Hurricane Preparedness Week: Make A Plan

 

 

# 8686

 

Over the past few days we’ve looked at some of the hazards presented each year by hurricane season; including such killers as storm surge and high winds.  We’ve also looked at how this year’s forecasting, and NHC warning products, have changed.

Today, the focus is on actually making a plan to deal with these (and other) threats.   You need to decide, long before a hurricane (or any other disaster) strikes:

 

1. How you will communicate with family & friends during and after a disaster, and where you will meet if you are separated
2. How you will deal with those with specific needs, such as children, the elderly, or those with medical conditions
3. To stockpile ample water, food, any required Rx meds, along with a first aid kit  
4. How you will cook, or provide light, or receive emergency radio transmissions if the power is out for days or longer
5. Where you will go if you are told to evacuate – and how you will get there
6. And last, but certainly not least, how you will care for your pets during and after a disaster.

 

It’s a big topic, but luckily I’ve addressed all of these issues in the past. So I would invite you follow the links below to revisit those areas you may need to concentrate on:

 

1. NPM13: Create A Family Communications Plan

2. A Prescription For Any Disaster

3. When 72 Hours Isn’t Enough

4. Instead Of Cursing The Darkness

5. NPM13: When Evacuation Is The Better Part Of Valor

6. NPM11: Disaster Preparedness For Pets

 

For more information, Ready.gov has an extensive Hurricane preparedness website, with advice on what to do before, during, and after the storm.

 

Far too many people mistakenly believe they’ve seen the worst that a hurricane can deliver because they’ve been on the periphery of one of the large storms we’ve seen over the past 20 years.

 

The truth is, we’ve not had a Category 5 storm strike the U.S. mainland since 1992, when Andrew took out a large portion of Homestead, Florida.

Before that you have to go back to 1969, and Hurricane Camille in Mississippi. 

 

The modern benchmark for hurricane disasters is Hurricane Katrina, that devastated New Orleans in 2005.  But that storm was barely a Category 3 storm when it hit land. 

 

As horrific as it was, it could have been worse. . .

 

The lessons of Katrina, Wilma, Ike, Irene and Sandy are that it doesn’t take a category 5 storm to cause major devastation, disruptions, and deaths.  Even tropical storms – such as Allison in 2001 – can prove deadly (55 fatalities, $9 billion in damage).

 

While the storm may last 12 to 24 hours, the aftermath – where power may be out, businesses may be closed, and services may curtailed -  can drag on for weeks.

 

Being prepared to deal with these situations can make a huge difference in how you, and your family, will cope with a disaster like a hurricane, tornado, or even an earthquake.  

 

Here is FEMA Director Craig Fugate with a last word on the subject.