by Mark Burch

Created on: February 03, 2009

We have all seen the pictures on TV, the homes torn apart, the flooding and the food shortages. Hurricanes can be terrifying for the young, the poor, elderly, or anyone who lives through a category 4 or 5. I was here during hurricane Andrew, and it was a category 5, and I must admit I was a bit concerned. I have also survived hurricane Katrina, Wilma, and a few others in the last 20 years. So what do you need to know to minimize your stress and overall dangers that occur before, during, and after a hurricane passes over your house.

Prepare for the worst. Buy Water, batteries, flashlights, and canned goods long before the hurricane season begins in July. Once they announce a hurricane watch or warning you need to fill up your car with gas, buy extra food for you and your pets, and put your refrigerator on the coldest setting and place all your meats and perishable supplies in the fridge, or better yet, fill a huge fishing cooler with ice and food. Charge all your cell phones, and buy some propane for your gas grill so that you can cook your food if needed. Some people can afford a whole house generator that costs around 8-15 thousand dollars and can run their entire home as if they had electricity. These lucky ones can skip most of the above steps and only need to worry about purchasing extra gas to run their generators. The rest of us have purchased small generators that can run an electric stove, a few fans, and maybe a television. Fill up you bathtub with water that can be used later to flush the toilets.

Once you have all of the above in place, you must begin putting up your shutters and protecting your home from the damaging winds that are quickly approaching. Most homes in South Florida have shutters that are custom fit for each window and are screwed into place with heavy duty bolts that go into the side of the home for extra security. If you are not near the beach or living in a trailer park, your best bet is to stay in your home. State law forbids anyone from staying in trailer parks or mobile homes during a hurricane. Watch the news for updates and evacuation zones that will expand with the increasing power of the storm. Generally speaking, mandatory evacuations will include the beaches to Federal Highway, then move westward as far as I-95. Since I live outside this zone, we have always stayed in our homes during the hurricanes.

Sit down with your family beforehand and discuss what you will do if the hurricane becomes a category 4 or above, and set up a safe room for everyone to go if you feel that you are in danger of losing your roof or windows. Usually an inside bathroom or closed without windows is the best place to stay during the worst part of the storm. After the storm has passed, check on your neighbors and evaluate the damage. Stay in your neighborhood, do not go driving around looking at the damage, the power lines are likely down, and it is very dangerous. There may be a curfew that begins at sundown to prevent looting, so do what you can during daylight, and lock up you home at night. Be careful and share with your neighbors, during these next tough days, you will need them, and they will need you.

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