Some Prelim Preparation Steps from Storm2K

[crabbyhermit]

Scoopable cat litter in a bucket makes a good toilet in a pinch, if there's no water to be used for flushing.

[Downdraft]

1. Prescription meds make sure you have a good supply.

2. Have an out of state contact that all family members know and can reach in case your seperated.

3. NO CANDLES.

4. Remember emergency vehicles stop responding when winds exceed 45 mph. Keep first aid supplies on hand. Download first aid tips if you don't know first aid now.

5. Garage doors fail faster than any other part of the house. Check your door if it's loose tighten the rails. Park a car directly up against it to secure it better.

Thought I'd add to the list....... Stay safe!

[HurricaneJim]

Those of you who have lived on GOM, Florida or S. Carolina coast know about this.If you're new down there, burn this into your conscious....

<p align="left" style="line-height: 100%; margin-top: 0; margin-bottom: 0"><img border="0" src="http://www.wf.net/~snake/images/mocc3.jpg" width="500" height="333">


This is a water mocassasin. It is the most miserable, mean tempered snake in the S. US. The only thing that rivals this thing is an old diamondback with bad teeth.

They will come pouring out fo the bayheads and get all boogered up in debris.

Don't reach under anything without looking first. When moving around, have your head on a swivel, they are territorial and will actually come after you. I used to hunt these things at night in the bayheads with headlamps and .22s and had a number of close calls.

Treat them with extreme prejudice. A .357 loaded up with snake shot works great. Beware the head even after they are dead, they will still snap and can get in a couple bites hours later.

For larger "Predators", same loaded with Corbon or Federal Hydrashocks.

Jim

[Lindaloo]

Linda

He also wanted to know where the salt water was coming from that we talked about being in the refrigerator and AC unit, we took him to the front window of the house and showed him the Gulf of Mexico and explained that was salt water. His reply was "You know, that is probably why the last couple of houses I have gone to have looked at me like I was crazy:, duh ya think?

Good grief.

[RevDodd]

Those of you who have lived on GOM, Florida or S. Carolina coast know about this.If you're new down there, burn this into your conscious....

Lots of folks recall this fellow after Floyd...and the folkson the IOP can never forget the slithering werlcoming committee that waited for them after Hugo.

A couple of small things I'm surprised haven't gotten mentioned. We were spared major destruction after Fran (if you don't count tres in the house) but these will be a blessed relief to folks without power:

1. Bug spray: The power goes out, it gets hot, and the windows come up at night to catch any breeze at all. That's then the bugs come in . Copious quantities of mosquito repellent will help. If you have anywhere to hang mosquito netting around the beds, get it now and have it ready.

2. A manual can opener or two. Fran taught out next-door neighbors this lesson. After eating up all the frozen food, there was plenty of canned, but no power. It's a $2 investment you'll never regret.

3. Inverter and marine battery. If you don't have a generator, this is a great, low-use alternative. The inverter turns battery power into household current. Rechargethe battery off your car (figuring you've filled the gas tank, right?) and you'll have power for a TV, computer (assuming you've got an internet connection), just about anything small.

Finally, if you're in the storm's path, y'all are in our prayers. Please don't forget to return the favor.

[HurricaneJim]

"2. A manual can opener or two. Fran taught out next-door neighbors this lesson. After eating up all the frozen food, there was plenty of canned, but no power. It's a $2 investment you'll never regret."

You betcha, and an even better invest ment is a $20 swiss Army knife which opens cans and a whole lot more.

With one of these, even after the canned food runs out, you can skin and eat the slithering guest you dispatched with your $100 single barrel 12ga you picked up at the pawn shop.

Tastes like chicken! Blacken with Jamaican Spices or Old Bay.

[MomH]

Add some "Wet Ones" to the list. They aren't the greatest bath but they are better than nothing. A supply of alcohol/gel hand sanitizer is also a good idea.

Have some extra heavy duty extension cords on hand. After Charley, a lovely neighbor across the street allowed me to plug into his generator. It kept me from loosing $400.00 of meat in my freezer. Might not work on a busy road but we live on a cul-de-sac.

Plan with your neighbors -- cook meals on one grill and save charcoal. My lights were out for 5 days -- others were not so lucky -- and a few still don't have lights.

Get a plain old fashioned phone--no electric components. We lost our phone lines also but; some didn't.

Make sure your cell phone is on full charge. Daughter told me last night she found a cell phone charger that plugs into a cigarette lighter at a local gas station for $10.00. Something to think about.

Do not use the day after the storm to mow your yard -- some around here were sorry they had. No gas for several days and then long, long lines.

Some folks found the collapsable portable showers handy. We didn't loose water and I found cold showers very refreshing. We did have and will have a supply of water for the next one, just in case. I had some 5 gallon food grade buckets that I put a plastic garbage sack in and then filled.

Enough for now.

[decgirl66]

Another tip I heard before Charley, make a list of everything in your fridge and freezer and tape it to the outside, that way there isn't any unneccesary opening of them!!

[wolffeeder]

Couple more things..

Have a radio or TV that doesn't need to be plugged into the wall. They are cheap.

Have a way to make coffee that doesn't require electricity.

A camp stove is so much easier to cook on than a grill, might want to pick an inexpensive one up.

Don't skimp on water. Without AC you will be mighty thirsty, maybe for a long while, especially if you are on a well. A clean heavy duty plastic garbage can holds quite a bit of water.

Don't forget to safeguard all those photographs against water if the storm does look like a hit..

Duct tape will fix all kinds of things.

Be generally well stocked with your day to day needs, at least the non-perishable stuff. You wouldn't want to run out of cat food or toilet paper the day after a hurricane.

[sitcommom]

We use a propane camping latern when our lights go out. It really provides alot of light and saves on batteries. If you have children ,have your family games ready...cards, Monopoly etc. we had some hilarous games of charades. We also pulled out some family photo albums and told family stories (I think this helped reassure our children when so much "change and uncertaincy"was going on). My husband and I set up sleeping bags in our bedroom so the children could sleep with us ( a house without electricity is SCARY at night). We also made good use of the glow in the dark glow sticks (you can get them at party stores, you break the crystal and you have a necklace that glows for a couple of hours). The kids had fun wearing them and we placed the glow sticks on our dogs so we could locate them in our yard when they went out to do their "business".

[SeaBrz_FL]

Another tip for COASTAL BEACH RESIDENTS (I posted earlier on another thread):

Contact your city/county Public Utilities division tomorrow. Nicely ask for three times the number of free sandbags they will offer. Fill them from your nearest source of sand (beach if not closer). Stack them neatly out of the way. Then "fahgedaboutit" until needed.

If advisories come, first place layers outside of doors (including garage door) that will be most susceptible to flooding. Use remainder for other first floor doors.

In December, take all bags back to the source, dump 'em and throw the bags away.

[Atlantacat]

Tips on Manners

Most homes in Florida are on septic tanks and not sewer systems. Thanks for the tip however. On the other hand becareful about well water.

Don't pat yourself on the back too much for being prepared when your neighbors weren't.

Don't rag the adjusters from the west too much...........you may get caught in an earthquake one day.

Don't take your sandbags back to the beach..........the hurricane off season isn't that long.

Don't turn your refrigeration down to the coldest setting. You can set off the defrost cycle and actually not get the ice to freeze at all......especially if you have an automatic icemaker.

If it's a cat 5 don't worry about stocking up on anything........just get out.

Your insurance company will have copies of your policy..........don't panic if you can't find them or forget them............or if they get wet.

[Atlantacat]

Tips on Manners

Most homes in Florida are on septic tanks and not sewer systems. Thanks for the tip however. On the other hand becareful about well water.

Don't pat yourself on the back too much for being prepared when your neighbors weren't.

Don't rag the adjusters from the west too much...........you may get caught in an earthquake one day.

Don't take your sandbags back to the beach..........the hurricane off season isn't that long.

Don't turn your refrigeration down to the coldest setting. You can set off the defrost cycle and actually not get the ice to freeze at all......especially if you have an automatic icemaker.

If it's a cat 5 don't worry about stocking up on anything........just get out.

Your insurance company will have copies of your policy..........don't panic if you can't find them or forget them............or if they get wet.

[Atlantacat]

OH yeah, a 3 5 7 will take care of both active and passive aggressors very nicely.

[Diane Caruso]

Take out your trash - make sure you take out all your trash before the storm hits. Nothing worse than having to store your trash in the garage when there is a hurricane. (made this mistake when Floyd was a threat).

[Micro Dee]

I always clean house before the storm hits and also give our dogs a bath.

[Persepone]

Read "Scott's rant about plywood." (separate topic).

You can't "board up" quickly. Unless you have precut and predrilled, etc. But the link he posts tells how to make effective and pretty quickly installed plywood "shutters" and if you make these and label and store them, you (or someone else) can install them pretty quickly. By the way, I'd think a couple of barrel bolts of this sort on all 4 sides of entry doors would go a long way to keep doors in place. Large French or sliding patio doors and garage doors need special treatment, but again, pre-cut, pre-planned coverings and installation instructions (in case you are not the one putting them in place) would work. These, by the way, become a "part of" the house. If it's your house, they increase resale value, at least psychologically.

If you are older, and don't have the money for the fancy solutions, you probably have even more reason to do the precut and pre-drilled preparations. If our neighbors had such prepared plywood solutions, we could take a couple of hours and put them up for them--but there is no way we are going to have time to begin from zero when a storm actually threatens.

Along with having the stuff ready to go in place, make sure each shutter is clearly labeled as to which window it fits, and have a set of instructions in the house. Also, don't overlook any other necessary preparations such as removing the roof ventilator and putting on the cap, etc. and have that stuff readily available. Most of the time, you can find someone to do it for you if you are elderly, not home, etc. if it's a matter of a couple of hours' work--but not if it's a major project.

There is something to be said for an "all purpose" preparation kit. If you go camping, you have your camping gear stowed somewhere. This makes advice to think of a weather emergency "camping inside" work well. So next to your "camping gear" you put your "weather emergency gear--your couple of good tarps and roll of duct tape, a deck of cards, perhaps some board games, caps for the ventilator you take on and off the roof, etc. and your stock of water jugs, etc. Just knowing where stuff is and keeping it in some location where you can get at it quickly works well. There is another "stash" that does not do well in storage, but does work well in central location in your house and that is a kitchen cabinet, etc. that has things like your first aid kit, your stash of spare batteries, your extra flashlights, kitchen matches, can opener and manual coffee pot, etc. These things are also useful for other short-term emergencies, but if you keep them together you can quickly move them to your "safe" location in your house, etc.

Your "preparation checklists" will be individualized for your family, situation, etc. but just having it all thought out and ready--and available in that kitchen cabinet stash means that you can go through it fairly quickly and methodically and don't forget as much. Also, by keeping it accessible you can update it, add, delete, modify, etc.

Go through your first aid kit once a year and replace old bandaids, adhesive tape, etc. and any medicines you have in there. Check it when you change the batteries in your smoke alarms (change to and from Daylight Savings). Check your fire extinguishers for charge at the same time. These should live in their wall brackets, but you might take a couple down into your "safe location" if you have one in your house.

If you have a sort of permanent "emergency preparation" plan that you just add to and refine as years pass, by the way, once you get into the category of "older," you are in better shape to deal with things because you don't "undo" all your preparations. Once you buy the flashlights, you have them (if you take the batteries out to store them). Once you cut the hurricane plywood and install the barrel bolts, it's done unless you move. Once you figure out what goes in the first aid kit, you have the first aid kit. Once you buy the fireproof/waterproof box for the important papers, you have it. And if you keep your important papers in it faithfully, then you don't have to scramble to find them when a storm threatens. Etc. etc.

This is a very interesting topic...

[Aimless]

Earlier post about the snake is a good one... Yesterday, I encountered three in my yard under debris I was removing. Two were good ol' rat snakes ...not a problem...the third??? ... I'm not so certain... but was amazed at how fast I can move when properly motivated.

[Guest]

I don't think I saw this obvious one in this post: coolers. You need something to store your perishables in.
...Jennifer...

[FloridaHawk82]

Fantastic preparation info from everyone...

The following Palm Beach Post site is also pretty good... checklists, tips, and inventory sheets...

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/storm/cont ... /getready/