Steps to Take to Protect Yourself and Your Family in Lieu of a Hurricane
While New York is rarely the epicenter of a hurricane, we tend to get at least the run off from a mainland storm. That is what happened just two weeks ago when Hurricane Isaiah brushed the northeast, causing power outages in New York, New jersey, and Connecticut. The unexpected turn in the storm is a great example of why it is always better to be prepared rather than caught flat footed. In this blog, I will detail different ways that you can be prepared if, or when, that next storm comes!
The first, and most important, aspect of preparing for a hurricane include steps you can take regardless of if it is storm season or not. First, you should assemble an emergency preparedness kit. You should include water, non-perishable foods, flashlights, batteries, and a medical kit, among other dynamic items that can be utilized without power. Make sure you keep this in an easily accessible place so that if the power goes out you can find your kit immediately. The next step is creating a household evacuation plan, which should be shared with your entire family. This includes rendezvous places, if you get separated, as well as escape routes and possible destinations where you could stay for the night. This could be a hotel or a family members house. However, keep in mind that cell towers are not impervious to hurricanes. That is why knowing that your family, as well as your emergency contacts, are prepared is important in case you need to evacuate.
A major aspect of the evacuation plan is knowing what routes will be accessible during a storm. In order to do this, it is imperative that you are informed about your community’s risk and response plans. With this information you will know, in a perfect world, what streets the town uses for evacuation purposes, as well as shelters, if need be. This is all well and good if you design the plan, but your family should actively go over the step by step details often. If you have small children, this prep will make dealing with evacuation during a hurricane much easier than just going in blind. On top of that, it also outlines how you would take care of a pet so no animal or man will be left behind.
At the end of the day, what matters most is the health and safety of you and your loved ones. However, that does not mean you should just leave your house to be destroyed. There are ways that you can protect your home if you know a major storm is coming. First, you should reinforce your windows with either permanent storm shutters (if you live in a seasonal hurricane environment). You can also use plywood as a makeshift storm shutter that will protect windows and even doors. Next, identify a place to store any outdoor items, from furniture to gardening tools and trash cans. Additionally, you should periodically check your rain gutters to make sure that they are both clean and efficient. This will help decrease a chance of flooding through the ceiling.
All in all, hurricanes are dangerous, but luckily, it is more than possible to plan for a multitude of different events. If my family and I learned anything after hurricane Sandy, it’s that a plan is needed because you never know how a storm can change in the moment. In the end, this is about protecting your family, which is the most important thing in the world!
