Storm Safety Checklist – It’s Not Too Late.
Items You Can Still Do To Be Prepared For Hurricanes:
Outdoors – Put Away
Bring in anything that can be picked up by the wind, including lawn and patio furniture, planters, bicycles, and more. Close, fold, and strap/bungee shade awnings. If possible, uninstall and store them. We also removed the blades from our outdoor ceiling fans.
For items you cannot put away such as bbq/flat top grills, and large smokers- tuck them into corners on your lanai, remove all items from underneath, empty drip pans to avoid grease spills, and strap them up as much as possible. Our home is made from concrete block so we strapped them to small eyelets we drilled into the home to keep them from blowing around.
Board Up
Close windows, doors, and hurricane shutters. If you don’t have hurricane shutters, close and board up all windows and doors with plywood. For more information on how to do this correctly, see Emergency Window Board-Up.
Lock Up
Make sure to lock all house doors, windows screen doors, bird cages, sheds, fences, and more. When the wind begins to pick up, those areas are vulnerable to opening up if they are not locked.
Brace Up
If you have door braces, wedge them under the handle of your door to help reinforce keeping them shut with high winds. If you don’t try to wedge a chair under the handle for a little extra support.
Fill Up
If you rely on well water, consider cleaning your bathtub with bleach and filling it with water to wash up and flush toilets if the power goes out.
Close Up All Blinds
If you have blinds on your home, close them. Should glass shatter, the blinds will act like a barrier in helping the glass from flying all over the place – and helps protect you or your loved ones from flying debris.
Cool Down
To help food last longer should you lose power, now is the time to turn the refrigerator and freezer down to the coldest setting and only open them as needed. If you are fortunate enough to have two or more refrigerators, fill one of them with the items you will not use as quickly in order to only open one at a time – keeping the food in the second one cool as long as possible.
Turn Off, Unplug, & Protect Electronics
Turn the knobs on your propane tanks to the off position on your grills and generators. Unplug all unnecessary small appliances. Be sure to have all major electronics such as TVs, Computers, and more plugged into surge protectors.
Park Close
To protect your vehicles, put them inside your garage if you can. Park any extra vehicles as close to the house – lengthwise in front of the garage door. This will help not only protect your vehicle, but it will also help protect your garage door from high wind impact.
General Storm Preparedness
Stay Ahead of the Storm
Storms are so unpredictable and can literally change at a moment’s notice. However, living in Florida, it’s a good idea to have a plan and be prepared to keep you as safe as possible.
Plan Ahead
Have a family meeting and agree on an evacuation plan. Planning and practicing your evacuation plan minimize confusion in an emergency.
Find out what your community’s hurricane response plan is. Plan routes to a local shelter, register family members with special medical needs if required, and make plans for your pets
Listen Up
Track the storm online, on your phone, on television, or by radio. Watch for emergency alerts for your county on television or phone. Download the National Weather Service Page for your computer https://www.weather.gov/ or the app for your cell phone so you are aware of any critical information.
Stock Up – It’s not too late!
We combined information from several National and Local Hurricane preparedness websites to have the following on hand:
A minimum of
5 days’ worth of water and non-perishable food on hand.
Flash Lights or Storm Lanterns, & Batteries
Cell Phones, Charging Cables, and fully charged backup battery pack(s)
7 days or more of any prescriptions you may need
OTC medications such as Aspirin, Motrin, and more
First Aid Kit including Band-Aids /Bandages, Neosporin, and other emergency items
Suit Case/Duffel Bag with spare clothes for the family & toiletries in case of evacuation
Furry, Flying, Crawling, Slithering, Swimming, and Other Fluffy Family Members
Don’t forget to stock up on all pet needs including food, water, and medications too!
Fill Up Your Tanks
Vehicles
Extra Gas for Generators
Propane (for grills and generators)
Don’t Forget Cash
If you can withdraw some cash, do so. Should the area lose power, it’s unpredictable how long it will take things to get back up and running again.
Stay Inside, Away from Windows & Doors
The experts at The Weather Channel advise you not to go outside, even after the passage of the eye of the storm, because it won’t be long before hurricane-force winds blowing in the opposite direction resume. Stay indoors and go to an interior room. Stay away from windows and doors.
Pull Out The Cards, Board Games, and Other Fun Activities
Sit back and kick old-school with your favorite games, puzzles, cards, crafts, and other entertainment. Take this time to slow down, reconnect, have fun and make memories with your family, extended family, friends, or anyone else you may be weathering out the storm with.
At Orgova Home Inspections, we hope these tips come in handy as you prepare for future Hurricanes. As long as we have power, we will post real-time tips and videos to help. Stay safe everyone!
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