The First Five Minutes of an Emergency Matter Most.

Sep 29, 2026

As National Preparedness Month Ends, Move From Planning to Practice

September is coming to an end, and with it, another National Preparedness Month.

Throughout the month, businesses have been encouraged to review emergency plans, update supplies, check communication procedures, and prepare employees for unexpected events.

But preparedness should not end when September does.

One of the best questions an organization can ask as National Preparedness Month concludes is simple:

What would actually happen during the first five minutes of an emergency?

Plans Need to Work Under Pressure

Emergency plans often explain what should happen. The challenge is making sure employees know how to respond when an emergency is actually unfolding.

Imagine the fire alarm suddenly activates.

Does everyone know where to go? Does someone check that visitors are accounted for? Do employees know where to gather? Who communicates with leadership?

Now imagine a different situation.

An employee experiences a medical emergency. A severe weather warning is issued. The internet suddenly goes down. A cyberattack locks employees out of critical systems. A piece of equipment fails and forces operations to stop.

Those first few minutes can become confusing quickly.

Define Who Does What

Employees should not have to figure out responsibilities during an emergency.

Organizations should identify who contacts emergency services, who communicates with employees, who assists visitors, and who has authority to make important operational decisions.

Backup responsibilities matter too. The person normally responsible for emergency communication may be traveling, working remotely, or unavailable when an incident occurs.

Plans should account for that possibility.

Communication Is Critical

Employees need reliable ways to receive information.

Businesses should consider what happens if their normal communication method is unavailable. If email goes down, is there another way to reach employees? If the building loses power, can emergency information still be communicated?

Contact information should be current, and employees should understand where to look for trusted updates.

Clear communication can help prevent confusion and conflicting instructions.

Practice the First Five Minutes

Emergency exercises do not always need to be large or complicated.

Choose a scenario and talk through the first five minutes.

What happens first? Who takes action? What information is needed? What could prevent the response from working as planned?

A short tabletop discussion can expose assumptions and gaps that might otherwise remain hidden until a real emergency.

Take Preparedness Beyond September

National Preparedness Month provides a valuable annual reminder, but resilience is built throughout the year.

As September ends, businesses can shift their focus from simply having a plan to making sure people can actually use it.

The true test of preparedness isn’t how good the emergency plan looks on paper.

It’s whether people know what to do when the first five minutes begin.