Building an Emergency Contact Plan for Your Apartment
Published by Apartments Texas · Updated
Numbers to save, Texas weather to plan for, and a household plan everyone knows. Build it before you need it.
Use the questions below for the exact unit and dates you are considering, and record any point management has not confirmed.
Which numbers should every phone have?
Program 911, the property's emergency maintenance line, the office number, and the local police non-emergency line into every phone in the household, and post the list where guests and sitters can find it.
Add the utility emergency lines for gas leaks and power outages, and your renters insurance claims line. Searching for a number mid-crisis wastes the minutes that matter.
Which medical contacts belong on the list?
Save the Poison Help line, 1-800-222-1222, which connects you to poison control experts around the clock, free and confidential.
Identify healthcare contacts relevant to your household and keep any private medical information accessible only to the people who need it.
What Texas weather should you plan for?
Depending on where in Texas you live, severe weather can mean hurricanes, tornadoes, ice storms, or extreme heat. Ready.gov's Make a Plan tool walks you through household communication, meeting spots, and supply basics sized to your risks.
Learn your building's specific procedures: where alarms sound, whether there is a storm shelter or interior room policy, and how management communicates during outages. 211 Texas connects residents to local disaster and emergency resources statewide.
Has the household agreed on the plan?
Decide on an out-of-area contact everyone calls if local lines fail, a meeting point outside the building, and who grabs the go-bag, the pets, and the documents.
Review the plan once a year or whenever the household changes. A plan nobody remembers is a plan nobody has.