What to Do if a Hurricane is Headed Your Way?   

DISCUSSION: With us now fast-approaching the climatological peak of the 2018 Tropical Atlantic hurricane season (i.e., the period of time during which tropical cyclone formation is often found to occur most frequently over the course of recorded history), there are things you should know ahead of time. First and foremost, ahead of any tropical storm you ever experience, it is absolutely critical to always have a solid, concrete plan in place well in advance of any given tropical cyclone season so you are always ready to act.  In addition, you should have other back-up contingencies ready to go as well so you are not stuck with nowhere to go if the worst should happen and your back-up plan will not end up being a viable plan.

In any evacuation plan, one should always be sure to have at least the following items in their emergency kit: extra batteries of varying types for various devices you may have with you and need, at least a week to 10-day supply of water and non-perishable food items, prescription medications, blankets, a basic first aid kit, flashlight, a batter-powered or hand-cranked weather radio, cell phone with the corresponding charger and a back-up charged battery supply (if physically possible), and local and/or regional maps of your state and other nearby states (for any situation in which you need to evacuate to unfamiliar areas away from your home city). Thus, there is quite a bit you should be ready to have on-hand at a moment’s notice and especially if you live within 100 miles of a given coastal region along the U.S. Gulf and/or East Coast.

Thus, the idea is to be ready well ahead of any potential natural disaster threat imposed by an incoming tropical storm and to never “wait until the time comes” since that may honestly create major logistical problems for you and your family/friends. This is because just prior to the landfall of any more intense tropical cyclone, a good portion of the general public from any larger metropolitan region and nearby suburbs will always make a “last-minute rush” to grab food from local grocery stores and home improvement stores to pick up emergency supplies of varying types. This makes for a VERY hectic situation and nightmarish pre-storm process in any larger city and makes the advanced pre-storm planning that much more valuable.

To learn more about this important pre-storm planning topic and what else there is that you could know and do ahead of a storm (courtesy of the www.ready.gov website), feel free to click here!