Add ICE (In Case of Emergency) Contacts on your phone

July’s focus is communication. In a disaster, how will your family get in touch with each other? How will you report damage, emergencies, or dangerous situations to the authorities?

For many of us, our cell phone is as ubiquitous as our wallet and keys. It’s also a potential gold mine of useful information for first responders and hospital staff if we’re injured and can’t communicate. Several years ago, the concept of an ICE – In Case of Emergency contact became popular. It’s simple:

1. Create a new contact in your cell phone’s contact list.
2. Name the contact ICE.
3. Add all phone numbers for people you want notified if you have a medical emergency.
4. When a first responder or medical professional checks your phone for an ICE contact, they’ll start calling down the list.

One potential issue with an ICE contact is that most of us now lock our phones to protect our privacy. Obviously, if you’re seriously injured, you may not be able to unlock your phone. To keep your ICE contact available without compromising the rest of your phone’s security, add the ICE contact information to your lock screen.