Are You Ready? - During the Storm

When in a warning area...

 

• Listen closely to radio, TV or NOAA Weather Radio for official bulletins.
• Complete preparation activities, such as putting up storm shutters, storing loose objects, etc.
• Follow instructions issued by local officials. Leave immediately if told to do so!
• If evacuating, leave early (if possible, in daylight). Stay with friends or relatives, stay at a low-rise inland hotel/motel, or go to a predesignated public shelter outside a flood zone.
• Leave mobile homes.
• Notify neighbors and a family member outside of the warned area of your evacuation plans.
• Take pets with you. Leaving pets behind is likely to result in their being injured, lost or killed.
• Move to a safe area before you are cut off by flood water.
• Turn off propane tanks.
• Unplug small appliances.
• Fill bathtub and large containers with water for sanitary purposes.

 

If staying in a home...

Only stay in a home if you have NOT been ordered to leave. Stay inside a well constructed building. Examine the building and decide what you will do if winds become strong enough to produce deadly missiles and structural failure.

 

• Turn refrigerator to its coldest setting and keep closed.
• Turn off utilities if told to do so by authorities.
• Turn off propane tanks.
• Unplug small appliances.
• Fill bathtub and large containers with water for sanitary purposes.

 

In strong winds...

 

• Stay away from windows and doors even if they are covered. Take refuge in a small interior room, closet or hallway.
• Close all interior doors. Secure and brace external doors.
• In a two-story house, go to an interior first-floor room, such as a bathroom or closet.
• In a multiple-story building, go to the first or second floors and stay in interior rooms away from windows.
• Lie on the floor under a table or another sturdy object.

 

What to bring to a shelter...

 

• First-aid kit
• Prescription medicines
• Baby food and diapers
• Cards, games, books
• Toiletries
• Battery-powered radio
• Flashlight (one per person)
• Extra batteries
• Blankets or sleeping bags
• Identification
• Valuable papers (insurance)
• Credit card or cash

Courtesy of NOAA