Your family is important to you. It’s why you by food, shelter, and insurance. With all of the necessities that you provide as a parent, it is just as important to have a plan for when dangers arise.  Fires cause thousands of deaths each year and a lot of these can be prevented with a good. Here are some key elements you should have incorporated in your plan.

Clear Guidelines

Kids are impressionable and they need to have some clear guidelines, especially when things get stressful. It is important to help your kids understand some basic rules before you get nailing out the basics of your plan. Here are some things your kids should know:

• Never go back in after you make it outside
• Always use the fastest routes when possible
• Call fire department
• Know stop, drop, and roll tactic
• Teach them crawling to stay below smoke

These are just some basic guidelines that your kids need to understand. There will be many others for your specific house and situation. Make sure you help your kids understand the plan clearly.

Make the Plan Together

The best way to make sure your kids are getting what you are saying is to make them part of the plan. You can bring up sensitive topics like what you do with pets, or who will help who if someone gets stuck.

Set a Clear Rendezvous Point

There should be a clear set point where the whole family meets. This will allow you to get a headcount fast and know who is there and who is missing. This is extremely important!

Practice Makes Perfect!

Planning is great but there needs to be practice if you want to solidify everything. You have to remember that when things get stressful it is really all of that training and practice that solidify the planning.

Don’t wait till it’s too late, use these tips to establish an effective family escape plan to protect your family in the case of an emergency!