Power Outage Preparedness

Two keys to weather safety are to prepare for the risks and to act on those preparations when alerted by emergency officials. These are essential pieces to the Weather-Ready Nation.

Refer to the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) ready.gov/hurricanes for comprehensive information on hurricane preparedness at home and in your community. Highlights on how to prepare and take action are available below:

• Gather Information
• Plan & Take Action
• Recover
• Resources

Gather Information
Know if you live in an evacuation area. Assess your risks and know your home’s vulnerability to storm surge,flooding and wind. Understand National Weather Service forecast products and especially the meaning of NWS watches and warnings.

Contact your local National Weather Service office and local government/emergency management office. Find out what type of emergencies could occur and how you should respond.

Contacts
Keep a list of contact information for reference.

• Local Emergency Management Office
• County Law Enforcement
• County Public Safety Fire/Rescue
• State, County and City/Town Government
• Local Hospitals
• Local Utilities
• Local American Red Cross
• Local TV Stations
• Local Radio Stations
• Your Property Insurance Agent

Risk Analysis
Online hazard and vulnerability assessment tools are available to gather information about your risks.

• Check your hazards risks with FEMA’s Map Portal.
• Rate your flood risk with the FloodSmart.gov portal.

Plan & Take Action
Everyone needs to be prepared for the unexpected. Your friends and family may not be together when disaster strikes. How will you find each other? Will you know if your children or parents are safe? You may have to evacuate or be confined to your home. What will you do if water, gas, electricity or phone services are shut off?

Supplies Kit
Put together a basic disaster supplies kit and consider storage locations for different situations. Help community members do the same.

Emergency Plans
Develop and document plans for your specific risks.

• Protect yourself and family with a Family Emergency Plan
• Be sure to plan for locations away from home
• Business owners and site locations should create Workplace Plans
• Make sure schools and daycares have School Emergency Plans
• Pet owners should have plans to care for their animals. The
  Centers for Disease Control & Prevention offer information
  on animal health impacts in evacuation shelters.
• Prepare your boat and be aware of marine safety if you are on or near the water.

Health & Environment
Follow guidelines to guard your community’s health and protect the environment during and after the storm.

• Review the Centers for Disease Control’s (CDC) health considerations before, during, and after a storm.
• Remember to follow the U.S. Food & Drug Administration’s (FDA) food and water safety guidelines during
  disasters.
• Review the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) suggestions for health and environmental safety in disaster
  preparedness.

Evacuation

• Review the FEMA Evacuation Guidelines to allow for enough time to pack and inform friends and family if you need to leave your home. FOLLOW instructions issued by local officials. Leave immediately if ordered!
• Consider your protection options to decide whether to stay or
  evacuate your home if you are not ordered to evacuate.

When waiting out a storm be careful, the danger may not be over yet…

• Tornadoes – they are often spawned by hurricanes.
• The calm “eye” of the storm – it may seem like the storm is over, but after the eye passes, the winds will change
  direction and quickly return to hurricane force.

Recover

• Wait until an area is declared safe before returning home.
• Remember that recovering from a disaster is usually a gradual process.

Resources

• FEMA – Are You Ready? Guide
• National Weather Service Weather Safety
• Be a Force of Nature with NOAA’s Weather-Ready Nation
• NWS Storm-Ready Sites & Communities
• Ready.gov Kids
• American Red Cross

Stock up on emergency supplies for communication, food, safety, heating, and vehicles in case a storm hits.

Communication

Make sure you have at least one of the following in case there is a power failure:

• Cell phone, portable charger, and extra batteries.
• Battery-powered radio, with extra batteries, for listening to local emergency instructions
  • National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) weather radio receiver for listening to National Weather Service broadcasts. Learn more about NOAA Weather Radio All Hazards.
• Find out how your community warns the public about severe weather:
  • Siren
  • Radio
  • Television
  • Local public health and emergency management websites
• Listen to emergency broadcasts.
• Make a Family Communication Plan. Your family may not be together during an extreme winter event, so it is important to know how you will contact one another, how you will get back together, and what you will do during an emergency.
• Be sure to check on older neighbors and family members; assist as necessary.
• Know what winter storm warning terms mean:
  • Winter Weather Advisory:Expect winter weather condition (e.g., accumulation of snow, freezing rain, and sleet) that could cause severe inconvenience and life-threatening hazards.
  • Frost/Freeze Warning:Expect below-freezing temperatures.
  • Winter Storm Watch:Be alert; a storm is likely.
  • Winter Storm Warning:Take action; the storm is in or entering the area.
  • Blizzard Warning:Seek refuge immediately! Snow and strong winds, near-zero visibility, deep snow drifts, and life-threatening wind chill.
  • Other terms are available from NOAA.

Heating

Turning on the stove for heat is not safe; have at least one of the following heat sources in case the power goes out:

• Extra blankets, sleeping bags, and warm winter coats
• Fireplace with plenty of dry firewood or a gas log fireplace
• Portable space heaters or kerosene heaters

• Check with your local fire department to make sure that kerosene heaters are legal in your area.
• Use electric space heaters with automatic shut-off switches and non-glowing elements.
• Never place a space heater on top of furniture or near water.
• Never leave children unattended near a space heater.
• Keep heat sources at least 3 feet away from furniture and drapes.
• Have the following safety equipment:
  • Chemical fire extinguisher
  • Smoke alarm in working order (Check prior to winter storm season and change batteries, if needed.)
  • Carbon monoxide detector (Check prior to winter storm season and change batteries, if needed.)
• Never use an electric generator indoors, inside the garage, or near the air intake of your home because of the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning.
• Do not use the generator or appliances if they are wet.
• Do not store gasoline indoors where the fumes could ignite.
• Use individual heavy-duty, outdoor-rated cords to plug in other appliances.

Cooking and Lighting

Use battery-powered flashlights or lanterns.

• Never use charcoal grills or portable gas camp stoves indoors. The fumes are deadly.
• Avoid using candles as these can lead to house fires.
• If you do use candles, never leave lit candles alone.

Food and Safety

Have a week’s worth of food and safety supplies. If you live far from other people, have more supplies on hand. Make sure you have the following supplies:

• Drinking water
• Canned/no-cook food (bread, crackers, dried fruits)
• Non-electric can opener
• Baby food and formula (if baby in the household)
• Prescription drugs and other medicine
• First-aid kit
• Rock-salt to melt ice on walkways
• Supply of cat litter or bag of sand to add traction on walkways
• Flashlight and extra batteries
• Battery-powered lamps or lanterns
  (To prevent the risk of fire, avoid using candles.)

Water

Keep a water supply. Extreme cold can cause water pipes in your home to freeze and sometimes break.

• Leave all water taps slightly open so they drip continuously.
• Keep the indoor temperature warm.
• Allow more heated air near pipes. Open kitchen cabinet doors under the kitchen sink.
• If your pipes do freeze, do not thaw them with a torch. Thaw the pipes slowly with warm air from an electric hair dryer.
• If you cannot thaw your pipes, or if the pipes have broken open, use bottled water or get water from a neighbor’s home.
• Fill the bathtub or have bottled water on hand.
• In an emergency, if no other water is available, snow can be melted for water. Bringing water to a rolling boil for one minute will kill most germs but won’t get rid of chemicals sometimes found in snow.

Minimize travel, but if travel is necessary, keep the following in your vehicle:

• Cell phone, portable charger, and extra batteries
• Shovel
• Windshield scraper
• Battery-powered radio with extra batteries
• Flashlight with extra batteries
• Water
• Snack food
• Extra hats, coats, and mittens
• Blankets
• Chains or rope
• Tire chains
• Canned compressed air with sealant for emergency tire repair
• Road salt and sand
• Booster cables
• Emergency flares
• Bright colored flag or help signs
• First aid kit
• Tool kit
• Road maps
• Compass
• Waterproof matches and a can to melt snow for water
• Paper towels