First Responder Family Preparedness

Wildfires. Tornados. Hurricanes. Flooding. Train derailments. Bridge collapses.

It seems like no area of the country has been untouched by an emergency that threatens life or property or both. Sometimes we have advance warnings and sometimes we don’t. 

Legendary boxer Mike Tyson has a famous quote “Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth”. As first responders and front line workers, we are used to being in action during emergencies and seeing what a figurative punch in the mouth can do to our communities and the public when plans go sideways.

A big part of being prepared to serve is having a personal preparation plan that benefits you and your family. More than ever, it's important to plan ahead to be able to execute your job duties in your community while making sure you’ve taken steps to ensure your loved ones will be safe and prepared for many challenges that our colleagues across the country have faced this year. 

A very close friend of mine reminds me “success isn’t built on hopes and dreams, it’s built on solid plans”. 

Let’s consider some basic planning on how to prepare for emergencies. If you’re already prepared, you have my respect. Unfortunately, many first responders neglect their own preparedness and don’t have solid plans for their families. We all know in an emergency we may be at work extended hours or not be able to get home to help out. This is the time to hammer out some plans and get some things together to make sure you’re ready for eventualities.

WHAT HAZARDS ARE YOU LIKELY TO FACE?

This is an individual level decision based on the geography and natural hazard risks for your location. It’s helpful to write them all out and think about contingency planning for each one. Some states are exposed to hurricanes and storms, some states get tornadoes, and some areas are at risk for earthquakes. Heat, humidity and snakes can be a factor for some people, while extremely cold temperatures and winter storms might be someone else’s risk factor. It’s not pretty to think about the worst of the worst things, but they happen and it’s best to think through them well before anything occurs so you can plan with a clear head.

As an example, I live in Washington state. We’ve had wildfires, forest fires, ice storms with extended power outages and severe temperatures. Ten years ago there was a huge landslide north of Seattle. The Cascadia Subduction Zone earthquake studies for a potential future quake look terrible, and we’ve had some significant quakes. Other planners have speculated about a Lahar (volcanic mudslide) from Mt. Rainer and the effect on the region. 

WHAT SITUATIONS COULD THE HAZARD PRODUCE?

As you’re thinking through your potential regional hazards, think about what the aftermath of that thing happening would be like. Will you be at work indefinitely? Will your neighborhood be safe, or flooded? Roads open or washed out? Will hospitals be functioning? How soon will fuel run out? How soon will the grocery store be empty? Do you live in a community that has proven to band together or do you live adjacent to a high crime area? 

HOW CAN YOU MITIGATE CONSEQUENCES TO THE HAZARDS? 

At this point you have a good idea of what hazards are in your area and what conditions might arise from problems. Now, you should develop a dual plan. One for you, considering that you might be working through the emergency, and one for your family, so they are as safe as possible for the duration of the emergency. 

For personal preparedness, I recommend you have a go-bag. Any backpack will be adequate. You can repurpose an old one or get a heavy duty one. I picked up a couple larger packs from a police supply store online. Your go-bag will contain whatever necessities you need to be away from home while working considering you could be gone for up to 72 hours. Again, think about everything from inconvenience to major emergencies. 

Sample list:

• Sets of clean socks & underwear

• Travel deodorant

• Toothbrush/floss/toothpaste

• 3 16 oz water bottles

• Diaper wipes for cleanup

• Toilet paper

• Hand sanitizer

• Mechanix gloves

• Lighter and fire starter

• Emergency shelter blanket

• First aid supplies including compression battle dressing and tourniquets

• Weather dependent gear for your area: sunhat or knit hat, gloves, etc

• Bright flashlight and extra batteries/ headlamp

• Knife and multitool

• Food. Try for high nutrition value like canned tuna, sardines, beef sticks. Dried fruit or organic fruit sticks. Don’t forget a can opener and some plastic utensils. 

This is not all inclusive, think through what you might need if you were deployed in an area with zero resources and you were going to have to be there for a day or so without resupply. If you want to get more sophisticated, you can buy a small backpacking type stove that goes in a backpack and weighs a few ounces with a small fuel container, and you can get freeze dried food to cook. I also recommend a LifeStraw personal water filter at a minimum, and if you can afford it the highest quality water filter and purification system you can afford. You’ll be ok without food but you have to have water. You also need to make sure you’re physically capable of hauling your bag for hours if need be. Don’t overfill it. Making a rucksack weighted backpack for hiking or walking will help condition you to carry your bag.

For family preparedness, you have two scenarios to consider. First, build preps for hunkering down at the residence. There are going to be times when leaving might not be an option and your family is staying put. The power might be out. Roads in and out of your area could be compromised. Fuel and food might be short. I recommend buying some storage bins to fill and put in a spare room or storage area. The best way to fill your prep storage is to consider what you use every day from morning to bedtime, then figure out how you would do it with no power.

Sample list:

Water. Buy a case of large water bottles and a case of small bottles. You can even buy 5 gal water bottles to pre-fill.

Lights make a power out experience a lot better psychologically, especially for kids. Duracell makes some portable lanterns. You can get either straight battery powered, or one that takes batteries, charges on solar and has an internal battery that you can charge ahead of time. They are about $20 at Costco/BJs/Sam’s Club.

Food that can be prepared with no power. If you’re using canned food like tuna, fruit, etc put a high quality can opener with your kit.

You can also get a camping cook stove and propane bottles to make hot food. You can only use these items outdoors. Get paper plates, bowls, plastic cups and utensils along with paper towels.

Extra blankets

Kid’s activities like coloring books, puzzle books and board games. Part of maintaining everyone's mental health during a situation is the confidence of parents and activities to help pass the time. 

Hand crank emergency radio so you can listen to news broadcasts.

Portable generators are another option but I’m not going into those in this article as there are electrical issues connecting to a supplemental panel, as well as safety issues with fuel storage and generator exhaust. You can educate yourself further if you’re interested in pursuing this option. 

The other family preparedness consideration is that you might have to have your family evacuate to a safe place. I recommend you build a portable kit based on the above family prep kit, but portable. Again, this will depend on your family situation. If you have small kids you need to consider a portable play pen. You should have weather appropriate clothing for travel to the area you’re in and the one you’re going to. If you have pets that are going with you, consider a pet crate. You can often find a used one at a garage sale or thrift store and they disassemble for storage and transport. Have pet food and leashes/collars/harnesses in your kit. You’ll need to pre-plan what would go in your vehicle based on the size of your vehicle and how heavy the items are. Keep in mind if your spouse is female and you have small kids who can’t carry much, she will need to be able to lift and load these items potentially. Walking through loading your kit into your car with your partner so they know how it fits is part of a good plan. 

OTHER CONSIDERATIONS

Plan for a local rendezvous location. In my area, there are several bridges. If there was a major catastrophe with power outage and cell phones not working, I have a plan of where to meet any family members not home at the time that is most likely to be accessible. From there we would make our way home together. 

If your family is evacuating to a known pre-planned location, make sure they know the route without GPS navigation in the event cell service is down. 

We have become accustomed to technology. Many people don’t memorize phone numbers any more. Print your top 10 family and friends numbers and emails and put a copy in your wallet, a copy to your spouse and a copy in your kits. If you were to lose your phone or computer and had to use someone else’s you’ll need this contact information. 

Get a small hard drive or thumb drive and store your important personal documents on it password protected. Insurance policies, vehicle titles, power of attorney documents, family photos, whatever you might need. Put it in a small sealed pelican type case in your bag or kit.

If you require medications that you absolutely can’t go without, talk to your doctor about how much they prescribe at one time and find out from your insurance company how frequently you can refill so you can squeeze out a good supply over a 4 to 5 month period and you’ll end up with two to three weeks worth of dosage and you can pack this into your go-bag or prep kit.

Communications. Plan that communication might be limited or non-existent. Cell service can be interrupted during a major event. Plan for ways around this. In the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, people are using portable VHF/UHF and ham radios. 

If you are unprepared, the best time to start getting prepared is today. Don’t panic and feel like you have to get it all accomplished at once. Work through the steps, start with items of the most necessity and begin putting it together. You’ll be surprised at how much you might already have on hand and you just need to put it together and make a plan. General George Patton also had a famous quote “A good plan violently executed now, is better than a perfect plan executed next week”. You can apply this idea to getting prepared by using what you have and prioritizing what you need to get to a basic level rather than waiting to get things for what you think is an optimal level. 

If you or a family member are having any issues with mental health or relationships, please reach out for help. Responder Health (responderhealth.com) is an organization that offers resources specifically for first responders and their families. Responder Health provides confidential and full-service solutions that support first responders through stress and traumatic events, and provides them with the education, resources, and community they need to live healthy, happy lives. Our peer advocate hotline (206)459-3020 offers a confidential 24-hour crisis referral service for all public safety employees, all emergency services personnel, and their family members nationwide.