Hurricane Preparedness – Ideas for You

by | Sep 7, 2017 | Business Continuity, Disaster Recovery

We are based out of Atlanta Ga and watching the tracking maps and predictions for Hurricane Irma closely. We are hoping that Irma loses strength by the time it gets here. Even if it does, there will probably still be a lot of rain with whatever we get.

Atlanta doesn’t have as much concrete to block the rain from soaking in as Huston does but the lower parts of town do flood when the rain gets heavy. Instead of worrying about something that may happen, we are preparing for what could happen.

Time is short if you are in the path of Irma, but if you are, here are a few tips that you can do in the few days left until the storm hits.

Plan on the power going out. Make sure you have flashlights for everyone in your group. A headlamp for everyone is a good idea. Consider collar lights for your pets too. LED lights use less power than the old incandescent bulbs. Make sure you stock up on enough of the right batteries. Purchase a few table top lanterns because they light up a whole room better than a flashlight can.

Stock up on non perishable food. Fill up your propane tanks in case you have an electric stove and/or water heater and want a hot meal. Which reminds me, make sure you know where all your shutoff valves are and the tools you’ll need to turn them off and on with.  Gas, Electric and Water come to mind.

If you are able to stay in place, fill up all as many jugs and bottles as you can find while you have clean water. To avoid having to stand in line for bottled water, get a water purifier similar to this. Split and mark your water jugs for unclean and post purified clean water. You don’t want to make the mistake of putting clean water into a jug that had dirty water in it earlier.

If you are not a camper, now might be a good time to visit your local camping store or online 

Red Cross Shelter

shop. What is camping but trying to live comfortably without all the comforts of home, like a roof, clean water and electricity.

If you have to leave your home, everyone else probably does too. You should have enough tents, sleeping bags and air mattresses for everyone in your group in case hotels and shelters fill up.

Next is a camp stove (and plenty of fuel), pots, plates and flatware. I like my Snow Peak LiteMax Stove because it doesn’t take up much room in my bag. Depending on the size of your group and how mobile you have to be, a bigger stove may serve you better.

Make sure you have enough medicines and toiletry items to last you a couple of weeks. If you have an electric toothbrush, you might want to get a manual one in case you can’t recharge. Grab as many individual wet naps as you can. They are magic when water levels don’t allow for showers.

Do you have a radio? In the age of Pandora and Spotify, many don’t. Don’t count on internet access let alone wi-fi.

Get to know your neighbors. Find out where shelters and aid stations are planned to be set up before you need to go to them. Fill your car with gas. Tune to the news and get out if emergency teams tell you to.

I know it is a little late for this information and probably not expected from a Telecom Broker your safety is more important than your bandwidth.

I am not a spokesman for REI, they were just my go to store for outdoor gear when I lived in Seattle.

Good Luck!!!

Teledata Select offers a whole range of services that will help you meet your business goals. Starting with a complimentary review of your current telecommunication bills to identify errors and find opportunities for savings, better service and more functionality. We also offer project management for new service implementation and infrastructure installs, including fiber and low voltage cabling. Call us at 404-257-1502 to discuss your current Telecom Service Solution and what you would like to get out of it. Or send us a note via Contact us to start a no obligation discussion of your specific business technology needs.

Don Miller is a PMP certified Project Manager located in Greenville, SC. He has come to Teledata Select via Seattle, New York and Washington DC. His experience running small to multi-million dollar projects in the Banking, Software, Telecommunications and Insurance Industries across the US has given him a wide range of business experience.

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