In Florida, hurricanes are more likely to happen in the months of August, September and October. Hurricanes can be deadly. With them come uprooted homes, broken branches, cut power lines, uprooted trees that are flung around, floods, water damage and a bunch of other major damages.
If you live in Florida or will be in Florida during these months, you need to be prepared and ready for any hurricanes. Being well prepared increases your chances of riding out the hurricane and emerging safe and unscathed after it’s moved on or stopped. The following are some hurricane preparedness tips that you should follow:
Have a Hurricane Kit
Hurricane kits are essential to your survival. During hurricanes, your lights can go out, your home can get flooded, communications can go down and people can get injured. You need a disaster survival kit to help mitigate these circumstances or at least provide some relief and first aid before help arrives or the hurricane passes. Your hurricane kit should include:
• Flashlights (Military grade flashlights are excellent for this) and extra batteries.
• Flares, in case you get trapped and you need rescue teams to be able to find you.
• First aid kit containing everything from gauze to methylated spirit and acetaminophen.
• Battery operated radio and spare batteries.
• Extra cell phones –could be regular flip phones or smartphones- and replacement batteries.
• Rain boots, jackets, duct tape, matches, scissors, fire extinguishers and extra clothes.
• Heavy gloves and warm blankets
• Bottled water, snacks that can stay preserved (energy bars should do), and canned foods for you and your pets –if you have any.
Now, you should have disaster kits at home and in several storage locations just in case you get stranded outside the house or have to evacuate in a hurry.
Actively Listen to Weather Reports
Keep your ears open for frequent weather reports. Hurricanes and storms can either start suddenly or build up gradually. Listen to weather reports on your TV, and follow on your smartphone.
Install accurate weather apps on your smartphones to periodically check the weather status. Once you get reports of hurricanes, see how severe it is before deciding to evacuate or head to your storm shelter or bunkers. If you don’t have any on your property, there are local storm/hurricane shelters that you can head to in your local area.
Have and Install a Backup Generator
There’s a big chance that power will be out during and after the storm. You should have a means of keeping your home lit until power is restored.
We would recommend a medium sized generator filled with fuel. Keep this in the garage though and secure it properly so it doesn’t keel over and spill its contents –a situation that can result in fire outbreak in the home if there’s a spark close by.
Board Up the Windows and Doors
Storms and hurricanes will often break off tree branches, uproot or fell trees. The problem with that is these can be flung around. Homes without boarded up windows or doors are at risk of being smashed in and your valuables destroyed. Go to your local hardware store and request strong boards for your doors and windows. If the doors or windows do experience damage, call Central Florida Commercial Services.
Ensure You Have the Proper Amenities
You may need to get in your car and drive at a moment’s notice. Ensure that you have a full tank of gas that will help get you clear of the hurricane and serve you until you can find a filling station.
You also need cash. So, get to the ATM and withdraw some money. Using credit/debit cards can be dicey during and after a storm. You want to make sure that you have enough funds to attend to yours and your family’s needs for at least a week.