by Stephanie Manning

Created on: July 04, 2008   Last Updated: July 05, 2008

Living in the state of Florida all my life, I can assure you that there is a lot of work and planning that goes into preparing your home for hurricane season. The key to preparing your home for a hurricane is 'preparation'; always be prepared!

You should never wait until the last few days to prepare your home. While somethings need to be done with in a few days of the storm, other should be done well ahead of time. Your home needs to be prepared both inside and outside before disaster strikes. Here are several things that need to be done to prepare your home for a hurricane.

Start with the most important aspect; your family. Where will your family stay during the hurricane? Will you go to a local shelter or evacuate to another area and stay with family and friends. Depending on where you will stay will play a big role in preparing your home for a hurricane. If you are evacuating and going to stay with family and friends or even a hotel, you should have all your information together for where you will be staying and 2 evacuation routes in case one is not feasible.

Always let a family member in another area know your plans for the entire event. Letting someone know what your plans are and keeping them updated will help to insure that you are safe, reachable and in the event that something were to happen that would have information on your location and what your plans were.

Don't forget about family pets. Most laws will not allow you to leave them behind in an empty house in the event of a hurricane. Be sure that if you are staying at a hotel, that it is pet-friendly. Horses, cows and other animals will need preparation and plans well ahead of the storm. Check with your local animal agencies to find out the resources and requirements for these types of animals.

INSIDE THE HOME
After making plans of where you will stay start by preparing things that important to you. Documents, birth certificates, trust and living-wills, deeds, car titles and other important documents should be packed up in a convenient carrying case and ready to go at all times. Other items that are very important should be organized and have a set place as to where they will be, for instance what items need to go into a safe, what items need to go into a safety deposit box, etc. After securing your personal items you can plan for what may happen when disaster strikes.

Inside your home, be sure to check for any leaks including gas and water. Even the smallest amounts of wind can turn a small leak into

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