Tips

[Anonymous]

I am a firegihter/paramedic here in Central Florida. The eye of three different storms last year passed within 30 miles of my location. Charley went directly over my head. I was without power in my area for a week and a half. Fuel was impossible to get. In addition to the well known tips, here are some prep tips that I use to prep my family before I go off to work:

1 Take all the water containers you have and fill the fridge and freezer. Turn the fridge/freezer as cold as it will get the water jugs displacing the air in the fridge helps it get colder. Make sure you have at least 6 gallons of drinkning water per person.

2 Stock up on food (I have 24 MRE meals, canned goods) and make sure you have a manual can opener. Stock foods that can be eaten without cooking. You want at least 10 meals per person.

3 When the power goes out, go to the panel and turn all of the breakers off. This will reduce the risk of fire when the power comes on.

4 Eat the food from the fridge first, then the freezer, then the canned/MRE's.

5 Please don't drive around picture taking after the storm passes. We had hundreds of idiots taking pics and video clogging roads while we were attempting rescue.

6 Don't use grills, sterno or generators in your house, not even the garage or porch. We took dozens to the hospital after the storm for CO poisoning.

7 Fuel will be hard to come by. Fill your vehicles and any spare tanks you have. Just be careful where you store it.

[alicia-w]

and if you arent going to evacuate, write your name and social security number on your forearm, so you can be identified if something happens to you.

[NoceoTotus]

Further note (got this one from a homeowner association actually...):

If you have a cell phone and you are injured and unable to communicate with emergency workers, it is recommended that in your "address book" of your cell phone you have entries labeled as "ICE" or "In Case of Emergency". This will help the emergency workers contact those you wish to be contacted as they will go through your cell phone looking for clues as to identity, signifigant others, friends, family in case it is needed.