Including older relatives and people in need of care

The body changes with age. Many older people feel thirst and heat less clearly, cool down faster in the cold and cope less well with strain. Often there is also medication that has to be taken regularly, aids such as hearing aids or walkers, and sometimes devices that need power. In an emergency – a heatwave, a power cut, an evacuation – exactly these points become weak spots.

But the biggest risk is often being alone. In many disasters older people are over-represented among the victims, frequently because they were alone and nobody checked on them. A reliable network of people who care is therefore one of the most effective measures of all – more effective than any equipment.

Good preparedness for older people is made with them, not for them. Sit down calmly together and ask: what worries you about an emergency? What do you need every day? Whom would you like to be informed? Write down the answers. The person's habits, aids and wishes shape the plan. That preserves self-determination and makes the plan more realistic.

Important building blocks are a current copy of the medication list (in the document folder and in the go bag), spare hearing-aid batteries, spare glasses and room for walking aids. Battery lights by the bed and the door reduce the risk of falls when the lights go out. Phone numbers are written in large print on paper next to the phone, and emergency supplies are kept at a height that can be reached without a ladder.

Where care is needed, the care service or care home is part of it too. Ask what emergency plan they have, how relatives are informed and where people would be evacuated to.

At least two people nearby – family, neighbours or friends – should agree to drop by during a power cut, great heat or cold. Two are better than one, because one person may be unavailable, ill or away themselves. A spare key with a trusted person can help if nobody answers the door.

Do not rely on the phone alone. In a power cut, landlines and mobile networks often fail after a while. So agree that someone will come in person if you cannot reach each other. If you live far away, arrange contacts on site and keep their numbers on paper – both with you and with the older person.

With confusion, weakness, dizziness or impaired consciousness, call the local emergency number (112 in the EU). In heat especially, such signs can be serious, even if the person says they are fine. Medication is not stopped or changed on one's own; agree on stock and storage, for example for medication that needs refrigeration, with the doctor or pharmacy.

When evacuation warnings come: leave early. People with limited mobility need more time, and lifts do not work in a fire or power cut. Think beforehand about how the person gets out of the building and who drives them.

Such conversations can feel uncomfortable at first because they are a reminder of frailty and dependence. It helps to see them not as being told what to do but as a joint project: the older person contributes life experience, the younger ones contribute time and legwork. Many older people have lived through crises themselves and know very well what helps them.

The WHO points out that older people are especially at risk in heat. Questions about powers of attorney or advance directives are important, but the law differs by country; advice centres, notaries or lawyers can help with them.