Introduction
The Atlantic hurricane season typically lasts from June 1 – November 30. Hurricanes don’t know the calendar, so don’t be surprised to see storms earlier or later than those dates. You can’t prevent a hurricane, but you can be prepared to deal with one when it happens. I’ve been through hurricanes causing a little rain and wind up to making my home uninhabitable.
Natural disasters require preparation and awareness. You can start taking steps today to prepare in case of emergency. You may never need your plan, but it’s far worse not to have one when you need it. That’s true for everyone, not just those with chronic illness.
You may never need your plan, but it’s far worse not to have one when you need it. That’s true for everyone, not just those with chronic illness. Click To TweetNote: Every story in this post is true. The names have been omitted to protect the clueless.
Preparation
While some of this planning may seem like it’s common sense, I’ve learned the hard way that you can’t count on those around you to have common sense.
I was a 22-year-old graduate student who has lived in hurricane zones my entire life. A weak hurricane was headed toward us, so I wasn’t concerned. I lived with three guys who were older than I and all had college degrees. They’d figure out what to do, right? HA! They gave me the deer-in-the-headlights look and had no idea. I practically held their hands through our storm prep.
Even if you have common sense, you’re probably more stressed than usual. It’s not worth relying on memory, especially for something that hopefully won’t happen often. You’ll have plenty to do.
Gather Information
Family Communication Plan – FEMA UPDATED!
During and after a disaster, there are key contacts. How will you find other family members during a disaster? Who can family and friends contact to check on you? Do you know how to contact your insurance companies? A Family Communication Plan answers so many questions for your friends and family. FEMA’s got a checklist and forms to help.
Vial of Life is a non-profit that created forms for basic medical information, along with tips to make sure first responders could find it easily.
Vial of Life – Disability Specific Disaster Preparedness Inventory
The non-profit also has a worksheet you can use to document your specific conditions and needs for the disabled and chronically ill. It’s useful if you require medical treatment or evacuation to a shelter.
Making a Plan
Fortunately, you don’t have to start from scratch when it comes to disaster planning. Here are three starting points:
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has comprehensive resources available. This preparedness guide includes checklists providing high-level information covering preparation through the entire event. There’s some high-level information about disabilities, but you’ll need more specific instructions to execute a plan.
Hurricane Safety Checklists NEW!
The National Hurricane Survival Institute is loaded with information. The checklists here are well-organized, easy to follow, and downloadable.
How to Prepare for a Hurricane – Red Cross UPDATED!
The Red Cross provides detailed information for a variety of disasters.
Family Disaster Plan worksheet – Red Cross
Fill in this 3-page summary form that’s easy to complete and share with your family, even children.
Chronic Illness/Disability Specific Information
A terrific brochure from FEMA packed with loads of helpful information.
Preparing for Disaster for People with Disabilities and other Special Needs NEW!
Booklet put together by FEMA and the Red Cross including helpful checklists.
It’s a general resource for anyone with disabilities, even though it’s on the National Multiple Sclerosis Society website.
Disaster Preparedness Tips & Tools for People with Disabilities
Most of the document concerns city planning, but Appendix A includes terrific paperwork and checklists for disabled people.
This article includes tips and links for finding shelter, communicating your needs, and disaster recovery resources.
If you’re hardcore and want to fully research, check these out:
Disaster Information Management Research Center | NLM
Hardcore Emergency Preparation Plan – Be Prepared
Hardcore Guide To Citizen Preparedness – FEMA
Download Helpful Phone Apps
- Flashlight – usually a default app, but you may want to download one of the higher powered ones.
- ICE – In Case of Emergency contact information
- Disaster Apps: Digital Go To Bag lists a wide variety of apps and includes links to download iOS or Android.
- Gas Buddy – You’ll want to have a full tank before the storm. If you evacuate, you’ll need to find gas stations in unfamiliar places.
Other helpful apps
- Weather apps – Your local TV stations probably have an app that will allow you to get a more location-specific forecast. You can also customize alerts so that you see the watches and warnings that matter to you.
- Flood and water level information
- Earthquake interactive mapping
- Disaster preparedness kits
- Prescription drug information
Check out these social media accounts:
- If you want to keep up with potential tornadoes, check out the Facebook profile for Weather Channel’s Dr.Greg Forbes. His TOR-CON Index measures the probability of a tornado within 50 miles of your home.
- Twitter
- Set up alerts to receive emergency alerts from participating organizations – Setup Instructions and list of participating organizations.
- Follow your local National Weather Service office.
- Follow your local news weather accounts.
Assemble Basic Supplies
First Aid Kit
A First Aid Kit includes supplies for basic accidents and injuries. You already have the start of one at your home, such as a bottle of aspirin or some bandages. A first aid kit is just an organized set of items you may need in the course of a day.
For home – You can either buy a prepackaged one or follow these steps to make one:
- Make a list of what first aid products you typically use.
- Buy what you don’t already have on hand.
- Put everything together so that you can find what you need when you need it.
For the car:
- You can start with a smaller version of the kit you keep in your house.
- There may be items that you’d specifically need in the car, like a towel or blanket.
- While you may want to keep big items in your trunk, make sure you keep a set of the basics inside the car. Would you want to get out of your car during a thunderstorm to grab a bandage from your trunk?
- The glove compartment or under the seat are good places to keep a kit.
Check out this list from the American Red Cross on how to put together a first aid kit: Assembling a First Aid Kit – Red Cross.
Emergency Kit
An Emergency Kit is a collection of general survival supplies needed for a disaster. Typically, these are supplies you would need for about 3 days and includes items you could take with you should you need to evacuate. Again, you could assemble one for yourself or buy a prepackaged kit.
A great idea from the pre-assembled kits – keep your essentials in a backpack. Not only will you have everything in one place, but you can grab it and go if necessary.
Here’s what the American Red Cross advises for you to include in your emergency kit: Assembling an Emergency Kit – Red Cross.
Disaster Supplies Kit
A Disaster Supplies Kit contains your full-blown requirements for a particular disaster. You’re thinking about what could get you through days or even weeks before, during, and after the disaster. You’ll be addressing multiple scenarios, such as:
- What if you need to evacuate?
- What would you need to have at home if you were stuck there for a period of time?
- What would you need to have if you lost power?
- What if power stayed out for several days or longer?
- What if the water supply was contaminated or otherwise disrupted?
- If you have a grill, do you have the supplies to be the Grillmaster?
- What would you need to make repairs?
- What would you want to have around to be more comfortable and pass the time?
Here’s a list of things you’ll want to consider including in your disaster supplies – Disaster Supplies Checklist – FEMA.
Chronic Illness/Disability Specific
Remember that any of your aids that use power are useless in a power failure. Make sure you have the following manual tools in your disaster supplies:
- Manual can opener
- Bottle opener – I can’t open water bottles and other drinks with small caps without assistance. I use a 5-in-1 tool that I can use to screw off caps and open all sorts of cans.
- Jar opener
If you’re heat sensitive, you’ll need to figure out ways you can keep cool without power.
- Cooling wrap: These small but mighty heat-beaters can be brought to life by soaking briefly in some water. When the cool is wearing off, just put it back in the water.
- Personal fan: You’ve got a number of options here. Use a handheld or one that hangs on a necklace. Some are battery-operated, others are hand-cranked. Some are even attached to squirt bottles so you can spritz while you fan.
Should I Stay Or Should I Go?
Sometimes, conditions are so threatening that you’ll need to evacuate. It’s tough enough for the able-bodied, but those of us with chronic illness and disabilities have even more challenges to consider.
These plans can help you put together general evacuation information:
Emergency Essentials – Travel Preparedness Checklist – What to take with you when traveling
Be Prepared – Emergency Evacuation Plan – General evacuation information
Chronic Illness/Disability Specific Information
I’ve already mentioned these documents in the Preparation section, but here are the links again:
Disaster Preparedness Tips & Tools for People with Disabilities
Chapters 4 and 5 address disability issues from the public service view on evacuation and shelter so you understand how they’re preparing to help. And the previously mentioned Appendix A is tailored for you to document your needs and easily communicate them to needed personal. Filling in those forms and using the checklists will put you in the best position to weather the storm.
This Shelter section references key disaster resources which can help you find shelters that can accommodate your needs, It also provides key tips on organizations with whom you may register to ensure that authorities are aware of your specific needs.
Time to get morbid: If you’re supposed to evacuate and you don’t, use a Sharpie. In the most dire situations, public officials have asked those who don’t evacuate to write personal information on their bodies so they can identify you. Hopefully, this won’t happen to you.
Afterwards
The storm may be over, but that doesn’t mean an immediate return to normal.
After a disaster, Facebook offers a chance to check in so that your friends can easily find out you’re safe.
Recovering From Disaster – FEMA
Addresses short-term issues like health and safety guidelines, If you’ve evacuated, you also have tips for returning home. For bigger issues, you have guidance from filing insurance claims to coping skills for all ages.
Let’s Talk Food
One of the biggest questions is whether or not your food in the refrigerator and freezer is OK after a power outage.
If your power is out and you’re worried that your food is going to spoil, a short-term way to reduce food loss is fire up that grill. Get together with your neighbors and just have a big party. You’ll enjoy the hot meal and be relieved that some of your food didn’t completely go to waste.
If you’re trying to wait it out, check The Kitchn for a comprehensive list on how to handle your refrigerator foods. It also includes the basic freezer rules. Here’s a key about all of those rules – keep both appliances shut to keep the food as cold as possible.
If the power's out, keep your refrigerator and freezer shut to keep the food as cold as possible. Click To TweetOne of my roommates opened the freezer to check how the food was doing. I reminded all of them that they needed to keep the fridge and freezer shut. Each time we opened the doors, we let out cold air, increasing the risk that our food would get warm and spoil. One guy just didn’t get it.
I explained it again when he opened the freezer again “to check on the food”. When he opened it again, we put a note on the door that said STOP OPENING THE DOOR! The next time, we sealed the door with masking tape. Finally, we ridiculed his alma mater, Auburn, for giving him a physics degree. When our power came back the next day, surprise! We had to throw out everything in the freezer.
If you do have to throw out food, first check your insurance policy. Some homeowner’s and renter’s policies will allow you to include the cost of the spoiled food in your claim. If you’re covered, you’ll want to list the spoiled contents before trashing.
Getting Ready For the Next One
Hopefully, you will soon be able to sigh in relief soon after the event and get back to normal life. All good, right? Wrong.
Maybe you won’t have to worry about the next storm until the next hurricane season. You might only have a week, or even less. It’s best to think about preparation sooner rather than later, so it’s fresher in your mind what happened during the most recent one.
- Review disaster plan – What went right? What went wrong? What would you rather do the next time? It could be as simple as picking up more cookies. Or it could be as complicated as unpacking your belongings in your new place. I’ve dealt with both of those situations and a bunch in between.
- Add/change numbers on your communication plan as needed.
- Check first aid kit – remove expired medications and replenish supplies.
- Check supplies – remove expired items and replenish.
Did you know? Bottled water has an expiration date, and you should pay attention to it. Chemicals in the plastic can break down and contaminate the water. When replenishing your emergency stash, don’t forget to change out the water.
Check out these posts for more information:
Do you have any advice you’d like to share? Pass it along in the comments below.
