Prepare With a Family Disaster Plan

The August 13, 2024 Rome Sentinel reports that over 400 structures sustained at least some damage during the tornado last month and a total of 82 buildings and homes suffered significant damage.

While the cleanup continues and Romans recover from this traumatic event, we thought it would be a good idea to suggest that families with kids plan ahead for disasters like this one. In this way, both parents and children will be less inclined to panic because they will have talked through what to do in advance.

But what should parents include in a plan?

For answers, we consulted Ready Kids and https://www.ready.gov/kids to get expert disaster safety advice that you can use.

What To Include in a Family Disaster Plan

1. A Contact Person
Appoint a person as the family’s contact and make him/her the same person for each family member. It’s best to pick someone out of town since they aren’t in the midst of an emergency like you are. Also, in an emergency, phone lines may be tied up. So text instead of talking. Plus it’s easier to text rather than talk.

2. Establish a Meeting Place
Decide on a familiar, accessible and safe place where your family can go to reunite. And to protect themselves from harm. If you have pets, make sure your meeting place is pet friendly. Consider places in your house, in your neighborhood, and your region.

3. Write Down Your Contacts and Plans
You’ll find forms on Ready Kids at the link above to complete for everyone in the family. Have them keep it in their wallet, backpack, or folded into a notebook.

Include your household information such as address, list of family members, and any special medical needs such as allergy info, prescriptions, and health insurance. List doctors’ names and numbers and your veterinarian. Also, the location of emergency meeting places with instructions.

There’s more in the forms on Ready Kids and we think you’ll agree they are a valuable tool to make it easier to safely navigate a local disaster such as the tornado in Rome.

The point is that taking the time to talk about disaster plans and decide on them with your kids is the best way to prevent panic if a disaster happens. Your family members will have thought it through beforehand so they’ll be more confident to make the right decisions if the time comes.

Another preventative measure is to call us to discuss your homeowners insurance plan. After the disaster, whether it’s a fire or tornado, it would be time for repairs and rebuilding.

Just as with your family disaster plan, you won’t regret making sure you have the right protection for your home and contents. We can help you with getting the right coverage at the best price.

A word of caution: floods are not covered on your homeowners insurance policy. But there is flood insurance available and we can also help you get the coverage you need.

So call us to be sure you’re getting the right protection at the best price. And go ahead and sit down with your family to discuss a disaster plan that may save a life.

Until next time,

Your SZW Team

SZW Insurance is your Utica area Trusted Choice™ independent insurance agent. Call us for a quote on insurance for your home, car, business, or life at 315.792.0000. Or request a quote here.