Crisis Communication: Building Your PACE Plan

On the show today, I want to share how families can be prepared for communication during a crisis. This came into sharp focus for me in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene. So we'll discuss how to build a communication PACE plan for you and your family. All of that and more ahead on The Secure Dad Podcast. In the last decade, we've seen a steady rise in politically motivated online threats, especially during election cycles.

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Staying in touch with our family is always very important. We have phones that will call and text and apps that will track our locations. But what happens when those smartphones are not available? How are we going to be able to communicate with our family to make sure that everybody's okay and coordinate any sort of help that might be needed? That's where a family PACE plan comes into play. PACE is an acronym that means primary, alternate, contingency, and emergency.

This is a structured workflow for keeping in touch with our most important people, when things go off the rails. And in a moment I will go over all of that. But first let's discuss when we actually would need to use our PACE plan. You'll need to use this kind of plan for any large scale communication outage. By that I mean damage from a hurricane or a tornado. Intentional blackouts like we saw in North Carolina, not that long ago.

And then there are the frequent service outages by companies like AT&T. In fact, before I sat down to record this podcast, I was reading about how two major companies had outages in the same day this week. And even if you think about the CloudStrike shutdown that we saw earlier in the year, that stopped a lot of communication as well. So having a backup plan for communication isn't such a bad idea for the average family. So now let's focus on building our PACE plan. Starting from the top.

The first layer in the PACE plan is primary. This is what you would expect your primary communication to be today. We mostly use our smartphones to call, text, and send email. So our family's first choice for communication is gonna be a smartphone. In my definition of primary, I also include the apps that you typically use for day to day communication. This can be Telegram, Gmail, or even Snapchat.

While you may not consider a social media app to be a communication method, that is exactly what it was designed to do. Before it took over the minds of all of us and began to control us. But let's not focus on that right now. Anything that can be done on a smartphone, calling, text, apps, is considered primary communication for your family. If you are, understandably, concerned about your kids having a smartphone, then I suggest you look at a phone from Troomi Wireless.

Troomi offers a kid safe smartphone that parents can trust. My son uses one and we have had a great experience with it so far.

So now let's talk about alternate. My definition of alternate communication is going to vary from what most people think. I suggest using a home phone should be your alternate form of communication. While the home phone used to be the only way to call a family, today that's not really the case. Most internet providers do offer something called voice over IP. And this is a home phone for 2024, and it can be used in your house and use the telephone wiring in your home.

This is a great method for alternate communication, as it doesn't require cell service, and many older model phones don't actually require power to operate. As a bonus, small children can actually use a home phone easier to call 911, rather than trying to track down a smartphone and trying to figure out how to make an emergency call. That's a lot of stress that they don't need.

If you're not able to get a voice over IP home phone, then you might want to consider getting a cell phone that's just used for the house. This can be one of those cheap phones from a service like Mint Mobile or a prepaid phone from Walmart. Just make sure that the mobile home phone is on a different carrier than your primary phone. So don't add one to your plan. Get one that is different. That way, if your main provider goes out, you still have the home phone as a backup on a different network.

Now, Contingency is where the PACE plan gets fun. For Contingency, I suggest you use mobile radios. This can be as simple as a family 4 pack, or as powerful as a ham radio base station. So let's take a look at what might be best for your family. You're most likely familiar with family radio service, or FRS devices, and these are those multi pack walkie talkies that come with a blister pack in the camping section of Walmart.

These are used for kids playing and going camping and hiking and things like that. They have 22 channels to call and receive on distances between 1 to 3 miles depending on your conditions and your terrain. FRS radios don't require a license and can be used for groups to try to keep in touch in close proximity. They also make car to car communication easier if you have to evacuate. Most are powered by either AA or AAA batteries or USB charging. They are small and simple to use.

Personally, I like the Bofang GT 18s. I've also heard it said Bufwang. However you want to say it. You can get three of the GT 18s for about $35. And of course there'll be a link for you in the show notes. But you can buy any brand that you want like Cobra, Midland. All of those are great. Another contingency radio that you might want to consider is the general mobile radio service or GMRS. And this is a more robust form of communication.

GMRS is a licensed radio service that allows people to communicate over short to medium distances, typically up to several miles. Unlike FRS radios, GMRS radios are generally more powerful and can transmit over greater distances with a higher wattage. This extended range is especially useful for families who want a more reliable communication. Plus they operate on the same 22 channels as FRS, so they can be used together.

As a note, if you are communicating between FRS walkie talkies and a GMRS radio, consider using channels 1 through 7, as the FRS radios have 2 watts of transmission power and can reach further on those channels. Use GMRS, individuals must get a GMRS license from the FCC, which is currently valid for 10 years and covers all family members within a household. So I got my GMRS license for $35, and it covers my wife and my son as well.

You'll be assigned an official call sign for the license that you're going to need to remember. It's important to note that in an emergency, GMRS radio bands can be used without a license, but it has to be an emergency. You can also listen to GMRS frequencies without a license. GMRS can also use repeaters, which are special devices that re broadcast signals, allowing users to communicate over tens of miles in some cases, which is particularly helpful in rural areas or for emergency preparedness.

This way you can communicate with others over a greater distance and get more information. I use the Baofeng UV9G, which is a very popular model. This sells for around $40 and it comes with a few accessories. I do suggest upgrading your antenna to a specific GMRS antenna, which can be done for around $25. Upgrading your antenna is actually money well spent. Overall, this is my pick for contingency communications, but I do have to warn you, GMRS radio can become an addicting hobby.

Just ask my wife about my slow ascent down the GMRS rabbit hole. I can also thank Wesley of Superessee for getting me addicted. The last contingency option that I want to cover is amateur radio, also known as ham radio. This is a hobby and service that allows licensed individuals known as ham operators to use specific radio frequencies for communication.

This type of radio service is regulated by the FCC, which grants licenses to people after they pass a test on radio theory, operation, and regulations. Ham radio frequencies are diverse, covering many different bands within the radio spectrum, which can support communication over short distances or worldwide. And even going to the International SPACE Station, just depending on the frequency, power, and the equipment that's used. Currently, I am studying to get my ham license.

I do own a Bofang, Bofang? Bufwang? I think I've said it three different times now, but it's the UV9R Pro. I chose this one for its reliability and waterproof construction. You can get one on Amazon for about 26 bucks. Also, the accessories are interchangeable with a UV 9G GMRS radio, which can save you money. And honestly, if you learn the menus for one, you automatically know the menus for the other one.

It's important to note that in an emergency, ham radio bands can be used without a license. You can also listen to ham frequencies without a license, you just can't transmit. Also, there is a free software called Chirp that will work on Windows, Mac, and Linux that will help you program your GMRS and ham radios.

The emergency part of a PACE plan is the last line of communication when all the other methods, primary, alternate, and contingency, have failed. This stage of planning is crucial for situations where severe disruptions prevent family members from reaching out to each other by phone, internet, or radio. Emergency plans should focus on prearranged, non-technology based methods to reunite or communicate critical information.

For instance, families can identify physical meeting locations, like a parking lot, a trusted neighbor's home, or a nearby landmark where everybody can gather. You could even designate a side of a building to write messages on, if you really needed to. By designating these meeting points in advance, family members have a clear, reliable way to find each other, even in a situation where they can't communicate directly.

These steps ensure that even in a worst case scenario, family members have a dependable, structured way to reunite.

As we wrap up here, let's discuss how to power our PACE plan. In most of these emergencies, we assume that we're not going to have power. In the first three phases of the PACE plan, we are reliant on devices that need power to function. If using handheld radios like the Baofengs that I noted earlier, you need to make sure that they are charged and ready for an emergency. To power your PACE devices, consider getting a portable power station like a Bluetti 3BA.

I used one during Hurricane Helene and it functioned really, really well. After the storm, I realized that having two units would be better, so my family can use one to power devices and another to power things like lights and fans and other necessities. So for that, I got the Anker 535 portable power station, which is a great upgrade. If you want to know more about my hurricane preparedness, check out episode 301 from October.

To recap a PACE plan is structured tiers of crisis communication options for families that's primary, alternate, contingency, and emergency. This plan can be used for a catastrophic event like an earthquake or something as simple as a neighborhood power outage. For primary, use your day to day methods like calling, texting, social media, and messaging apps. For alternate, I suggest you use a home phone or mobile phone that is designated to use in your home for emergencies only.

For contingency, consider FRS walkie talkies, GMRS, or ham radios. For emergencies, use a physical meeting spot to communicate or reunite with loved ones. At some point in time, you're going to need to have to use a PACE plan. So sit down with your family and see what methods work best for you. When all the cell towers stop working is not the time to make a plan. That's the time to take action. Get your devices and your family ready to go today.

Well, that's all that I have for the Secure Dad Podcast for today. Thank you for being a part of the show. Take back your privacy and personal data with help from DeleteMe. Get 20% off a privacy plan when using the code Dad at checkout. If you'd like for your kids to have a smartphone that is made with safety in mind, consider a phone from Troomi Wireless. You can enjoy $50 off a phone of your choice with the discount code THESECUREDAD. There's a link to get started in the show notes.

For more safety tips from me, visit TheSecureDad.com. There you'll find ways to protect your family at home, in public, and online. Plus, you can download my family home security assessment there as well. I'm Andy Murphy reminding you that our safety is our own responsibility.