Flooding
From Link

Each year, more deaths occur due to flooding than from any other thunderstorm related hazard. Why? The main reason is people underestimate the force and power of water. Many of the deaths occur in automobiles as they are swept downstream. Of these drownings, many are preventable, but too many people continue to drive around the barriers that warn you the road is flooded.

Whether you are driving or walking, if you come to a flooded road, Turn Around Don't Drown® You will not know the depth of the water nor will you know the condition of the road under the water.

Follow these safety rules:

• Monitor the NOAA Weather Radio, or your favorite news source for vital weather related information.
  
• If flooding occurs, get to higher ground. Get out of areas subject to flooding. This includes dips, low spots, canyons, washes etc.
  
• Avoid areas already flooded, especially if the water is flowing fast. Do not attempt to cross flowing streams. Turn Around Don't Drown ®
  
• Road beds may be washed out under flood waters. NEVER drive through flooded roadways. Turn Around Don't Drown ® If your vehicle is suddenly caught in rising water, leave it immediately and seek higher ground.
  
• Do not camp or park your vehicle along streams and washes, particularly during threatening conditions.
  
• Be especially cautious at night when it is harder to recognize flood dangers.

Flash Floods
Except for heat related fatalities, more deaths occur from flooding than any other hazard. Why? Most people fail to realize the power of water. For example, six inches of fast-moving flood water can knock you off your feet.

While the number of fatalities can vary dramatically with weather conditions from year to year, the national 30-year average for flood deaths is 127. That compares with a 30-year average of 73 deaths for lightning, 65 for tornadoes and 16 for hurricanes. National Weather Service data also shows:

• Nearly half of all flash flood fatalities are vehicle-related,
  
• The majority of victims are males, and
  
• Flood deaths affect all age groups.

Most flash floods are caused by slow moving thunderstorms, thunderstorms that move repeatedly over the same area or heavy rains from tropical storms and hurricanes. These floods can develop within minutes or hours depending on the intensity and duration of the rain, the topography, soil conditions and ground cover.

Flash floods can roll boulders, tear out trees, destroy buildings and bridges, and scour out new channels. Rapidly rising water can reach heights of 30 feet or more. Furthermore, flash flood-producing rains can also trigger catastrophic mud slides.

Occasionally, floating debris or ice can accumulate at a natural or man-made obstruction and restrict the flow of water. Water held back by the ice jam or debris dam can cause flooding upstream. Subsequent flash flooding can occur downstream if the obstruction should suddenly release. More information can be obtained at the Southern Region Flood Hazards Page.


There are Turn Around Don't Drown® Outreach Materials in PDF format:
Available through links at Link

Time for you to start thinking about what you are going to need to do if the storm hits your area.

From WKRG News:

Link

Make Evacuation Plans Before Storm Arrives

by Neil Johnson

MEDIA GENERAL NEWS SERVICE

May 13, 2005

A hurricane is churning and forecasts put the storm on a track to slam into your state, triggering emergency officials to call for evacuations.
Now what?
Basically, prepare ahead of time. Check maps each county provides to see if you live in an evacuation zone, and which one. If you live in a mobile home, you will be included in any evacuation order.
Be ready to secure your home before you go by bringing inside anything that could be hurled by the wind, turning off the electricity and gas, and boarding windows.
When planning what to take, think of it as a three- to five-day camping trip, suggests David Bilodeau, head of Pinellas County's (Florida's) emergency management.

Before the evacuation order, you should take some steps:

• Gather essential papers like birth certificates, insurance policies, photographs or a videotape of your belongings for insurance claims, deeds and mortgages, stock certificates, savings and checking account books and anything else that would be difficult to replace. Have them in one place such as a briefcase or inside watertight plastic bags.
  
• An additional safeguard is to make photo copies of the documents and keep them someplace not likely to be damaged by a storm or mail them to relatives away from storm areas.
  
• Know where you intend to go and the evacuation routes. If possible, stay with friends or relatives in a safer location. Hotels along the evacuation routes will likely be packed. Go to a public shelter only if there are no other options.
  
• Also agree on a relative or friend to act as a contact if your family gets separated, and let someone know where you will be.

What to take:

• It could be several days before you are allowed back to your home if damage is extensive. It will take time to clear debris and powerlines. No one will be allowed back into evacuated areas until search and rescue work is finished.
  
• Ideally, the order lifting the evacuation will be announced in the evening and begin the next morning and include all evacuation areas. Emergency officials don't want people returning to damaged neighborhoods in the dark.

When packing:

• Bring at least three days of clothing, including underwear and socks, for everyone. Take sturdy work clothes, gloves and boots.
  
• Include personal toiletries.
  
• If you have an infant, be sure to take all the diapers, bottles, food, clothing and formula you will need for at least three days. Pack blankets and a portable crib if there is room.
  
• Include any medication you need as well as copies of prescriptions and your doctor's name. Also, pack things like aspirin, decongestants, diarrhea medication and antacids. If you have any special dietary needs, include those foods.
  
• Some basic hand tools like pliers, hammer, wrenches, screwdrivers, utility knife, wire cutters, flashlight, battery-powered radio and duct tape.
  
• Take cash as well as your ATM and credit cards, but remember that if electricity is lost your cards may be useless.

Protecting your Boat

Protecting your boat requires planning, preparation and timely action. You need a plan designed especially for your type of boat, your local boating environment, the severe weather expected in the area and the types of safe havens for protection.

Options include: securing your vessel in the marina, removing your boat from the area, or taking your boat to a previously identified hurricane refuge.

If your boat is in a marina, read your contract, lease or storage rental agreement. Know your responsibilities and liabilities, as well as those of the marina. Check with the dockmaster for any new requirements.

Consolidate all your records, including insurance policies, pictures or video of your boat, boat registration, equipment inventory, lease agreement and important telephone numbers.

Your insurance policy should include adequate coverage for damage that your boat may cause to other property. Determine how you will remove valuable equipment from your boat and how long it will take. Maintain an inventory of both the items removed and those left on board.

Check the water seal and its overall watertight integrity.

You can store a small boat with a trailer in a warehouse or your garage. If you leave your boat and trailer outside, attach the trailer tongue to a firm spot in the ground, deflate the tires and tie the boat to the trailer. Place boards between the axle and frame to prevent damage to the trailer springs.

Remember, drawbridges do not operate during evacuations.

~~

Taking Care of Your Boat

Damage caused by your boat during a hurricane is your responsibility, so have a plan and to protect your boat.

If you plan to trailer your boat to the mainland, you must do so before an evacuation order is issued.

Owners of large crafts that must remain in the water must secure their vessels in a predetermined anchorage or mooring area.

Be sure batteries are charged and bilge pumps are operational.

Keep sufficient tie lines and chafing gear, anchors and anchor line, and any other equipment necessary to secure your boat in the water.

Monitor NOAA Weather radio.

Never stay aboard your boat in a hurricane.

Tornados

Hurricanes also produce tornadoes, which add to the hurricane's destructive power. These tornadoes most often occur in thunderstorms embedded in rain bands well away from the center of the hurricane. However, they can also occur near the eyewall.

Many of the general precautions/preparations that apply to a hurricane also apply to a tornado, but there are a few extra steps that you should be aware of.
~~
From quakeare. com @ Link (for information only)

Are you ready for a Tornado?

Prepare a home Tornado plan

• Pick a place where family members could gather if a tornado is headed your way. It could be your basement or, if there is no basement, a center hallway, bathroom, or closet on the lowest floor. Keep this place uncluttered.
  
• If you are in a high-rise building, you may not have enough time to go to the lowest floor.Pick a place in a hallway in the center of the building.

Assemble a Tornado Safety Kit containing:

• First aid kit and essential medication
  
• Battery-powered radio, flashlight, and extra batteries
  
• Canned food and can opener
  
• Bottled water
  
• Sturdy shoes and work gloves
  
• Also include in the kit written instructions on how to turn off your home’s utilities
  
• Conduct periodic tornado drills, so everyone remembers what to do when a tornado is approaching.
  
• Stay tuned for storm warnings
  
• Listen to your local radio and TV stations for updated storm information

Know what a tornado WATCH and WARNING means

• A tornado WATCH means a tornado is possible in your area.
  
• A tornado WARNING means a tornado has been sighted and may be headed for your area.
  
• Go to safety immediately.
  
• Tornado WATCHES and WARNINGS are issued by the county or parish.

When a tornado WATCH is issued

• Listen to local radio and TV stations for further updates.
  
• Be alert to changing weather conditions.
  
• Blowing debris or the sound of an approaching tornado may alert you.
  
• Many people say it sounds like a freight train.

When a tornado WARNING is issued

• If you are inside, go to the safe place you picked to protect yourself from glass and other flying objects.
  
• The tornado may be approaching your area.
  
• If you are outside, hurry to the basement of a nearby sturdy building or lie flat in a ditch or low-lying area.
  
• If you are in a car or mobile home, get out immediately and head for safety (as above).
  
• After the tornado passes: Watch out for fallen power lines and do not venture into the damaged area.
  
• Listen to the radio for information and instructions.
  
• Use a flashlight to inspect your home for damage (avoid using candles or matches)

Online Hurricane Preparedness Videos can be viewed at
at Internet Partnership Radio's Website


Link

Maeve, Keep this one for the 2008 season. Dave

I have a waterproof backpack (for each family member) for that reason. I chose the kind that also has wheels.

Copies of our "important" papers and a waterproof jacket are already in it and it will accommodate a change of clothes and some water and food - with room to spare for other essentials.

My footwear of choice in this instance is sturdy boots. They are built for "rough" terrain.