Ten minutes can seem like an eternity sometimes. Like when I’m waiting on my friend, Jim, Thursday nights when we go surfcasting down at Long Beach.
I’m always waiting at least ten minutes in his driveway for him to rummage through his garage and get all his gear together. I mean, come on man.
And he always says the same thing. “I should really have this stuff ready to go. Sorry.”
But there are other times where ten minutes could feel like a handful of seconds.
A few months before the pandemic hit, I was hanging out with my neighbor, Pete, in his backyard. I remember he had just said something like, “feels like snow,” when we both smelled the smoke.
It wasn’t coming from either of our houses, but it was pretty close. We took a walk over to the next block and could see the flames roaring through a house at the end of the street. Pete called 911 as we ran towards the house.
Turns out it was a fire that started in the kitchen and spread pretty fast. So fast, one woman kept saying, “I didn’t even have time to grab my purse.”
Everyone got out OK, even the cat, but that poor family was just standing there watching everything they own go up in smoke except the clothes on their backs.
Emergencies don’t usually give you much of a heads up. A house fire, chemical spill, approaching wildfire, gas leak, or even a mandatory evacuation order can force you to leave in way less time than you need.
That really got me thinking. Could I be out the door in ten minutes if I had to?
Why Ten Minutes
An emergency does not come with a countdown clock telling you how much time you have to vacate. But ten minutes is a realistic window.
That’s six hundred seconds. It sounds like a lot less time when you say it that way.
And you have a lot to do in that short period of time. Round up your family and pets, grab important documents, find everyone’s meds, load everything into your vehicle and get to safety.
Have A Plan
Knowing exactly what you have to do during an emergency is absolutely critical. It helps keep you calm, focused and situationally aware when other people around you are scrambling.
When I put my plan in place about a week after seeing that house fire, the starting point was crystal clear.
Find my wife and daughter and meet in the kitchen. The kitchen has access to three exits. The front door, the back door and the door into the garage.
If you live with young children or older relatives, they may need some help getting to your meeting place or in some cases right out of the house.
Pets are next in line. We keep my dog Muffin’s leash, and two cat carriers for Zippy and Pippy in the laundry room, which is right next to the kitchen. You don’t want to be searching the house for these things when the clock is ticking.
Getting Zippy into the cat carrier is something that we had to work on, so keep that in mind if your cat isn’t the biggest fan of getting into the carrier.
Then it’s time to get the meds. My daughter doesn’t take any, so that’s an easy one. My wife and I on the other hand have quite a few. They are all in the kitchen cabinet above the dishwasher, and it takes less than ten seconds to get them into a bag.
From there, all of our important documents are in a waterproof bag in the safe. Birth certificates, marriage certificate, insurance documents, passports, property records, emergency contact list, medical information and dog license.
My best time is twenty-two seconds to get to the safe, open it and grab the documents bag. Whatever documents you feel are important, do yourself a big favor and have everything in one place.
Car keys, house keys, wallet and purses close out the list. My keychain and wallet are generally always in my pockets, so that’s an easy one for me.
Then, If There’s Time…
I’ve been practicing this for years and there are still some of these things that I either forget or just run out of time before I can grab them. I wouldn’t exactly call them “nice-to-haves,” but they aren’t nearly as important as the Big Five I just ran through.
If you can keep at least some of these things together in a grab-and-go bag though, they could make your life easier if you have to get out in a hurry.
My daughter keeps asking to put phone chargers higher up in the priority order. Her laptop, too. I keep saying no, but we do have them at the top of this list.
Pet food, extra toothbrushes, toothpaste, floss, and mouthwash. A bar of soap, a flashlight with fresh batteries, checked every three months or so. And some cash.
Some people will put a change of clothes here, but that just feels too bulky for me. But whatever else you feel is important, get that on your list and in or around your grab-and-go bag.
OK, You’re Out … But You’re Not Done
Here’s where the next part of your plan starts.
Where are you going? My meetup spot is my mom’s house which is relatively close. Have a location and make sure everyone knows it in case you get separated.
Know what roads you’ll take and a backup route just in case. Think about who you want to call to let them know what’s happening.
Practice Your Plan
At first, we practiced once a week. Then, when we got the hang of it, we knocked it back to once a month. Now it’s every three months.
This weekend, set a timer for ten minutes and pretend you have to leave your house. Grab the things you’d take, load up if that’s part of your plan, and pay attention to every problem you run into.
Could you find everything? Did you forget something important? Would everyone in your family know what to do? Did you get everyone packed in the truck only to find it’s almost on E?
Making decisions under pressure isn’t easy. The first time, I think you’re going to be surprised by how much you miss. But that’s the whole point of the exercise.
I have most of this down to a science, but my biggest problem is still finding one of my cats. Pippy is always hiding somewhere. One time it took me over three minutes to find her.
Final Thoughts
I wake up from nightmares sometimes thinking about that family that lost everything in the house fire.
At the time, I thought that could have easily been me. Now, I’m a bit more ready. My plan isn’t perfect, I’m sure, but it’s good. And our best time getting out of the house with everything is under seven minutes. That included my daughter’s phone charger.
There are times during our practice runs where we run out of time and have to bolt, but we always get the most important stuff. The family, Muffin, Zippy and Pippy, the meds and the docs from the safe.
So, set the timer this weekend and see how you do.
Hopefully, you’ll never need to leave your home in ten minutes. But if that day ever comes, you’ll be glad you took the time to ask yourself one simple question:
Could I do it?
About the Author: Anthony Vion is a lifelong prepper from Long Island, NY, with decades of hands-on experience in self-reliance and practical skill-building. He writes about everyday prepping in a straightforward, realistic way, with a focus on simple steps that help families stay ready for the unexpected.
Disclaimer: The information in this article is for educational purposes only and should not be considered emergency, medical, or professional advice. Always follow the guidance of local authorities and emergency responders during an actual emergency.
