Hurricane Irene: Are you in its path?

[BrerGnat]

I thought I would start a thread to discuss this storm, as it looks like it may affect a large number of us here at Intercot.

If you are in its projected path, are you ready?

Any tips for a "hurricane newbie"? The last hurricane I experienced was Hurricane Gloria, back in 1985 at the ripe old age of 7 years old! Obviously, my parents did all the storm prep back then.

We are living about 30 miles southwest of Washington, D.C. Just sort of wondering what I need to be prepared for. I don't know how much of those hurricane preparedness list applies to us.

[disney obsessed]

Earthquakes and hurricanes and the unknown, oh my!

Crazy week on the east coast.

My best advice is to evacuate early if that is what you decide to do. Traffic can be horendous in an evac.

If you are staying put, prepare your yard and bring everything in. If you flood, get a secure place to be. the wind can be scary, stay away from windows.

Buy water and nonperishable foods. batteries and gas your car. Gas can be hard to get after the storm. Games for you and the kids, good books to read.

I am in Va. Beach. We will get hit with something here. I am hoping it won't be more that a good ole tropical storm. The last storm that went through as a 1 caused a great deal of yard damage. We lost many trees. Thankfully none fell on the house. Took weeks to clean up.

[BrerGnat]

I'm pretty sure we're staying put. We are not in an evacuation zone and we are on high ground so flooding will not be an issue (I hope!). We have a two story house with basement. We can shelter in the basement away from windows if necessary, and up top in case of flooding.

What I'm most concerned with is the trees in our backyard (beyond the fence, we have woods, and our yard is not that big, maybe 100 feet from the treeline) and the possibility of power outages lasting awhile.

We have plenty of nonperishable food and I plan to stock up on water and gas up the car tomorrow.

I am wondering, though, about the advice to have cash on hand? Is that even relevant in this day and age? I mean, if there is no power, stores won't be open anyway, and if they are, is anyone even set up to just do cash transactions without computers anymore?

[disney obsessed]

I would suggest to have several hundred dollars, if possible. Many local stores can use generators to be up to try to supply folks. But there will be a limited supply and they may not be able to access the card system.

If you get sustained winds over 40-50 miles per hour, you can get tree damage. Alot will depend of the direction of the storm in relation to your home and the woods. Our storms hit from the east and south. The trees on the west side of the house are usually protected by the house.

If I can answer any more questions, just ask away.

[Jessie]

It's projected to be a Category 1 by the time it reaches us up here, but I'm not necessarily counting on that happening. That's not to say I won't prepare because even if it doesn't hit us as a Cat 1 we'll get hit with something. Usually they die down considerably by the time they get this far north.

We'll do the usual that we do for snowstorms, get a couple of extra bottles of water, make sure I know where our batteries, flashlights, candles and lighters are. Get all of the loose things out of the backyard - kids toys, trash barrels, garden tools.

[Kenny1113]

We r out of the cone.

But yes cash is a good idea to have if u are going to be hit with a significant storm. If it's just a ts or cat 1 you should be ok without if u just really don't want to get cash out. Also where u are located shouldn't make it that big of a deal with the cash either. Here in south fla if we get hit with a sig storm it takes a while for assistance to get down to us.

Also make sure you have a battery powered radio.

[emerzmom]

I live in Houston and have been through many storms. A few years ago Hurricane Ike went through Houston. Flooding was not a huge issue however the strong winds knocked down trees which knocked out power lines. Most the entire city was out of power for a really long time (some areas more than 20 days!). I did not have power in my home for 10 days. I thought I was prepared however I realized about day 5 that I wished I would have evacuated. Those 10 days were miserable! The grocery stores were also out of power so all perishible food was gone and the shelves were empty of all food within a few days. No gas because the pumps at the gas station needed power to work. The city basically shut down for almost a week.
I am not trying to scare you as I have been through many storms that amounted to nothing more than lots of rain and wind. This last one was just a little scary and taught me a lesson. Next storm...I am out of here!
If you continue with your plan to stay put here are a few suggestions:
Batteries (lots and LOTS of them)
Battery powered fan(s)
Battery powered radio
Flashlights (at least 1 for everyone in the house)
Fill your tank with gas
Get cash (ATM's won't work)
Fully charge your cell phones
Stock up on bottled water
Charcoal and/or propane gas for grilling everything in freezer
Lots of non-perishible foods
Board games, cards, etc (to occupy your time)
Good luck!

Julie

[LittleRoosMommy]

I was just thinking about this today! The last time we had a hurricane come through the DC area of any significance was in Sept 03.... I remember because I was preggo at the time! LOL

We are about 10 miles NW of DC in Rockville, MD. We are like you, not in an area that will flood, but worry about the winds....

The last time we had significant wind damage and power was out of days! It was absolutely miserable!!

I would definitely plan on having some extra water, non-perishables, batteries, flashlights and lots of board games, cards, books, handy! I would definitely get cash!

I think you probably have Dominion Power, which is slightly better at managing power outages than Pepco, but be prepared to be without power for awhile! Pepco is notoriously slow at getting the power back on!! GRRR!

We have several local hotel numbers programmed into our cellphones in case the power goes out! Last summer we had a horrible thunderstorm/tornado hit Montgomery Co and parts of the county were without power for almost 7 days!!!

So, you may want to have a back up plan for housing if it looks like you will be without power for awhile!

We are keeping our fingers crossed that we get the weak side of the storm!!

[MississippiDisneyFreak]

We went through Katrina so I can offer some advice....
1. Depending on your location, seriously consider evacuating. If I were within 40 miles of a CAT 3 or worse I would definitely evacuate. No matter if you stay or go, storm proof your home as much as possible. Don't forget to secure items outside that may fly around in a storm. If you can afford a generator it is a good investment. At least you can run a fan and keep perishable foods cold this way.
2. Make sure to have at least two weeks of prescriptions on hand. If the hurricane is bad enough, your pharmacy may be out of commission at least that long.
3. They usually recommend having 3 days of food and water on hand. For a Cat 3 I would have at least a weeks worth. We also fill bottles and our tubs so we have water for washing.
4. Fill the tanks on all your vehicles and possibly fill a few gas cans to keep on hand for emergencies. There always seems to be a gas shortage after a hurricane.
5. Fill the tanks in any gas grills. This may be your only way to cook for awhile.
6. Be sure to have plenty of cash on hand. If you have to get gas or other items a lot of places will only take cash at this time. Also, your bank's computers may be affected and you may not be able to withdraw money for a bit.
7. Find all insurance and important papers and keep them in a handy location so you can get to them easily if you have to file a claim.
8. Don't forget to make plans for your furry friends. If you evacuate, do a little research ahead of time to find hotels that accept pets. Remember to stock up on food and water for them too. Many require proof of immunizations, so carry a copy.
9. If you stay, keep plenty of flashlights, batteries and a battery operated radio on hand. Stay away from windows in case of high winds or hurricanes.

Hopefully all will work out well. I will keep all in its path in my prayers.

[clausjo]

Hurricanes are one of the only things I don't miss about living in FL.

I agree 100% with MississippiDisneyFreak. We went through Wilma a few years ago and it was a category 1 when it hit. We were without power for 2 weeks. We had shutters on all the windows so no damage there, but we had some pretty major roof damage. You just never know and it's always best to be as prepared as you can.

We always followed the preparation lists, especially about water and prescriptions. Also, make ice in old juice or milk containters. It seems like block ice lasts longer and will help keep anything that may be in the fridge or freezer colder for longer. We put all of the stuff in our freezer into a big cooler with the block ice and some crumpled up newspaper. This really seemed to help keep everything really cold. And only going in there when necessary.

Also, fill up all of your bath tubs so you have water to flush the toilets if necessary.

Good luck to everyone; stay safe!

[B.O.B]

Familiarize yourself with your neighbors names,phone number etc. You never know it nowadays but these are the people that may or may not have something that you need should the need arise. Unfortunately it usually takes something bad happening to get most people to talk with neighbors. If you have a basement as I did(during hurricane Floyd) that had a sump pump in it you may have a flooding issue should the power go out.They do sell pumps with a battery backup.If you have enough hose you can practice starting a siphon from your basement crawl space. I was working and my wife didn't know how to start a siphon and ended up cutting up most of my garden hoses which was the wrong way to go.We used our crawl space for storage and lost most of our childhood pictures,books,furniture,etc. Water,batteries,canned food, propane for your grill are all items you will use at a later date or just keep the receipt and take them back if you don't use them. We are supposed to have some action here in NC so I am getting ready as well. If you get through it without any losses or damage then keep your ears open for stories about others losses. You may find out about a particular insurance product that would have covered a loss if they had it. I learned in Md if I had a sump pump rider my damages would have been covered.The sump pump rider cost 26$ extra year. Good Luck!

[MNNHFLTX]

I have been through too many storms to remember--fortunately most were tropical storms, which dump a lot of rain, but rarely cause any major flooding or damage. However just before we relocated to Texas we had to endure one of the worst hurricane seasons on the east coast of Florida--the year 2004, with Charley, Frances, Jeanne, Ivan etc. Here we were trying to sell our house and had to have it boarded up for a month! And then after moving to Houston we had Ike roll through and push tree onto our house. We just can't get away from the storms.

As far as advice, pretty much follow whatever your local emergency planners say. I think the biggest mistake most people make with a hurricane is to evacuate when they don't need to. Here in Houston when Rita threatened there were people 60-70 miles inland that were evacuating, clogging up the roads for people who truly needed to leave, like those that lived on the coast, in mobile homes or who had special medical needs. That far inland the worst that can happen is downed trees and power outages, both of which are a major inconvenience but not life-threatening. Having a generator is desirable, but probably not possible to buy at this point, if you haven't already. Make are you have water, food, medicine, flashlights, batteries and other necessary supplies to last for 10-14 days. Very important-fill up your vehicles with gas (and a few other spare gas cans too). And if you do get a direct hit, don't expect things to be normal for quite a while. It really is true that even when grocery stores open back up after a hurricane, there are limited supplies on the shelves and literally nothing in the fresh/frozen food cases.

The one positive thing about a hurricane is that it can really bring people together. Neighbors help each other board up houses, they stretch extension cords to each other's houses to share whatever power they're generators are making (as well as gas) and they help clear away debris. It's a bright spot in an otherwise stressful situation.

[Disney Hungarian]

The one positive thing about a hurricane is that it can really bring people together. Neighbors help each other board up houses, they stretch extension cords to each other's houses to share whatever power they're generators are making (as well as gas) and they help clear away debris. It's a bright spot in an otherwise stressful situation.

I agree with this 100%. After we took the direct hit from Katrina the community came together in a way that was heartwarming. Too many stories to tell. It was beautiful. Churches grilling all the deer meat that was thawing in peoples deep freezes and passing it to those who lost everything. etc. To those of you in harms way. Be safe and keep the faith.

[brownie]

For all INTERCOTees who are in Irene's path, I hope and pray that you and your families make it safely through the storm.

[Jessie]

Well it looks like it may actually hit us up this way. I'm still hoping it MIGHT change or weaken, but preparing for the worst. Got our cash, meds, water, flashlights, batteries, first aid kit and now I just need to ziplock bag all of our important documents to go!

[barnaby]

We're in the path here in southern NJ. The county below us (Cape May County) had a county-wide mandatory evacuation. We're a little bit inland, no evac, but we are expected to get whacked pretty good. I took my kids to PA to stay with my family up there to be safe.
I don't think we are in any serious danger. We could get property damage andlose power but we are not expecting anything major. We put everything away outside that wasn't nailed down and battened down the hatches.
We have non-perishable food, lots of water, cash, flashlights batteries, ice (if we lose power), candles and filled up the cars with gas. We did prepare for the worst.
Looks like we'll start feeling the effects tomorrow afternoon with the worst of it overnight tomorrow into Sunday.

To all of those in its path, be safe!!!

[divinedi]

To all of you in Irene's path, prayers and best wishes to stay safe!!

[Capt_redshirt]

looks like its going to go smack dab into CT but its hard to tell right now if we will see a hurricane or a tropical storm (im not on the coast well inland) but either way make sure that if it starts to get bad that you get yourself to saftey.

[PAYROLL PRINCESS]

I've got Pepsi, water, chocolate, batteries, books, candles and flash lights. I'm about 30-35 miles inland, so I'm not sure what we are going to see.

I've already brought in the lawn furniture, now I just have to bring in the hanging plants. Still not sure what tomorrow is going to bring. This isn't going to be a Disney ride, no matter how much or how little we get!

[buzznwoodysmom]

Stay safe everyone!