Howdy folks!
It's that time of year again. Hurricane Season is upon us.
It's been five years since a hurricane strength storm has landed in Florida which so far as I've been able to discover is unique in our history which means that it's highly unlikely to continue!
For everyone who lives in a Gulf Coast or Southeastern Atlantic state it would be a great idea to check the National Hurricane Center once a day to see if there's anything you might need to be paying closer attention to.
You can do that here: http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/
Where you'll find
Go to the actual website itself and you can hover your mouse over the colored areas (red is bad) for an explanation of what they are watching in that location. It's updated twice a day and sometimes more often if things are moving fast.
All that it takes is maybe five seconds to glance at the graphic then you can go your way if nothing is near enough that you need to pay closer attention. If there is a storm approaching you can get complete updates and information right there from the folks who know. Check at least once a day then you can be on your way.
And what should you do to get ready in the case of an approaching storm?
The good folks at the Hurricane Center would be happy to help you with that. You can find their advice here: http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/HAW2/english/disaster_prevention.shtml
The Federal Emergency Management Agency would like to help as well and you can find their info here: http://www.fema.gov/hazard/hurricane/index.shtm
But wait! There's more! The State of Florida is deeply concerned with your ability to prepare and withstand our equinoctial storms so they have help for you here: http://www.floridadisaster.org/
And the Red Cross would like to chime in as well: http://www.redcross.org/portal/site...toid=be58004328ac8210VgnVCM10000089f0870aRCRD
And what's more EVERY state on the Gulf and Southeastern Atlantic coasts would like to help you get ready. And still more pretty much every county within those states has information for you and every city and town within those counties too!
In other words if you get blindsided by a hurricane this season it won't be because every man jack governmental level from the smallest village to the federal government and a lot of non-governmental organizations as well did not try to inform you what you should do to get ready! All you have to do is go look for the information. It's all out there in great detail. And if that still isn't enough then we have plenty of folks here on this very board who will speak at great length about their experiences and what they think you ought to do.
In fact, I'll give you one nugget right here. Forget about only preparing for three days! Your bare bones, not one iota less, minimum time to prepare for is two weeks. If you can't bring yourself to do one more thing then at the very least do that. You'll find yourself ever so much more likely NOT to have to stand in a long, hot, sweaty line waiting for a relief handout if you'll at least prepare for those two weeks of no utilities, grocery stores, or gasoline being available.
Of course you can prepare for longer than that (and I strongly suggest doing just that!) but if you can't then at least prep for those two weeks.
Welcome to your 2011 Hurricane Season and please enjoy your stay! See you next year!
It's that time of year again. Hurricane Season is upon us.
It's been five years since a hurricane strength storm has landed in Florida which so far as I've been able to discover is unique in our history which means that it's highly unlikely to continue!
For everyone who lives in a Gulf Coast or Southeastern Atlantic state it would be a great idea to check the National Hurricane Center once a day to see if there's anything you might need to be paying closer attention to.
You can do that here: http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/
Where you'll find

Go to the actual website itself and you can hover your mouse over the colored areas (red is bad) for an explanation of what they are watching in that location. It's updated twice a day and sometimes more often if things are moving fast.
All that it takes is maybe five seconds to glance at the graphic then you can go your way if nothing is near enough that you need to pay closer attention. If there is a storm approaching you can get complete updates and information right there from the folks who know. Check at least once a day then you can be on your way.
And what should you do to get ready in the case of an approaching storm?
The good folks at the Hurricane Center would be happy to help you with that. You can find their advice here: http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/HAW2/english/disaster_prevention.shtml
The Federal Emergency Management Agency would like to help as well and you can find their info here: http://www.fema.gov/hazard/hurricane/index.shtm
But wait! There's more! The State of Florida is deeply concerned with your ability to prepare and withstand our equinoctial storms so they have help for you here: http://www.floridadisaster.org/
And the Red Cross would like to chime in as well: http://www.redcross.org/portal/site...toid=be58004328ac8210VgnVCM10000089f0870aRCRD
And what's more EVERY state on the Gulf and Southeastern Atlantic coasts would like to help you get ready. And still more pretty much every county within those states has information for you and every city and town within those counties too!
In other words if you get blindsided by a hurricane this season it won't be because every man jack governmental level from the smallest village to the federal government and a lot of non-governmental organizations as well did not try to inform you what you should do to get ready! All you have to do is go look for the information. It's all out there in great detail. And if that still isn't enough then we have plenty of folks here on this very board who will speak at great length about their experiences and what they think you ought to do.
In fact, I'll give you one nugget right here. Forget about only preparing for three days! Your bare bones, not one iota less, minimum time to prepare for is two weeks. If you can't bring yourself to do one more thing then at the very least do that. You'll find yourself ever so much more likely NOT to have to stand in a long, hot, sweaty line waiting for a relief handout if you'll at least prepare for those two weeks of no utilities, grocery stores, or gasoline being available.
Of course you can prepare for longer than that (and I strongly suggest doing just that!) but if you can't then at least prep for those two weeks.
Welcome to your 2011 Hurricane Season and please enjoy your stay! See you next year!
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