Some Prelim Preparation Steps from Storm2K

[nolabelplez]

I've finally given up and evacuated from a little town east of Gainesville. We've been w/out power for 7 days now.

Two things I wish I would have purchased, wasn't able to after the storm:

Swiffer Wet Jet pads and solution. (we have a well, so no water for mopping, and it rained for 5 days.)

Battery operated personal fans.

After the fact, I found out that you can buy pads with dishwashing soap in them, you wet the pad, and wash the dishes. Then, rinse in a bleach water solution. Even though we used paper plates, we had to wash the utensils for the grill.

I also was glad I had heavy duty aluminum foil. I had frozen veggies in the freezer (which thawed), but I kept them on ice. I made packets out of foil, added butter (which will keep for 1 week without refrigeration) and salt. Add a little water, seal up the packet, and grill. They come out very nice.

[Novelty's Worn Off]

If plywood is in short supply, do tape windows (coomon sense), but if you are going to board up windows and don't have enough to go completely around the house, it may be important to determine in which direction the more forcefull winds will come from,case in point; my next door neighbor road out fredrick in '79, being that we are about 25mi. inland. He errouniously determined winds would come from the south, WRONG! Our respective houses face north, and needless to say, the front of his house took more of a beating from the northeast, with the cane making landfall a very short distance due west.

[betsy65freddy79]

Another idea - use bathtub sealant around windows and doors to prevent so much water from blowing in around seams - it peels off easily afterwards.

[jawa89]

Go ahead and have those big beautiful house smashing trees cut down and replant further away from the house. If not, have an 18V drill saw combo with inverter; 3" screws(squire heads) and plenty of 2X2s and tarps. Use the 2x2s to hold the tarps down at the edges and every 2-4 feet across the tarp.

[vespersparrow]

I bought several of those big glow sticks---they work wonders when it is dark. Safer for the kids too than candles. They last several hours as well.
Safety to each of us in this monster.
God bless.

[janswizard]

Most hurricane preparedness tips tell you to store 1 gallon of water for each person, enough for three days. After Frances and being without electricity for 9 days, I can tell you this is not nearly enough. If you have the space, I would recommend doubling or even tripling this amount.

We can't drink our well water so we have one of those refrigerated water dispensers. We found that if we filled our emptied bottles with water from the pool and set them in the sun during the day, it gave us warm water to wash dishes and take care of personal hygiene.

St Lucie County requires contractors to keep dumpters on the property of each house under construction. Although it probably wasn't the PC thing to do, when it was time to dump the contents of our refrig/freezer, we took advantage of one of the dumpsters in our neighborhood. We didn't have to deal with the stench of rotten food or have to keep picking up maggot-infested trash that the critters from the woods kept getting into.

One thing I learned is that my dog doesn'd do well during the storm or for several days afterwards. He was terrified. If we ever find ourselves in a position of another storm coming towards us (and are crazy enough to even want to stay for it), I will most definately contact my local vet prior and get something to keep him calm.


Unfortunately, my dad was one of those people who didn't fare very well during the storm. Unknown to him, the insulation in his home had been collecting water (and it wasn't visible from inside the house) and all his ceilings came crashing down on him at once while he was bunkered down in it. If he had thought to throw some plastic sheets over his couches/tables, he may have been able to save at least a few pieces of furniture. It turns out his place is a total loss...

It's too late for this season but something everyone should think of is the amount of their insurance coverage. With today's escalating building costs, I think most of you will find that your insurance isn't nearly enough to cover the costs to rebuild or replace. Post hurricane season, review your insurance policies and add additional coverage if necessary.

I don't know where the breakdown was in the restoration of utility services and with all the out of state crews that came to the aid of Florida, I am amazed at how many people still don't have electricity - a full 11 days after the storm. If possible, put a few dollars a week away and save enough to purchase even a small generator prior to next hurricane season. We were approved by FEMA to purchase a generator but by the time we got the approval, there were none to be found. Luckily, someone who already had their electric service restored lent one to us.

I think it may have already been mentioned but keep your grass cut short and your landscaping well pruned throughout the year. Luckily for us, we were able to ward off major damage by keeping the deadwood pruned. It was also easier to pick up post-storm debris when we could easily see what should have or shouldn't have been in our yard.

Other than a needing a new roof, soffits, a swimming pool enclosure and pump, we were very fortunate. Many people I work with and my father weren't quite so lucky.

And although it doesn't belong here in this thread, I would like to thank the utility companies from the various states that came to Florida's aid. Eleven days later and I still haven't seen one Florida Power and Light utility truck in our county - and I've been out and about from one end of town to the other checking on family members.

[Tommedic]

I agree about the need for much more water than normal. Triple is about right from our experience. I also believe in being prepared for 5-7 days vs 3 days, especially if one lives in rural area.

[wayoutfront]

Another idea - use bathtub sealant around windows and doors to prevent so much water from blowing in around seams - it peels off easily afterwards.

great tip

wind driven rain is not a covered peril on homeowners policies.

[Ixolib]

Rent a satellite phone the day before landfall... Cell phones and landlines go bunk real quick!!

[Cookiely]

Many people have mentioned having an axe or hatchet in the event you stay and have need to get in the attic because of storm surge. I would place these items in the attic along with a crow bar. No need to go search for them during a crisis. Hopefully after the last two seasons, this won't be necessary but human nature being what it is, I'll probably be wrong.

[MomH]

If your attic is accessed from the carport as mine is, you might want to bring a ladder into the house. If you have to cut a hole in a ceiling it will make it easier to do. It will also be easier to get children and the elderly into the attic.

[vbhoutex]

If your attic is accessed from the carport as mine is, you might want to bring a ladder into the house. If you have to cut a hole in a ceiling it will make it easier to do. It will also be easier to get children and the elderly into the attic.

Very good point for anyone that could be in a flood zone, surge or otherwise!!!

[Stormtrack]

Don't put your papers in the dishwasher......take them with you. We had sewage and water in the dishwasher after Georges....also when the water comes up...it pushes the sewers up...thus water in tub is no good.

It should not be possible for sewer to back up into your dishwasher if it is connected right. Instead of being hard piped there should be an "air gap" to prevent such an occurrence. Usually there is also a check valve (a device to prevent backflow) in or before the drain hose, although I don't really trust them because they can get blocked open by a piece of debris.

[Recurve]

Having water is one of the most basic needs. We could be cut off from help for several days and our water comes by a pipeline that could be destroyed.

I have about 10 gal of store-bought water and six 2-liter soda bottles refilled with water in the freezer.

But I want to be sure to have plenty of water, for washing, flushing etc. So if a storm threatens, I'm filling a rubbermaid storage bin or two with water in the shower. You can clean and disinfect used ones with bleach solution, or simply line them with a yard-trash bag. Keep the lid on to keep dirt and debris out. The trash bag lining will work with garbage cans too.

[Dionne]

Don't put your papers in the dishwasher......take them with you. We had sewage and water in the dishwasher after Georges....also when the water comes up...it pushes the sewers up...thus water in tub is no good.

It should not be possible for sewer to back up into your dishwasher if it is connected right. Instead of being hard piped there should be an "air gap" to prevent such an occurrence. Usually there is also a check valve (a device to prevent backflow) in or before the drain hose, although I don't really trust them because they can get blocked open by a piece of debris.

When the older sewer systems become overwhelmed by rainfall.......the sewers back up. The lowest lying areas fail first...I've seen it fill bath tubs and over flow. The resulting damage and clean up is a bummer. Your average plumber isn't going to come out and clean all the raw sewage out of your home. Irregardless of what you install, that raw sewage under pressure coming into your home is going to seek it's own level. Been there, done that.....twice. The answer is a manually operated release valve.....preferably two.....that you can literally release the pressure from outside your home.

[digitaldahling]

Very late to the thread, but it's pertinent during any hurricane season when one's bearing down on you.

If you have a generator, and you are able to invest about $100 or less, buy a small window unit air conditioner. You can stand being in the dark if you've lowered the humidity in that one room. We closed off doors, put up an air bed, and with the help of a Honda generator, stayed relatively cool inside. Did all the cooking outside on the grill which wasn't a real pain.

When it comes to saving photos, etc., I have a stash of the huge heavy duty contractor grade garbage bags. I take down all the pictures and put them in the bags. Then I tie them off securely and usually place them under beds. (No danger of rising flood waters where I am.) But, be sure to take a photo of where you have them all hanging before you take them down. One year, had to take them down so many times that I got confused about where they all went.

And, yes, dog meds are important if your pooch gets really upset.

To the person who thinks sewage won't back up, I'm with the one whose suffered it. We had it back up in the washing machine, dishwasher, sinks and tubs. It even backed up in the central air drain...ran right down into our sunken den. No one will clean that up for you. It's your job and it's a really nasty one.

[bosag]

If you can't evacuate and decide to hunker down, have your bike/motorcycle helmets ready. It's better than nothing. We had ours ready when Jeanne came thru and I knew, when my oldest (17 at the time), put his bike helmet on, (something he would never wear out in public), he was scared.

Barb

[bgreene]

During Katrina I lived in Hattiesburg MS. although now I'm in Pensacola FL. We were some of those foolish people who thought it couldn't possibly be worse than Camille. Well as it turned out we were in the eastern eyewall of Katrina and got slammed. Naturally we made preparations, got water.... canned goods.... and my mom had a freezer full of food. We already had a gas grill and one of those little one burner things that sit on top of a small
bottle of gas....Those by the way are one of the best things to have...think hot water for coffee in the am. We also had two generators as a result of a tornado/straight line wind storm that had come through a few years before. I also had a swimming pool and filled the bathtubs to use for non-sanitary water.

My house was next door to my parents who have a much larger (safer) ... two story house. My daughter and her husband came up from the New Orleans area so with my son and other daughter between the two houses there were 6 people. So now that I've described the scene,
here are some things to think about.

1. Get where you're going before you think you need to. I got up early on the morning of the storm and logged onto Storm2k to follow the storm intending to get over to my folks house before it got bad. Well I got caught up in reading all the posts and by the time I looked outside again I was too scared to go 50 yards next door. BEFORE the storm I had a lot of those great big tall pine trees in my yard, but if you've ever seen one of those high up limbs fall point down and stick into the ground a couple of feet you can understand my trepidation. Well a braver soul might have chanced it, but not me. Wasn't long after that that those big pines started snapping off and thudding onto the ground.... wonderful sound and feeling. Got even better when part of a pecan tree fell on the house... and the other part fell into the pool...and across the gate to my parents house. With 20/20 hindsight I would suggest any time you've got a little extra cash, cutting down any trees close enough to fall on your house, and as far as I'm concerned any pine tree at all. They are heavy and will crunch anything they hit. Insurance won't cover it if it doesn't hit the house and it costs a fortune right after a storm to get them cut up and hauled away.

2. Unless you have a chain-saw and strong men in the house don't plan on going anywhere for DAYS afterward. My drive way was blocked with pine trees as was the road ...both directions.... But we did finally manage to climb over the pecan tree and get to my parents house the next day.

3. There is no such thing as too much water. Granted, we had enough bottled water for several days, but had considered that an extravagance since our water had never gone off for any storms before. Well as it turned out I think it was 10-15 days before we got a trickle and then it was just a trickle and it had to be boiled. I've forgotten for how long. The good part is that once somebody starts giving out water and ice, life gets better. But the water and ice lines were about a mile long, so you need gas in the car... at first we only had one spot in town where that was happening and you could only get 1 bag of ice and 1 6-pak of water.... didn't go far with 6 people in the house. So you may wind up having to go through the line twice. Takes more gas,,,, and it's hot because you don't want to run the car a/c because that takes even more gas while sitting for 30-40 mins in line.. which brings up the point that you need to make sure your car has water/coolant etc. When you are able to buy gas again send the youngest strongest men in the house. The lines can be miles long and you wind up turning the car off and pushing it to save gas. Take CASH only, and as many gas cans as you have.

4. There is STILL no such thing as too much water. You need to take water with you wherever you go. When Wal-Mart opened for the first time for a few hours we stood in line for over 2 hours to get inside. Don't know about you but 10 minutes standing in a wal-mart parking lot is enough to bring on heat-stroke. Also don't plan on buying much when you get inside. There won't be anything that you really want, it all got snapped up BEFORE the storm.
We could buy 1 loaf of bread, a case of water. Some canned goods but absolutely no meat or fruit/veg.... that went on longer than you could believe. This is also where CASH is important. Nothing and I mean nothing can be had for anything but CASH. Take a flash light, all the lighting won't be on.

5. Don't count on the water in your swimming pool for anything. It took about 3 days with most of the pecan tree in it to turn into pond scum, and while that could be used for toilets, certainly not for washing as I had hoped. And did I mention anywhere about the two water moccasins that took up residence in the pool? Just a slight alteration in plans. Well we wound up driving about 5 miles out of town to a creek and got water in buckets.

6. One of those radios with a wind-up power souce is great! One less thing to need batteries. Grilling is fun when you have A/C in the house, but after a hurricane, it's a major chore so we cooked once a day. While we had steak and other meats from the freezer it was a good thing until the food started going bad. So, don't try to hoard it. Eat the good stuff first. One thing that was soooo good. Frozen Peaches. My mom had numerous bags of those so each evening we would share a gallon bag of those.... so cold and nice after a long hot day. Have plenty of tin-foil to cook or 'hold warm' food on the grill. You can cook almost anything in tin-foil and don't have to use water for clean-up. Buy boxed milk... this is not the powdered stuff. It's real milk in a vacuum sealed carton (near the canned milk in stores). It comes in quart rectangular boxes and keeps 6 months on the shelf. You do have to keep it cold after opening, but it's a convenient size to keep in a small cooler. I use it all the time still because it's more convenient than going to the store every few days. By far though the handiest thing is the little one-burner stove thing...about $20 at Wal-mart. When you can't face standing over a hot grill or just want a cup of coffee, or a can of Chef-Boy-Ardee YUM! It's the ticket. I think it was close to 3 weeks before we got power so if you're looking at a big storm, you want to pay attention to the food. We never saw any MRE's or food handed out. But luckily my mom always has tons of canned goods and a freezer full of produce that she 'puts up' every summer. The stores won't open for awhile and when they do it can be a long time before they have anything you can make a meal out of.

7. Get books, games something to do. It's BORING! The highlight of the day was watching the big helicopters flying over on their way to the coast. Don't believe everything you hear on the radio. From what we could tell the first few days, we were thinking the GOM had ended up 10 miles south of town. If you hear someone on the radio say there is gas at a certain place,,,,don't go there. There won't be any by the time you get there. A battery operated TV is also good, or one with rabbit ears that you can plug into a generator. It was days before we could pick up anything but voice and a still pic on the screen, but just knowing there is still a world outside is wonderful. Well, that's probably not going to work after next year when everything goes digital unless you have Satellite because I can guarantee you the cable lines are the last to get strung back up. Luckily I didn't have small kids and only one teenager.

8. You're going to learn to love cold showers. Once the water came back on, but long before power we got to take cold showers and that's the most wonderful refreshing thing that you can do. Couldn't get enough of them.

9. A word to the wise. Where I lived was an evacuation area. We had tons of people from N.O. and the coast..like 30 thousand; resources are stretched awfully thin. So if you are able to just leave for a week or so, do it. It will be at least that long before the tree-cutters descend on the area anyway so all you're going to do is sit around and sweat. And unless you're young and fit, trying to do much clean-up yourself can be dangerous in 95 degree weather with no way to cool off.

10. Pay attention to your insurance, take tons of pictures. It was the last part of Oct before I saw an adjuster. I did fairly well, all things considered. I wound up filling in the pool. It was too damaged to do anything but almost start over and I didn't want to do that since I had planned to sell the house and move. But there was a depreciation on it and I didn't get enough to be able to do that if I had wanted to. But it was enough to pay for the tree removal.

[VeniceInlet]

Battery operated personal fans.

If you don't want to hook up a generator, this is a great idea. I just got one from the local CVS. The downside is that it takes a lot of "C" batteries that only last 14 hours, so I went to Radio Shack and bought a charger and some rechargeable batteries. Use the inverter for your car to charge the batteries. You won't believe what a difference a simple fan can make when you have no power and it's stifling muggy hot.

Big Lots had some nice crank LCD lanterns. They're very bright and compact, just a few cranks keep the light going for a very long time. $15. These are much better than the ones that eat batteries.