Extreme weather, terrorism, school shootings—every day, 69 million U.S. children are separated from their families when emergencies strike. After Hurricane Katrina there were more than 5,000 reports of missing children. It took 7 months to reunite the last child with her family. (Pretty scary, huh?)
While we may not be able to control what happens in the future, we can try to prepare for the worst. Having a packed bag for every member of the family with necessities is a very important place to start. I’ve filled ours with toiletries, shelf-stable foods, and a few other goodies. Another vital step for parents is creating ICE (In Case of Emergency) cards for our kids.
These cards contain relevant info that will help in case of separation. Your child’s ICE card should include 3 emergency contacts—including an out-of-town contact, because during emergencies, local communications are often down.
Make your ICE contact cards at www.SavetheChildren.org/ICE. It’s free and easy! Fill out one form for your whole family online (Save the Children will not store your child’s info anywhere). Print out the cards (you’ll get two copies for each child), cut and fold. Put one copy in a luggage tag to keep inside your child’s bag. Keep the other copy in your wallet.
Will you join me in this important effort? Let me know if you have created ICE cards!
I did this for my twins when they started nursery school. Everyone should.
I have ICE contacts in my cell phone, but never heard about the cards. Making mine right now. Wonderful tip and appreciated from this momma of 4 angels.
Make ICE cards for kids, pets, and elderly relatives. My dad has Alzheimer’s and I made some for him when he was diagnosed. He tends to wander off and we had a neighbor find him and call us.
Ok, that’s a REALLY good tip for anyone dealing with Alzheimer’s.
Great tips here!! I have a bugout bag made for everyone in my family including our pets! I love when I see others warning about things like this, definitely good to keep people on their toes with reminders of less than wonderful possibilities.
Pets should definitely be included since they’re members of the family! I don’t have bags for my critters, but you have inspired me to make some.