How do you set up your emergency out of town contact? The guy who keeps tabs on everyone when things go sideways and can tell you that cousin Mikey is in this hotel or that evacuation shelter.

Do you just say "Uncle Joe in that city is the contact for all the relatives in this city"? Or, do you exclude the human factor and use a voice mailbox (i.e. Google voice), or SMS/email group as a central contact point?

I am not blessed with an overabundance of relatives, and I have fewer still that are out of state, reliably reachable, and responsible enough to serve as a contact point. So she's the one.

An email group may end up being the most reliable method.

We use an out of town relative.