The word is that the hurricane season may be more active than usual this year—and, considering the crazy weather patterns we’re seeing inland, that could be the case. It’s a good idea to prepare now so your family will be safe if you find yourselves in the path of one of these potentially devastating storms.
The director of the National Hurricane Center, Ken Graham, is concerned about the increased strength of the storms in recent years because they don’t leave as much time for preparation. He urges citizens to prepare ahead of time because “you can’t make plans during the storm.”
Be ready to bug out
Gather any items that you need handy should you need to evacuate. Determine where you and your family will go and then plot the route that will get your family headed in that direction as quickly as possible. It’s a good idea to hit the road sooner than later because the traffic becomes more congested and chaotic as the time of appointed landfall grows closer.
Items to have ready for evacuation include:
• Clothing
• Medications
• Important documents and list of emergency contacts
• Personal items
• Pet supplies
• First aid kit
• Non-perishable food supply and water
• Flashlight
• Small toys and activities for the kids
Keep a full tank of gas in your car. As a matter of fact, get in the habit of filling up when you reach a half tank. How are your windshield wipers holding up? You’ll want them in tip-top condition if you’re peering through a deluge of rain no matter what time of day it is. The same goes for your spare tire.
Check with your local government and see if you can obtain a map of area evacuation routes. It will help you plot your course in advance.
Around the house
Are the hurricane shutters easily accessible? You don’t want to have to rearrange the entire garage to reach them if time is drawing near. Make it a weekend project now before the summer season gets in full swing.
Other weekend projects could include reinforcing your roof. The force of the wind during a hurricane can rip your roof right off your house. Running a thick bead of construction adhesive down each side of the rafters where they meet the plywood roof deck can triple the wind resistance of your roof. Other than the possible discomfort of working in cramped quarters, it’s relatively easy to do. Having triple the protection makes it a project that is totally worthwhile.
If you don’t have hurricane shutters, you might want to consider hurricane windows. The windows are constructed with tempered glass adhered to a sheet of high-tech polymer. The polymer increases the strength of the window immeasurably. It holds the glass in place if it’s shattered by flying debris.
Reinforce your garage doors too. Did you know that statistics show that up to 90% of homes destroyed during a hurricane lose their garage door first? Once the wind gains entrance through such a large opening, the rest of your house won’t stand much of a chance.
There are ready-made kits available at home improvement stores that are simple to install. They contain brackets to place above both sides of the door and metal rods. You insert the rods into the brackets and they extend to the floor. If using this technique on your garage door, adding a third bracket in the center of the door creates added reinforcement. Also, experts suggest drilling holes in the concrete floor and inserting the rods into them.
Outside the home
Take a walk around your property and see if you need to get your trees pruned. Heavy foliage can cause your trees to fall over more easily because the leaves form a barrier against the wind. That coupled with the heavily saturated ground is a recipe for disaster.
You should take down any damaged branches as well. Odds are they won’t weather a severe storm. You don’t want them to wind up crashing through your roof—or that of any of your neighbors!
Prepare your pool area too. Keep the water in your pool because if it’s empty and the ground becomes heavily saturated, it may float right out of the ground! When it’s time to turn the electricity back on, make sure your pump is completely dried out. Otherwise, you can short it out and have to purchase a new system.
Check the tie-downs on your pool and lanai enclosures to make sure they’re secure. Adding more is never a bad idea either.
We’ll mention too that if your pool is so trashed after the storm that you decide to drain it and start anew, wait until the ground has dried out well. If not, your pool is still in danger of floating right out of the ground. Nobody wants to deal with that!
When you know a storm is on the way, shut off the electricity to your pool at the breaker. Also, bring in any outside furniture or other items that can’t be tied down.
Just in case equals peace of mind
Preparing your home for hurricane season provides you with a sense of security.
It also makes it less likely that you will panic in the event of finding yourself in the path of a storm. Having an evacuation plan in place ahead of time is another way to rest assured that your family safe will be safe this hurricane season.
Still, we can hope that none will head our way.