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Hurricane season is typically from June 1 through November 30—six full months of heightened weather risks. If your affiliate is located in a coastal region, it’s not too late to prepare your affiliate.
Tips to Prepare Your Affiliate as Hurricane Season Arrives
Create an emergency weather plan
Browse tips from this blog to implement a severe weather plan to be prepared in the event of a hurricane or other severe weather.
Protect your affiliate’s vehicles
Affiliate vehicles are valuable assets and provide an essential means of transportation. If an organization is located in a hurricane-prone area, these types of storms can inflict serious harm to an unprotected vehicle. Protect your affiliate vehicles by:
- Delaying any motor vehicle trips until after the hurricane passes.
- Parking vehicles inside a covered area.
- Moving vehicles to higher ground.
- Don’t drive into floods.
- Filling fuel before the storm hits.
- Locking and securing all vehicles.
Browse more vehicle protection tips here.
Protect your affiliate’s property
Keep a checklist of measures to take if a hurricane is predicted, including:
- Sandbag any area that is subject to flooding.
- Put plywood or shutters over windows.
- Anchor and brace any large furniture to wall studs.
- Unplug electrical equipment such as computers and TVs. Leave fridges and freezers plugged in, unless there is risk of flooding.
- If instructed by authorities, turn off all the utilities prior to a hurricane making landfall.
- Contact employees and volunteers informing them of the closure.
Explore more affiliate hurricane safety and preparation tips here.
Keep an emergency kit
Should a storm hit while employees, volunteers or customers are at your affiliate, it is important to have a disaster kit with supplies like:
- Battery operated radio
- Three day water supply (1 gallon of water per person, per day)
- Non-perishable three day food supply
- First Aid Kit
- Flashlights with extra batteries
- Generator
- Emergency contact information
Know your local community’s evacuation plan
Always listen to local officials. If evacuation is necessary, take your emergency supply kit, leave early enough to avoid the severe weather and follow recommended routes. If you have time before evacuation, do what you can to protect your affiliate’s property.
Prepare Your Affiliate as Hurricane Season Arrives
Along with preparing your affiliate, encourage your employees and volunteers to do the same. While summer is always busy time at affiliates, it’s important not to neglect your hurricane preparedness plan until it’s too late. Take the time now to plan and prepare so that you’re ready for whatever storms come your way.