Avian Flu Diary: More Of A Reminder Than A Threat

#14,041

Hurricane season is just under a month away, and while the National Hurricane Center has made note of an area of disturbed weather off Florida's Southeast Coast, there is only a slim chance it will develop into a named storm.

This is a reminder that our threats - both from diseases and natural disasters - tend to change with the seasons, and we need to adjust accordingly.

While it is generally too early to worry about hurricanes, May to June is prime-time for tornadoes in the central U.S. (see It Happens Every Spring - 2019 Edition).

During the month of May, we do talk about hurricane preparedness week, which this year runs from May 5th - May 11th. This is the time to think about how you will react if a storm approaches, and gather the items you will need.

But you don't have to live in hurricane or tornado country to be affected by natural disasters in the months ahead.

The upper mid-west continues to see record flooding, every summer we see massive wildfires - particularly in the western states - and while it likely comes as a surprise to many people, the biggest weather-related killer in the United States each year isn't hurricanes, tornadoes, lightening, floods or blizzards . . . but rather heat waves.

The most famous example occurred in 1980, which `officially’ claimed `more than 1250 lives’ (cite NOAA Heat Wave: A Major Summer Killer) but unofficially may have killed as many as 10,000 (Tracking and Evaluating U.S. Billion Dollar Weather Disasters, 1980-2005 (Lott and Ross, 2006).

Eight years later, a heat wave across the central and eastern part of the nation killed as many as 7,500 people (cite). More recently, in 1999, a prolonged heat wave along the Eastern seaboard is believed to have killed 500 (cite).

There are non-seasonal threats to consider as well.

Earthquakes can happen anytime of the year, and according to the USGS: Nearly Half Of U.S. Population Are Exposed to Potentially Damaging Earthquakes, while last February we looked at the USGS: California’s Exposure to Volcanic Hazards.

Power outages and disruptions in municipal water supplies are possible, even without a local natural disaster. Cyber attacks, critical infrastructure equipment failures - even solar flares - can disrupt services (see NIAC: Surviving A Catastrophic Power Outage).

So . . . if a disaster struck your region today, and the power went out, stores closed their doors, and water stopped flowing from your kitchen tap for the next 7 to 14 days . . . do you already have:

A battery operated NWS Emergency Radio to find out what was going on, and to get vital instructions from emergency officials
A decent first-aid kit, so that you can treat injuries
Enough non-perishable food and water on hand to feed and hydrate your family (including pets) for the duration
A way to provide light when the grid is down.
A way to cook safely without electricity
A way to purify or filter water
A way to stay cool (fans) or warm when the power is out.
A small supply of cash to use in case credit/debit machines are not working
An emergency plan, including meeting places, emergency out-of-state contact numbers, a disaster buddy, and in case you must evacuate, a bug-out bag
Spare supply of essential prescription medicines that you or your family may need
A way to entertain yourself, or your kids, during a prolonged blackout

If your answer is `no’, you have some work to do. A good place to get started is by visiting Ready.gov.

Some other preparedness resources you might want to revisit include: