Just to make sure I start out with a disclaimer. If your authorities tell you to evacuate, don’t gamble with your life or that of your loved ones. Do what they ask as quickly as possible. Also, even if an evacuation order isn’t issued, but you fear for your safety, don’t hesitate to leave your home for a safer shelter. Also, although the title says mild hurricane, there really is no mild hurricane. All are serious and can cause damage to structures, injury and even death. However, three years ago, I stayed home during a Category One Hurricane. From experience, I learned what one needs to have in the event of a choice to stay at home during a hurricane or tropical storm. We did not have all that we need, but now I know what we left out of our list of survival goods.
Every year during hurricane season, I have told my husband to buy things we might need should a hurricane hit. He has always laughed at me as being paranoid. However three years ago, he was the one saying we needed to purchase hurricane supplies. He said he felt it in his bones that we would have a hurricane hit us that year. A hurricane had not really hit North Florida in over 30 years, but I went with the flow anyway. We purchased everything that we thought we might need, and thought we were ready for what might lay ahead.
The next week, Hurricane Frances formed over the southern Atlantic. It was one of the largest hurricanes area wise before it made land fall, It in one way or another affected the whole state. We live 70 miles from the beach, but our small community still experienced 70 mile per hour winds. Gusts were clocked at 90.
1) Flashlights. Not just any regular flashlight but the hand crank variety. You don’t realize how quickly you use batteries to keep a regular flashlight bright. The hand crank flashlights are the best flashlights to get as they can be cranked to last about thirty minutes before you need to crank them again. Batteries can cost an arm and a leg, so this should be your first choice.
2) Lots of batteries. Check to see what size your radios, portable TV’s, flashlights, and any other equipment you might have, uses. We bought some, but not enough. We ran out the last day that our lights were turned on. None of the local stores were open, so I’m not sure what we would have done without batteries.
3) Hand crank radio. Again, batteries are so expensive. After we experienced this storm, I bought a hand crank radio. It lasts about twenty minutes before cranking is needed.
4) Portable small television that works off of batteries. We already had a portable black and white TV, sort of like the kind you would use in a camper. Thanks goodness we had that, because we would have been lost without a TV to watch the important weather updates. We have one of the best meteorologists in the North Florida area, and I rely on his reports on TV. He stayed on the TV himself, with live coverage until the worst of the storm was over.
5) Handy wipes or baby wipes. We kept water throughout the storm, but if we had lost water service, handy wipes would have helped.
6) You will need games, CD players, cards, book, crossword puzzles, anything that will keep your family entertained. Luckily two of my children were older teenagers, and my daughter was then 11, and easy to please. Remember we were lucky, we had a portable TV. It was a little cramped watching TV around the dining room table, but at least we had TV. If we had been sent to a shelter, these items were not on my evacuation list, but you can bet they are now, as they came in handy during the three days we were basically stuck in the house.
I would not wish a hurricane on anyone. They are awful. But no one in our community was in any real danger. In a strange sort of way, the storm brought us closer together. We had no computers or modern technologies. We sat around the portable TV to listen to the weather, which was about all that was on locally – remember no conveniences so no cable. We played games and when the lights first went out, you would have thought we were at the greatest buffet ever. Everyone ran to the suitcase with the food. I had told them it was only to be gotten into when the lights went out. Did they ever take me literally. Something about sardines and crackers in the dark with a flashlight.
Again, make sure you heed the warnings of your authorities and leave your home if you are evacuated. Never think you can make it on your own and chance it.
