Hurricane Preparedness

Hurricane Preparedness

Discover the top ways to ensure
the least damage to your life, pets & possessions

Dear Hurricane Ready,

I bet you've been seriously concerned lately at the announcement of yet another hurricane season. It seems they're getting stronger every day. I've been studying this issue for over 20 years and it's always been a scary thought to think about when you consider how hard people have worked to avoid these disasters.

Top 5 Hurricane Preparedness Top Tips

#1.

Develop a disaster plan for each member of your home / household including your pets and livestock. The more detailed you are in the preparation of the disaster plan, the more it will be of significant help when hurricane preparation, survival and disaster recovery occurs. Make hurricane preparedness yrou #1 goal to complete this year. It could easily save you and yoru loved ones in a major hurricane disaster.

#2.

Have a Get & Go Disaster Kit for each member of the family. Don’t forget the pets! Keep all the disaster kits together and stacked with the handles easily available. Don’t burry them under a bunch of ordinary everyday stuff. In an emergency, you will want to get to these disaster kits quickly! Make sure your disaster kits are labeled well inside and out with your name, cell phone number you can be reached at and an alternative contact person information including telephone numbers on the inside of the kit written in water proof ink!

#3.

Know how to turn off ALL utilities in less than 5 minutes TOPS. In some hurricane emergencies it is vital that you get to the utilities and get them shut off quickly as a way to protect your house from a possible explosion from a gas leak, fire due to live electrical wire exposure, and flooding due to water issues. Practice these shut offs at least twice a year. Get a professional to show you how to do it. The local fire department will often be willing to provide you with that instruction. Do it the same time you change the batteries in your smoke detectors. Often the best way to remember to change the batteries and rehearse the shut off of the utilities is when ther is a change of time from daylight saving time to standard time. If you don’t have that in your area, then do it on a special day / holiday you will always remember to do it on.

#4.

Have an emergency communication plan. Have everyone know of the emergency contact person and their telephne number OUTSIDE the region that you live in so that you can all call that contact person and tell them you are OK and that they can be a relay center for necessary information and helpful resource liaison support. Let all loved ones far and near know who this contact person is and even have it put in your file at work as an alternative contact in case of severe hurricane emergency. Keep that information up to date. You may be exhausted, distressed etc in a disaster situation to the point of not being able to quickly remember that emergency contact person's phone number. Laminate a copy of the informatin and keep in your wallet and inside each pair of your ordinary shoes under the liner. It will not hurt the shoe or your foot but is great information to have in an emergency! A few minutes of hurricane preparedness ahead of time can save you hours and days of stress and delay in communicating the help you need!

#5.

Know 4 agreed upon places where your family / loved ones will meet if separated and cut off from home due to a critical incident like a hurricane. Know the best place for each direction north, east, south and west from home. If one or more of the access directions / roads you would generally travel on is not available, then you will have other locations that are safe to go to. To help children remember where these locations are, develop a fun and creative way to help children remember by making it a game that they can tell you where you will meet. Best place are public facilities like a store on a main road that more likely will have food, water and rest rooms that are basic to your health and physical needs and will most liekly be safe places to gather.

Hope that helps!

If you're looking for the most detailed, fact filled, ways to ensure that you've covered EVERY possible scenario make sur you have a well researched disaster guide book. If you're like me and believe that people who fail to plan, plan to fail... then check out my book. Hurricane Preparedness Resource. It's called "Train For A Hurricane".

Sincerely,

Terrie

Dr. Terrie Modesto, Critical Incident Thanatologsit