plan is on paper, you can place it:

In your watertight Plastic Evacuation Bin. Only place the documents that you actually need in this bin. If you’ll also have access to copies of your vital documents in your safe deposit box, then don’t take anything with you that you would worry about if it were lost.

In a safe deposit box or water/fireproof safe in your own city.

With your emergency contacts or with relatives in the city where you’ll be evacuating.

If your Plan is on computer, you can place it:

On a password-protected flash drive or portable hard drive, and take them with you during evacuation on a key ring or in your evacuation bin.

On a password-protected online file repository or even the file directory of your family’s personal web site. This way if you need a copy of your information or forms quickly, you can retrieve them from any Internet-enabled computer.

Save a link to the Plan on you and your family’s smartphones, so that you can all instantly access and use the plan whenever you need it.

Anything Else To Add?

Is there any other information you need, to deal with a medical emergency while evacuated or away from home? If so, scan or make copies of that information and place it in the same folder as your completed medical history forms.

If you need help creating Medical History Forms for your family, take a look at our blog post.

Have Fun Getting Your Stuff Together!

Keep Everything You Love Safe | The Book Inspired By The Blog

At Your Fingertips | Make Your Smartphone Even Smarter

Keep The Stuff You Love Safe

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Updated 3/23/2021

The day after the Nepal Earthquake, the Joplin Tornadoes and Superstorm Sandy millions of people woke up to the reality of having to evacuate their homes and businesses.

The only good thing about Sandy being a hurricane and not an earthquake, was that residents had a few days to figure out where to go and what to do, when they received the order to evacuate.

What about you? If that was your neighborhood and your family, and the firefighter knocked on YOUR door, where would you go? Why are we asking this question?

Because you have to know where you’re going , before you can get there!

Here’s how to do it quickly and easily.

1. Choose three different locations , because that will give you and your family a variety of choices that will keep you safe, no matter what circumstances you might face.

One location should be near your neighborhood, to be used in an emergency that only impacts your home.

One location should be out of your immediate area but in the same state . This is for a regional emergency.

One location should be out of state, for situations with widespread danger, like a wildfire or an earthquake.

2. How To Choose A Great Location

Before you zero in on the perfect location, come up with as many different locations as you can that you and your family can use for evacuation.

As you consider each location, think about:

The needs of the people traveling with you

How you’ll get there (car, bus, plane)

Any pets that will be traveling with you

3. Do Your Locations Have What You Need?