Astounding Hurricane Apathy and Ignorance.
If you think Henry is "mad about the weather" you should have seen the look on my face when I read some of the numbers quoted in this article about a recent survey indicating that the majority of Gulf and East Coast residents are unprepared for a hurricane an ignorant of the facts.
At first glance this makes me weep for humanity. But maybe I shouldn't be so quick to judge because it is us, the media (NHC, AccuWeather, Local TV & Radio, etc.), that obviously need to more effectively teach these facts. Anyway, here are my thoughts on some of the more egregious ones. Leave me a Comment below to let me know what you think (don't be a pansy and email me, post what you think here).
- 97 percent didn't know that garage doors are the structural component most likely to fail during a hurricane.
I'm not sure I could name the "structural components" of a house, but this is clearly key knowledge, and as the article points out, it can be easily remedied by a cheap reinforcement kit.
- 83 percent of respondents have taken no steps to make their homes stronger.
This may be misleading because these steps (i.e. boarding up) don't make sense to do until closer to the storm, and some are done by the home's builders (who, I am told, cut custom window/door plywood sheets with handles and leave them in the garage of new homes in South Carolina). BUT, if these 83% knew about the Garage Doors thing, a heck of a lot more of them would have answered yes.
- 70 percent didn't know that storm surge represents the greatest potential for a large loss of life from a hurricane, yet storm surge can account for deaths as far inland as 20 miles.
This is also a key fact, and the problems with "big Ike" last year (that caused storm-surge damage from one end of the Gulf to the other last year). This caused people to put this fact in the forefront (or try to, apparently it didn't work). The government's official response was to remove storm surge from their storm classification scale. While that's probably scientifically accurate... it doesn't help the situation. As they say, if you're not part of the solution...
- 62 percent: The number of people who feel no threat from storms [rising] from 54 percent the previous year
I'm not at all surprised to hear this, given the mediocre predictions for the 2009 Atlantic Hurricane Season. But as the article points out, the worst hurricane in U.S. history happened during an unusually "slow" (number of storms) season. If we have a big storm hit a big city this year and people start saying the forecasts were wrong, I'm gonna go ballistic.
- 66 percent have no hurricane survival kit
This one's being covered well by the media so I won't bore you - suffice to say: Buy 'em at Wal-Mart folks, it's your one fee for living on the coast (along with that nasty insurance).
- 55 percent don't have a family disaster plan
Since even I don't know what a family disaster plan is, I can't complain. But after googling this site, it has some good bullet points. One is simply knowing where to meet your family during/after the storm (two locations), that's something Meteo Madness Man has always harped on in the case of a tornado, so it has a wider impact. It's as simple as saying over dinner "in the case of a disaster we'll meet at our house if possible, or Wal-Mart if not." Don't think cell phones are going to make this obsolete; their often the first thing to go, especially thanks to the Bush White House for blocking a law requiring 8 hours of backup power for them. Again, if you're not part of the solution...
- 16 percent mistakenly think the government will provide food, water and shelter immediately after a storm.
Well, that's a problem. If you think they will, you obviously were born after Katrina. Even beyond that, to quote the article, "Government officials say they don't have the resources to immediately help all those in need. That is why the Federal Emergency Management Agency urges each family to take responsibility for its own survival, the Sun-Sentinel reported."
- 48 percent have no flood insurance and 15 percent are not sure if their policy covers flood damage.
Wonderful. Bust on over to FloodSmart.Gov, folks.
- 21 percent did not know their home insurance policy number or how to reach their agent or carrier.
I'm guilty of this one, but I don't live in Key West. Still, note to self: Probably worth carrying in my wallet.
- 42 percent in Duval County knew if they lived in an evacuation zone
This is a huge problem; as the article points out, you're probably not going to evacuate if you don't know you should. Local media can help with this during the storm, but this is still a really bad sign.
- 13 percent said they would not evacuate even if ordered to do so.
This is the worst one in my opinion because this says that people are refusing to protect their lives. There's not much I can say to this. I believe here we're doing as much as we can do. I know in North Carolina they ask for next of kin if you don't evacuate, which makes people think, but obviously not enough.
Comments (5):
Robert J.:
Nice write up! Couldn't agree more with the points that you make. I honestly believe NO MATTER how much the weather experts put into stressing how important it is for the public to prepair prepair prepair, That the majority of folks will continue to go about there normal day to day lives, thinking a Katrina won't happen to them. To be honest, When there is that type of ignorence out there, you can't feel sorry for people or at least I don't. Not sure if thats a cold way of putting things but thats what I think. Not prepairing for hurricanes is like folks driving through a flooded roadway. I get speechless when I see on the news, people trapped in flood waters because they decided they just HAD to drive through the water. Anger should be a better way to describe me better when I see it. Anways I have recently watched a good Hurricane Katrina documentry. Theres a few parts to it so ill post the link for any interested.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oaetBNv2xSo
Posted by Robert J. | May 29, 2009 11:14 PM
Aram:
~Give it up Jesse. Some folks is stupid to the bone and are beyond help. Mark Twain called it The Imp of The Perverse. Too bad for their kids, though.
~Do the best you can for your loved ones & others who'll take your advice to heart.
~Preserving access to vital information in case of a disaster is a snap if you know someone you can trust implicitly. Just send your vitals to them via email. One document per email for security.
~Prescription meds.
~Blood type, allergies.
~Location of tour last will & testament. (Shudder)
~Insurance policy numbers.
~Phone numbers of emergency facilities in your neighborhood so they can look for you. The refuge you'll most likely head for and a phone number if you know it.
~Etc.
~Every member of your family should have and maintain a "Get outta Dodge" duffle bag. Change of clothes, esp. underwear. Foul weather gear. Some canned food to tide you over for the journey. Favorite non-perishable snacks. A couple of good books. (Life in a strange gym can get tedious.) A flashlight with fresh batteries. (Check the batteries periodically.) One small, inexpensive Shortwave/AM/FM portable radio.
~~~Most important of all.... Buy and fill at least five 5 gallon jugs of gasoline to store in your garage. (I have ten of them, good for 1500 miles/750 miles round trip.) A funnel. Use fuel preservative and rotate your stock by always pouring one can of it into your tank before every fill up. Refill the empty immediately. Number them sequentially with permanent marker to keep track of the freshest ones.
Prior Planning Prevents P*** Poor err, ah, whatever. Can't think of an appropriate P word for skedaddling.
Aram
Posted by Aram | May 29, 2009 10:56 PM
KW Russell:
You are so very right. For three years now I have been stressing preparation and following whatever evacuation plan the officials have set up in your area.
Too many people think they can handle the situation themselves until the storm comes ashore and then they are suddenly surprised. How many stories of people who got caught on Bolivar Peninsula in Texas during Ike do people have to hear before they listen to the authorities and leave when they are supposed to?
Posted by KW Russell | May 29, 2009 9:59 PM
Evelyn:
I don't live in hurricane or tornado country but I do live in earthquake country on a fault line and brush fires and floods happen in my county in California. I don't remember if we have flood insurance. I need to check on that.
It is the same here, I find - people generally don't have disaster kits or emergency plans. After talking about it for years, my hubby and I finally put a couple of disaster kits together a couple of years ago. We bought items over several months so it wasn't a huge one-time expense. There are also companies online that sell disaster kits if you don't want to put one together yourself.
We have a day pack with a few days of supplies for two people such as underwear, socks, t-shirts, water, dried food, granola bars, bandaids, ibuprofen, etc, in case we need to evacuate quickly. All important papers are in a locked file cabinet and a safe, easy to get to and pack up. The second kit is a large barrel with two weeks of supplies - MREs (meals-ready-to-eat), clothing, sleeping bags, tent, distilled water still, camp toilet, first aid kit, etc in case we need to be away longer. We keep it inside but next to a large glass window which we can smash to get to if we are unable to get inside the house. If we are able to stay on site though can't live in our house, we can use the tent and supplies. We have a propane grill and bought extra propane tanks for it and keep them filled so we could cook food and boil water.
We also have a disaster kit in the main car we use with similar supplies to the day pack and also walking shoes in case we're somewhere wearing fancy shoes and need to walk a few miles due to a disaster or a car breakdown.
We don't yet have emergency contact plans though we have relatives in different states many miles away so we will definitely think about that.
Fortunately, the company we both work for has extensive disaster plans and a large disaster supply container on site.
We often urge our friends and co-workers to put together disaster kits. One way to think about it - when you go to the grocery and hardware stores, what would you buy if you knew a large earthquake or a hurricane was going to strike in the next few days?
Posted by Evelyn | May 29, 2009 9:14 PM
Michelle L.:
I heard a bit about this yesterday and I find it disappointing and frustrating, albeit expected. There seems to be this attitude among people that things won't happen to them and that if something does happen, the government and other cosmic forces will make things all better. Maybe all the media coverage after natural disasters has led to some level of numbness caused by overexposure, but I still had hope that it would make people think about their situation and what they would do if they were faced with an Ike or Katrina (or a wildfire or an earthquake or any other disaster.) If there is anything the current economic situation could teach everyone, it's that government agencies are strapped for cash just to perform basic functions at the local and state level, so expecting them to provide assistance after a major natural disaster is likely expecting too much.
As far as the flood insurance goes, it doesn't surprise me. I worked as a mortgage servicer for 3 years and dealt with many flood insurance cases involving people in known flood-prone areas who refused to purchase insurance. Some of them allowed us to "force-place" insurance (meaning our credit union purchased the flood insurance to make them compliant) and then didn't understand that while they were paying for that insurance through their escrow, it only paid us in case of a flood (they received nothing.) Many of them indicated they couldn't afford the flood insurance, but my question was always this: if they could afford a million-dollar house near the coast with a million-dollar view, why wouldn't they spend the money for flood/hurricane insurance to protect their investment, their home, and their possessions? I just can't believe how people gamble with their lives and their property. Something everyone needs to do is check their insurance policies: many major companies will not cover damage caused by even a burst pipe because it constitutes "flooding."
I'm not the picture of perfection when it comes to disaster preparedness, but my years of weather-watching have made me realize it's just a matter of time before something will likely happen to me or my community. It's my responsibility as a citizen, a neighbor, and an individual to seek out knowledge on what I should do and do my best to be prepared to assist in every way possible.
Posted by Michelle L. | May 29, 2009 6:57 PM
