It is the time of year when Hurricane Season is approaching, so I thought it would be a good idea to provide some helpful preparation tips for everyone living in a Hurricane Zone. The official start of Hurricane Season is June 1, 2012.
Here are some tips to prepare for a hurricane, severe flood or other natural disasters:
Build an Emergency Supply Kit, which includes items like non-perishable food, water, a battery-powered or hand-crank radio, extra flashlights and batteries. You may want to prepare a portable kit and keep it in your car in case you are told to evacuate. This kit should also include a pair of goggles and disposable breathing masks for each member of the family.
Make a Family Emergency Plan. Your family may not be together when disaster strikes, so it is important to know how you will contact one another, how you will get back together and what you will do in case of an emergency.
Continually monitor the media – Be aware of storm's which could impact your area.
Know how you will be warned in an emergency (NOAA Weather radios with a tone alert are a good option).
Know if you live or work in a flood prone area. Check with your local emergency management for details.
Know where to shelter (ie: basement, interior room/hall, bathroom, closet, etc) if conditions warrant and where shelters in your area are located.
Ensure your home is ready – Elevate items in the basement which could be flooded. Bring in outdoors items such as children's toys, patio furniture, garbage cans, etc which could be blown around and damaged. Remove dead or rotting trees and branches that could fall and cause injury or damage.
Know how to shut off utilities, including power, water and gas, to your home. Have proper tools (i.e.: wrench) ready and nearby.
Find out what types of events and kinds of damages are covered by your insurance policy. Keep insurance policies, important documents and other valuables in a safe and secure location.
Keep fire extinguishers on hand and make sure everyone knows how to use them.
Keep your wireless phone and backup batteries charged, but be aware that an interruption of wireline and commercial power could affect wireless calls.
If possible, get extra batteries and charge them.
In times of commercial power outages, a car adapter for your wireless phone should enable you to recharge the battery.
Keep phones and necessary accessories in a sealed plastic bag to avoid water damage.
Load family and emergency numbers into your wireless phone.
Use your cell phone to take digital pictures or video of your property and valuables before the storm hits. Upload the images to other devices so you have pictures before in the event of any storm damage.
Wireless networks sometimes experience heavy traffic during emergency events, so remember to send text messages instead.
Hurricanes can be tracked online through websites such as
National Weather Service, Weather Channel, and AccuWeather.
Source:
FEMA Hurricane Preparation
Sprint Hurricane Preparation