June 1st starts hurricane season and it’s just around the corner. We were fortunate we did not have any major hurricanes last year but this year is predicted to be another active hurricane season. With the rough weather going on around the country you just never know. So once again it’s time to evaluate how we’re doing in terms of hurricane preparedness:
- We need to pick up a few more canned goods to replace the ones we’ve rotated through. I’d like to pick up powdered milk and non-dairy creamer for the pantry. We bought extra granola bars on our last trip to Costco.
- We also bought extra large heavy duty trash bags in case trash collection is delayed from a hurricane.
- Water is definitely on the list. We have some bottled water but not enough. I would not want to be getting in line at the grocery store next time there is a hurricane warning. I’ve been at a grocery store before a hurricane and it is not pretty.
- Need to fill up the spare gasoline storage container. We use the gas within a month to avoid spoilage. Because of the small space we cannot store a lot of gasoline.
- Now would be a good time to buy extra pet food, and extra cat litter too.
- Checked the batteries and flashlights to make sure they work. Bought a couple more flashlights for the nightstands.
- We should buy paper plates, cups and utensils, just in case water is interrupted I don’t want to have dirty dishes.
- Replaced emergency cash that had gotten used up.
- Catching up on doing all the laundry in advance, including sheets and towels that usually get stranded in the pile; I don’t want to add more piles of dirty laundry if electricity gets interrupted. This one is a quirk of mine, it’s optional but I like to plan ahead 🙂
I am cleaning and re-filling 2L soda bottles for my water storage. City water already has chlorine added to limit bacteria growth (unlike store bought bottled water), making it safer for long-term storage. It’s also a lot cheaper. Just rotate the water every 6months and you’re good. 4L is a little over a Gallon, so 2bottles per person per day.
You can also put a few bottles in your freezer to keep things cold during a power outage.
Good idea, keeping a few filled bottles in the freezer. I will save a few for the freezer.
Make sure you have a way to cook your food and heat water for cleaning. Not to mention personal hygiene supplies.
Do you have friends or relatives that live out of the area that could take you in if you have to evacuate?
We have out of state relatives about 20 hours away, so it’s more likely we’d drive to San Antonio or Dallas or whatever direction is away from the hurricane path.
Do your kids drink Gatorade? I use the jugs to store water. I try to keep 200 full and I use the water to take care of my animals, so I use four to five a day. That rotates the supply. I also use Deer Park commercial water jugs, they’re heavy duty plastic and have served me well. Living here in the mountains, you’d think I’d not worry about hurricanes. But one of the worst times we ever had here was the result of the remnants of a hurricane coming up out of the Gulf and sweeping over the mountains. No power for a couple of weeks, trees down on all the roads, telephone lines destroyed. It was really bad. I was able to run the air and a few other essentials off my generator but it was, all in all, not a pleasant experience.
Yes those Gatorade jugs are sturdy, I will start using them. I think we have 1 Deer park jug but should get more.