Household Evacuation Plan: Step-by-Step for Families
A household evacuation plan answers four questions before you ever need them: how each person gets out of the house, where you meet, which way you drive or walk, and what you take if you have five minutes, fifteen minutes or an hour. Here is how to make one, step by step, with a filled-in example.
Packing bags too? Get our free one-page 72-hour go-bag checklist (printable), or read the full 72-hour go-bag checklist online.
What Is a Household Evacuation Plan?
It is the “leaving” part of your family emergency plan. Some people call it a family evacuation plan or a home evacuation plan; they all mean the same short set of decisions, written down on a calm day so nobody has to invent them during a smoke alarm, a flood warning or an evacuation order.
Ready.gov, the preparedness site of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), sums it up as knowing your risks, knowing when and where to go, knowing what to bring and knowing where your information comes from. Your plan simply puts your family’s answers on paper.
Step 1: Two Ways Out of Every Room
Start inside the house. The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) suggests drawing a simple floor plan of your home, marking two ways out of each room, including windows and doors, and marking each smoke alarm. In a home fire you may have only a minute or two to get out once the alarm sounds, so this part has to be automatic.
Walk through each room together. Check that windows open easily, that nothing blocks a door, and, in a two-story home, how everyone would get out of the upstairs rooms. A drawing like the one below is all a house evacuation plan needs to be.
- Main way out
- Second way out
- Window
- Smoke alarm
For fire, the NFPA’s advice is simple: get out, stay out, and never go back inside. Its home fire escape planning page has a free grid for drawing your plan.
Step 2: Two Meeting Places and Two Destinations
The American Red Cross recommends two meeting places:
- Right outside your home, for a sudden emergency such as a fire. Pick something fixed: a neighbor’s mailbox, a lamppost, the end of the driveway.
- Outside your neighborhood, in case you cannot get home or the area is told to leave: a library, a community center or a place of worship.
Then choose where you would actually stay. Ready.gov suggests several options in different directions, such as a friend’s home in another town or a motel, so a closed highway does not leave you stuck. If you have pets, find a place that accepts them: Ready.gov notes that most public shelters allow only service animals.
Step 3: Routes Out of the Neighborhood (With or Without a Car)
Write down a main route and a backup route to each destination. Many states and counties publish evacuation zones and routes, so check your local emergency management website. Keep a paper map in the car; the Red Cross advises saving locations on your phone and on paper.
If you drive, Ready.gov suggests keeping at least a half tank of gas at all times, and a full tank when an evacuation seems likely, because gas stations may close or lose power. If you do not have a car, decide now who you would ride with, and ask your local emergency management office what help is offered. Your route may also be on foot, so note a walking option too.
Step 4: Who Does What
In a hurry, everyone grabbing the same thing wastes time. Give each person one job:
- Go-bags: Ready.gov says everyone should know where the bags are and who is responsible for them.
- Kids: name who picks them up from school or daycare if you cannot. Canada.ca’s Get Prepared guide lists a designated pickup person among the things every family plan should cover.
- Babies, older relatives and anyone with limited mobility: the NFPA advises assigning one person to help them, plus a backup in case that person is not home.
- Pets: one person takes the carrier or leash. As the Red Cross puts it, if it is not safe for you to stay home, it is not safe for your pets either.
Evacuation Checklist by Time: 5 Minutes, 15 Minutes, 1 Hour
Evacuations rarely come with the same warning twice. A by-time checklist tells everyone what to do with the time you actually have. If officials tell you to leave now, or the smoke alarm sounds, leave with the 5-minute list and nothing more.
5 Minutes
- Everyone out, shoes on
- Pets in carriers or on leashes
- Each person’s go-bag (see our 72-hour go-bag checklist)
- Phones and daily medicines
- Wallet and keys
15 Minutes
- Everything on the 5-minute list
- The documents pouch
- Chargers and glasses
- Text your out-of-area contact where you are going
- Close and lock doors and windows
1 Hour
- Everything on the 15-minute list
- Unplug small appliances; leave the fridge and freezer on unless flooding is likely
- Shut off utilities only if officials tell you to
- Leave a note: when you left and where you went
- Check on neighbors who may need a ride
The 1-hour steps come from Ready.gov’s evacuation guidance, which also recommends sturdy shoes, long sleeves and following the official routes rather than shortcuts. The Family Guard binder has this kind of quick-leave list as a fill-in page, ready-made for a modest one-time cost, so you only add what is unique to your household.
Documents to Take
You do not need originals in the car. Canada.ca suggests keeping copies of birth certificates, passports, wills and insurance information somewhere safe and easy to reach. A slim pouch of copies (photo identification, insurance cards, a medicine list, pet vaccination records) is enough to grab in seconds. Our family emergency binder guide explains how to organize them, and the Family Guard binder includes a ready-made Documents Wallet checklist for the pouch.
A Filled-In Example: The Okafor Household Evacuation Plan
Most evacuation plan templates online are blank forms. Here is what a finished one looks like for an example household: two parents, a 12-year-old, a 7-year-old, a grandfather who uses a walker, and a cat. Names and places are made up.
- Ways out
- Kids’ rooms: door to the hall, or the window onto the porch roof. Grandpa’s room is on the ground floor.
- Meet near home
- The neighbors’ mailbox across the street
- Meet outside the neighborhood
- Westside Library, front steps
- Destination 1 (north)
- Cousin Grace’s house, about 40 minutes away
- Destination 2 (south)
- Two pet-friendly motels, numbers written on paper
- Routes
- Main: Route 9 north. Backup: River Road south. On foot: the park path to the library.
- Who does what
- Mom: kids and go-bags. Dad: Grandpa, his walker and medicines. 12-year-old: the cat carrier. 7-year-old: own backpack and shoes on.
- Out-of-area contact
- Aunt May, two states away. Everyone texts her “Safe + where we are.”
- Documents
- Copies in a pouch in Mom’s go-bag; originals in the fire-resistant box, hall closet
- Car
- Never below half a tank. Paper map in the glove box.
- Practice
- March and November, when the clocks change
Every line answers a question someone would otherwise ask in a panic. If you would rather fill in blanks than start from scratch, the Family Guard binder has a page for each of these lines.
Practice Twice a Year
The NFPA and the Red Cross both recommend practicing twice a year. Do a home fire drill: everyone goes from their bedroom to the near-home meeting place, using the second way out at least once. The NFPA suggests telling young children about a drill in advance, because the goal is to practice, not to frighten. Then, as the Red Cross suggests, grab your kit and drive your evacuation route once, noting any alternate roads.
Update the plan after a move, a new school, a new pet or a changed phone number. If you are staying home through a storm instead, our winter power outage checklist covers that side, and our winter car emergency kit checklist covers the car.
How to Make an Evacuation Plan for a Fire at Home
A home fire leaves almost no time to invent a plan. The U.S. Fire Administration notes that residents could have less than two minutes to escape once a smoke alarm sounds. Official guidance from the NFPA, Ready.gov and the U.S. Fire Administration lines up on the same steps:
- Two ways out of every room (a door and a window). Keep both clear. Upper floors may need a practiced escape ladder.
- Working smoke alarms on every level, inside each sleeping room and outside sleeping areas. Test them regularly.
- An outside meeting place in front of the home where firefighters can see you: a mailbox, a tree or a neighbor’s driveway.
- Get out and stay out. Close doors behind you. Call 911 from outside. Never go back inside for belongings or pets.
- If there is smoke, crawl low. Feel a closed door with the back of your hand; if it is hot, use the second way out.
- Practice at least twice a year, including once at night. Ready.gov suggests timing the drill and aiming to get everyone out in under two minutes.
The Canadian Red Cross gives the same core advice: check smoke and carbon monoxide alarms every month, know and practice your plan, and get out and stay out.
A Short Fire Escape Example: The Rivera Family
Here is a compact example of an evacuation plan for a fire at home. Names and the house are made up.
- Home
- Two-story house. Parents, an 8-year-old, a toddler and a dog.
- Smoke alarms
- One on each level, inside each bedroom and in the hall outside the bedrooms. Tested monthly.
- Ways out
- Kids’ rooms: hall to the stairs, or a window with an escape ladder under the bed. Parents’ room: hall door or porch-roof window. Main floor: front or back door.
- Who helps whom
- One parent takes the toddler; the other takes the 8-year-old and the dog. If one adult is away, the adult at home takes both children and the dog.
- Meeting place
- The maple tree at the end of the driveway, street side. One adult calls 911. Nobody goes back inside.
- Practice
- March and November, when the clocks change. One drill uses the window route.
Sketch your own floor plan, mark the smoke alarms and meeting place, then walk it with everyone who lives there. See the NFPA’s home fire escape planning page and Ready.gov’s home fire escape plan for free worksheets and a drill walkthrough. The Family Guard binder has ready-made fill-in escape-map and meeting-place pages for a one-time cost; start with the free 72-hour go-bag checklist if you are packing the bag by the door.
Sample Pages From the Family Guard Binder
The 38-page Family Guard binder puts this whole plan on paper, ready-made for a one-time $39. Here are two partial previews.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Should a Household Evacuation Plan Include?
Two ways out of every room, a meeting place near home and one outside the neighborhood, two destinations in different directions, a main and a backup route (plus a plan without a car), who helps whom, where the go-bags and documents are, and the date you last practiced.
How Do I Draw a Home Evacuation Plan?
Sketch a simple floor plan of each level on plain or grid paper. Mark every door and window, draw two ways out of each room, mark the smoke alarms, and draw the outside meeting place. Walk the routes with everyone and fix anything that blocks a door or window.
What Should I Do Before Evacuating?
Follow official instructions first. If you have time: take your go-bags, medicines and documents, text your out-of-area contact where you are going, close and lock doors and windows, unplug small appliances, leave a note saying when you left and where you went, and check on neighbors who may need a ride.
What Should I Take When Evacuating My Home?
People and pets first, then each person's go-bag, medicines, phones and chargers, and a pouch of document copies. If you have more time, add the items on your 15-minute and 1-hour lists. Never go back into a burning home for belongings.
What Documents Should I Take When Evacuating?
Copies of photo identification, birth certificates and passports, insurance cards or policy numbers, a medication and allergy list for each person, and pet vaccination records. Keep the copies in one pouch so you can grab them in seconds.
How Do I Make an Evacuation Plan for a Fire at Home?
Draw a simple floor plan, mark two ways out of every room, put working smoke alarms on every level and inside and outside sleeping areas, choose an outside meeting place, and practice the drill at least twice a year. Get out, stay out, and call 911 from outside. See the fire evacuation plan section above for a filled-in family example.
Your family plan, step by step
Family emergency plan · 72-hour go-bag checklist · Household evacuation plan (this page) · Family emergency binder · Emergency medical information sheet
Official Guidance and Sources Used on This Page
- Evacuation, Ready.gov (United States Federal Emergency Management Agency)
- Practice Your Home Fire Escape Plan, Ready.gov
- Home Fire Escape Plans, U.S. Fire Administration
- Make a Plan, American Red Cross
- Home Fire Escape Planning, National Fire Protection Association
- Home Fires, Canadian Red Cross
- Make an Emergency Plan, Government of Canada (Get Prepared)
This page is general household guidance. Always follow instructions from local emergency officials first.