Make a Plan.

Would you know what to do if ...

An emergency threatens your area?
You had to evacuate your home?
You or a loved one has special needs or requires assistance?
You have a pet that you can't leave at home if you need to leave?
Relatives and friends need to contact you to make sure you safe?
Your business needs to be secured?

Palm Beach, Broward, Miami-Dade and Monroe counties provide information and services to keep residents, people with special needs and pets safe during an emergency, but they can’t do it alone. They need your help. Local officials want you to have a plan to ensure you and your family know what to do, where to go and who to contact. It is also important to practice your plan and update it on a regular basis.

• Identify an out-of-town contact and exchange contact information with that person.
• Figure out what are the quickest routes to a safe area if you must evacuate your area. Also decide how you will evacuate (car, bus, with a friend or relative).
• Register a loved one who needs special needs assistance for a county special needs disaster program.
• If you have a pet, you may want to register it at a pet-friendly shelter if you need to evacuate your area.
• If you intend to shelter-in-place, make sure your home has shutters and other protective measures that you may need to utilize in case of a disaster.
• Learn where important switches and shut-off valves for gas, electricity, water and other services are in your home.
• Identify a safe area in your home that you can utilize to store outdoor items and an interior room without windows for you and your family to shelter in place.

Planning to Stay or Go

Depending on your circumstances and the nature of the emergency, the first important decision is whether you stay where you are or evacuate. You should understand and plan for both possibilities. Use common sense and available information, including what you are learning here, to determine if there is an immediate danger. In any emergency, local authorities may or may not immediately be able to provide information on what is happening and what you should do. However, you should watch TV, listen to the radio or check the Internet often for information or official instruction as it becomes available. For information on staying put or sheltering in place, click here.

Emergency Information

Find out what kinds of disasters, both natural and man-made, are most likely to occur in your area and how you will be notified. Methods of getting your attention vary from community to community. One common method is to broadcast via emergency radio and TV broadcasts. You might hear a special siren, or get a telephone call, or emergency workers may go door-to-door.

Emergency Plans

Use the New Online Family Emergency Planning Tool created by the Ready Campaign in conjunction with the Ad Council to prepare a printable Comprehensive Family Emergency Plan:

Use the New Quick Share application to help your family in assembling a quick reference list of contact information for your family, and a meeting place for emergency situations:

You may also want to inquire about emergency plans at places where your family spends time: work, daycare and school. If no plans exist, consider volunteering to help create one. Talk to your neighbors about how you can work together in the event of an emergency. You will be better prepared to safely reunite your family and loved ones during an emergency if you think ahead and communicate with others in advance. Read more: School and Workplace.

Business Continuity: Click here to learn how you can prepare your business and employees for a disaster and get the company operational quickly.