Our thoughts and prayers are with those preparing for the onset of Hurricane Irene. My family experienced the crazy 2004 Hurricane Season on the East Coast of Florida. We packed both cars, both kids, our dog, and our most valuable belongings and tearfully evacuated our house in Melbourne, Florida for Hurricane Frances just before Labor Day. It's a surreal, emotional experience. That "refugee" feeling we had upon our return was very strange...seeing the destruction, the lack of resources, and I-95 dominated by Red Cross and charity assistance trucks reminded me more of a war-torn developing nation than the United States.
I've had the privilege of listening in on several National Hurricane Center and FEMA conference calls thanks to Air Force tours I'd had on the east coast of Florida in 2004 and in Norfolk, Virginia in 2005. I was involved in post-Hurricane Katrina humanitarian operations and was able to hear much of the decision processes involving Hurricane Rita that hit Texas two weeks after Katrina hit the New Orleans/Gulfport/Biloxi area. When an order is given to evacuate, it's done with a LOT of thought and consideration to the financial impacts on both the local governments and everyone they're moving. One of the things emergency managers are considering is how easily rescues can be made afterwards.
For those who will not be impacted by Hurricane Irene, please be prepared for a lot of national attention on the matter. After all, the path of Irene will be impacting nearly 45 million Americans. That's 15% of the country's population.
Please refer to the National Hurricane Center or your favorite weather forecast outlet for the latest forecast. We will not be providing special forecasts here. But here are some tips.
- Please heed local emergency management authorities' orders. From boil-water to mandatory evacuation orders, they are keeping the populations' best interests in mind. FEMA, state, and local emergency management agencies have learned many lessons from 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina: they're more prepared than ever to respond, decide and inform.
- Have a disaster preparedness kit ready (flashlights, matches, water, battery radio, clothes in plastic bags) if you choose to stay. Ready.gov, the Department of Homeland Security's public website, has this handy tri-fold pamphlet that covers basic needs handily.
- Make a prioritized list of what absolutely needs to go (in addition to the disaster preparedness kit) in case of an evacuation. My family kept this list on the fridge our entire time living in Melbourne, FL. On this list we had things like photographs and negatives, our musical instruments, a backup hard drive with our digital photos/videos, 4 Bankers' boxes of important paperwork, and jewelry. We had to consciously decide that we'd be willing to let everything else go...
- Fill your vehicles with gas. Local gas stations remained empty or near empty after Hurricanes Frances and Jeanne for several days. Be prepared for long lines and possible price gouging (despite laws prohibiting it) when small amounts of vehicle fuel do become available.
- Be prepared to lose perishables in your fridge and not have perishables at your local grocery store for several days. Consider keeping dry milk, powdered eggs and beef jerky for protein. Just-add-water-type camping meals are now available at many discount department stores in the sporting goods sections, those are great for emergencies. Similar to the gas issues, be prepared for long lines and hoarding when small amounts of milk, eggs or bread do become available.
- Many homeowners' and renters' insurance policies will cover replacement of spoiled perishable foods, perhaps without a deductible. Check your policy for this.
- Do you have pets? Get to know if local shelters take pets or not. Prepare ahead of time for your pet's care in case of an evacuation (or prolonged power outages if you don't evacuate). Resist the urge to not evacuate because you don't think your pet will be welcome. Similarly, resist the urge to leave your pet at the house.
- And finally, if you see a blue tarp at a home improvement or discount department store, don't debate it -- pick up a couple. They are amazing things that supported otherwise roofless Floridians in 2004 and Louisiana/Mississippi residents in 2005! Sadly, the state of Florida essentially ran out of them in Fall 2004 and they became highly coveted. They aren't expensive, and don't take up a lot of space.
Good luck to those who need to secure their homes and
