Family emergency communication plan: how to make one
How to find each other when phones don't work. A guide based on official advice. The same text is in the free SurvivalZone app and works without internet.
Agree together
- Two meeting places: one near home and one outside your town, in case of evacuation.
- Set times when you will try to meet at those places if there is no signal.
- One contact person outside your area. Everyone calls or texts them and they pass messages on.
- Who picks up the children from school and nursery. Save the school's emergency contact.
Write it down on paper
- Phone numbers of everyone at home and close family. A phone can go flat; paper can't.
- Addresses of the meeting places and contacts for your doctor, school and work.
- Give children and older relatives a card with their name and a carer's phone number.
- Microchip and register pets, and put your contact details on the collar.
When there is no signal
- A text often gets through when a call won't. Keep it short.
- Agree one simple message, for example "I'm OK, going to meeting point 2".
- As soon as the signal is back, send your location.
- Practise the plan once a year and update it after any change of job, school or address.
Watch out
- Never hand your documents to strangers offering transport. If you travel with someone, send family the car's registration number and where you are.
See also
Frequently asked questions
What should a family emergency plan include?
Contact details for everyone, two meeting places (nearby and outside town) and set meeting times in case there is no signal.
How do I reach my family when phones are down?
Try a text, which gets through more often than a call. If nothing works, go to the agreed meeting place at the agreed time.
How often should we update the plan?
At least once a year and after any change such as a new school, job or home. Practise it together.
Keep it on your phone
SurvivalZone is a free app for every emergency, with no account and no app store. It works without internet and shows the nearest shelters and help points, local radio, a 72-hour plan and a mountain trip planner.
Thank you for reading. If this could help someone, send it to the people you care about. Getting ready takes a moment, and in a crisis every minute counts.
Coming soon: the app’s permanent address will be survivalzone.app.
Other guides
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- 🍲 Food without power
- ⛺ Shelter at home and outdoors
- 👨👩👧 Protecting your family and yourself
- 💊 Run out of medicine
- 🎒 Go bag checklist
- 🩹 Home first aid kit
- 🔦 Prepare your home for a blackout
- ✈️ Air travel: a safe trip
- 🏜️ Desert trip
- 🪢 Knots worth knowing
- 🔥 Campfire and outdoor cooking
- 🧭 Survival kit for your backpack
- 🥫 Emergency food and medicine supplies
- 🧼 Hygiene in a crisis
- 📁 Documents and money in a crisis
- 🧰 Tools and equipment for a crisis
- 🧥 Clothing and warmth in a crisis
- 📻 Communication and navigation in a crisis
Sources
- Ready.gov: make a plan
- Safety Handbook 2025, Polish Government (PDF, English)
- Polish government Safety Handbook 2025 (PDF, Polish): crisis plan, pp. 46–48
- BBK guide "Vorsorgen für Krisen und Katastrophen" (Germany)
Official sources are checked automatically every day. Last check: 2026-10-23.
General guidance only; it does not replace the emergency services. If a life is in danger, call 112.