Most people know that dialing 911 brings a quick response in times of emergency. But few are prepared to rebuild their lives after disaster strikes.

"We don't like to think about death or natural disasters," says Fresno, Calif., resident Laurie Ecklund Long, creator of "My Life in a Box," a planning strategy booklet for coping with adverse events. "We live in such a comfortable environment here in the central San Joaquin Valley. We've never had a major earthquake or other disasters."

But even people who aren't likely to experience the fury of a Florida hurricane or a Kansas tornado can see their lives fall apart in the time it takes for death to claim a loved one or fire to level a house. That's why Long and preparedness agencies such as the American Red Cross recommend that people develop personal plans to help them cope with emergencies.

"We had 300 families in our area who lost their homes to fire last year," says Ellen Schneider, CEO of the Fresno-Madera chapter of the Red Cross. "When I talk to groups of people, I tell them how important it is to have their personal information on file. If my house burns and I have a CD with my insurance information, I'm going to get help faster than someone who doesn't know his policy number."

Long's workbook was created to help people compile the information they need to rebuild their lives should they lose everything in a fire or disaster. "My Life in a Box: A Life Organizer" (AGL Publishing, $14.95) is available online at amazon.com or mylifeinabox.com.

When ordinary citizens are personally prepared for emergencies, it lightens the load on health and safety professionals and trained volunteers called to help others during natural disasters, says Carla Glazebrook, executive director of the Fresno Citizen Corps.

"We haven't had a major disaster in Fresno, but we saw what can happen when people from Hurricane Katrina came here," Glazebrook says. "It was tragic watching them try to reconstruct their lives without any documents."

Although disaster planning makes good sense, most people put it off. Nobody likes to buy burial plots in advance or think about bad things that may or may not happen, Long says.

"The majority of people are so content," she says. "They replace the filter in the air conditioner and change the oil in the car. They pay taxes and buy insurance. But they don't protect themselves by planning for disasters."

Long learned the value of such planning several years ago when 12 family members and friends died over a period of five years. Even though her father had funeral plans on file, his sudden death in 1997 left Long and her family reeling.

"It was like somebody pulled a plug," she says, describing how the unexpected death of Larry Ecklund affected their lives.

Even with funeral plans in place, it took two days to work out all the details, she says. There were people to notify and decisions to make - all done under time pressure while numb with grief.

After her father's memorial service, attended by 750 people, Long says several individuals asked her how she managed to cope with his sudden death.

"I realized a lot of people aren't prepared," she says. "They want to know, `What do we do?'"

Using the knowledge she gained from her personal experience, Long put together a workbook to help others. "The Next 48 Hours" provides a practical look at what to expect after a loved one dies. The emphasis is on advance planning to minimize the stress of scrambling to find legal documents and making funeral arrangements under time pressure.

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