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THANK YOU!! I was looking for this thread and couldn't remember where it was!!
Okay, since we currently have Hurricane Irene zooming up the eastern seaboard of the States as I type, I'm going to talk about being fully prepared for a major hurricane like this.
I may live at the more northern end of the Atlantic but we do see some hurricane activity here this time of year, and we've seen tropical storms here as late as November.
One of the first things we do when we see that a hurricane may hit my end of Nova Scotia is stock up on non perishable food... Stuff like canned tuna, soup, pasta sauce, etc. (We have a camping stove that runs on the small propane canisters so we can boil water, heat soup, etc).... We also get bread for sandwiches, that kind of thing. We also get ice for our one cooler so we can keep stuff like meats, milk, etc fresh in case of a power outage. We stock up on plenty of pet food for our two cats and our dog, and extra cat litter for the cat boxes. Pets DO need to be taken care of during a major storm too after all!!
Stocking up on water for drinking, washing, bathing, and flushing the toilet is ESSENTIAL. One of the first things we do the day before a hurricane is supposed to strike is fill up the bathtub as far as it can go for dishwater, flushing the toilet, etc in case of a power outage. We also fill up all kettles (the electric kettle and the stovetop kettle) with water for coffee, fill up LOTS of 2 litre pop bottles with drinking water and we also have a few 2 1/2 gallon jugs we fill up with drinking water. One can't have TOO much water in a power outage in my opinion!!
Another thing we do is charge up any batteries we use for lamps, etc with the converter and get gas for our tiny generator, and fill up the car. If we don't have reusable batteries for something, we purchase batteries for it, like our old radio and the flashlights that are not rechargeable.
Putting loose stuff in the yard away is NECESSARY!! Anything the wind can pick up and carry should be put away in one's shed or even in the house/basement!!! We have a small slide for our son that we dismantle and put in the shed each time we're predicted to have a storm with strong winds in it, and not necessarily a hurricane!!! Lawn furniture, garden decorations, etc can become projectiles if the winds are strong enough, which can damage the house by smashing the walls, hitting the roof and smashing out one's windows!
Putting plywood over one's windows to protect them is necessary too... That way if something does happen to hit the windows they will be protected and not break, which would mean not only broken glass all over the place but wind and rain coming into one's home, creating MORE damage.
Make sure one has things ready like clean clothing, shoes, etc packed just in case of an evacuation is essential too.... And if one has pets, make sure you have carriers, leashes, food, beds, etc ready to go into the car too, that way they can go with you if pets are allowed to be in the shelter, etc.
That's all I have for now, but will post more as things happen here.
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Survival of the Fittest: Emergency Preparedness (Read 9500 times)
