Natural disasters: To stay or go?

When a hurricane or natural disaster is heading your way, you have two options: Hunker down and hope for the best or RUN for your life, if in doubt HEAD OUT! I’m not a Katrina “survivor,” because I didn’t have to live through that storm. I fled; I packed my loved ones, grabbed important papers, necessities, and treasures and ran for my life. If you are in the path and indecisive, GO with your gut. I know the financial burden, the stress and inconvenience. I know it may be for no reason but if it looks likely you’ll get hit- GO.

Here’s why:
1- If it turns (as Katrina did), your window is precariously short to pack and traffic is chaotic.
2- Hotels are packed (often multiple states are in the cone so a lot of people are trying to leave). The longer you wait, the worse it will be and the farther you will have to go.
3- You have the opportunity to save what is precious to you– lives, important documents (scan them onto an SD and keep it with you at all times. Don’t depend on the cloud or laptop files. Scan Insurance papers, personal documents, health files, ANYTHING that can help you file claims later).
4- Those of us who left had support as we watched the news in the lobby with our stranger-neighbors (those who live in our areas but we never knew them). We had food, electricity, and health care (if you are not leaving due to health concerns, this, alone is a reason to go). We had help and started filing claims before those who stayed got evacuated.
5- Remember the images of those who stayed for Katrina- the ones waiting on interstate, and on the streets? You don’t want to be that person. GO.
6- At a certain point, you CAN’T leave and once the storm hits, you are at the mercy of the government (and they’ve proven time and again that they cannot handle it). You cannot get out until they start the post-storm evacuation.Those of us who left still carry the bruises, those who stayed still have forever scars.

If you’re Leaving:

• Bring pet supplies(extra pet food, leashes, crates, treats, toys to distract, rabies papers, medical papers)
• BRING CASH! You never know if your debit or credit will certainly work, having cash means you’ll ALWAYS have what you need.
• Bring important documents(I can’t say this enough- load it to the cloud, put it on an SD, try not to bring hard copies if you can help it but do bring insurance papers)
• Bring toys for the kids (don’t give them things all at once, save same for boredom).
• Bring extra clothes, shoes, remember weather is changing at this time of year so bring some sweaters. (We didn’t get back for months in some cases)
• Medical information, prescriptions and scans of Social Security Cards (on that SD)
• Put jewelry and photos you can’t take with you (any keep sakes) in freezer bags and put those in airtight containers. Write your name in permanent marker on the outside (top) and a contact number or email (if it floats away, you can possibly get it back).
• Don’t bring replaceable items– car and hotel room space is scarce. Use space for memories, favorite toys/lovies, food (in case the place you evacuate to winds up getting some of the impact).
• Bring flashlights, medications, OTC medications, giftcards, credit cards, a power strip (hotels usually have this but everyone needs one when they get to the hotel).
• Chargers, cables, etc.
• Chlorox wipes, plastic bags 
• A new notebook to write things down (some things are better on paper than stored in your phone- having a notebook of everything that you can clip in papers or business cards is priceless.
• Before you leave to go home, buy heavy duty black plastic trashbags, face masks, and a strong fragrance for cleanup when you return. Cleaning supplies were in short supply and stores weren’t open at first.
• Before you leave- empty your freezer/fridge (they were disgusting, stunk, and were difficult to replace). Unplug it and you may not have to replace it. If you insist on keeping everything- double freezer bag it and sit it in a garbage bag for easy disposal. This was the worst smell in the world. A Popsicle on a stick or penny on an ice cube will tell you if you lost power.

It’s overwhelming, no one wants to leave but hurricane states are given a gift earthquake, wildfire, and tornado states are not- we are given TIME. USE IT WISELY.

 

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