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Although I’m having some difficulties (DNS errors) connecting to the NHC or Hurricanes.gov websites this morning, today is the final day of Hurricane preparedness week, where the topics we’ve discussed over the past 7 days are coalesced into one imperative:
Take Action. Now, before a storm threatens. And decisively, once a threat becomes apparent.
As Stacey Stewart, senior hurricane specialist at the NHC, states in the video above – you need to be prepared for at least a week without essential services – which means having enough water, food, and essential medications on hand, along with emergency lighting, a battery operated radio, and a good first aid kit.
For a more detailed overview on how to prepare for a hurricane, you may wish to revisit Hurricane Preparedness Week: Make A Plan.
To encourage residents prepare for hurricane season, this year Florida has instituted a tax holiday on certain certain preparedness supplies for the first week of June.
Hurricane Preparedness Sales Tax Holiday May 31 through June 8, 2014
During the holiday, qualifying items related to hurricane preparedness are exempt from sales tax. The holiday begins at 12:01 a.m. on Saturday, May 31, 2014, and ends at 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, June 8, 2014. For more information, see the following:
If you haven’t already downloaded the updated Tropical Cyclone Preparedness Guide, now would be an excellent time to do so.
When it comes to getting the latest information on hurricanes, your first stop should always be the National Hurricane Center in Miami, Florida. These are the real pros, and the only ones you should rely on to track and forecast the storm.
- Tropical storm watches will be issued when tropical storm conditions are possible along the coast within 48 hours.
- Tropical storm warnings will be issued when those conditions are expected within 36 hours. Similar increases in lead-time will apply to hurricane watches and warnings.
NOAA’s NWS National Hurricane Center in Miami also has a Facebook page, where you can keep up with the latest tropical developments.
The second official information source you should have bookmarked is your local Office of Emergency Management. Here you’ll be able to access local warnings, flood maps and evacuation information. To find your local one, you can Google or Yahoo search with your county/parish name and the words `Emergency Management’.
And lastly, if you are on Twitter, you should also follow @FEMA, @CraigatFEMA, @NHC_Atlantic, @NHC_Pacific and @ReadyGov.
