You're from Miami too? Everyone is buzzing about this, but I refuse to look at any maps or watch local weather until at least Tuesday. We've been burned so many times before with all this hysteria when it will just turn north or south and miss us completely.
At my reluctance, I looked at the map (very cool, btw, I'm so used to crappy NOAA static maps) and saw that it is supposed to go over the Dominican Republic. My Walt Disney Meteorology Degree tells me that a ride over those mountains will actually weaken it.
I was 7 when Andrew hit and have experienced many many hurricanes since then as well. It's not nearly as bad as it used to be. Miami had a big lesson with Andrew and the steps taken to secure newer homes and reinforce older ones against hurricane power have been a big help. People are also generally more prepared now. I remember in the '90s the recommendation was to tape your windows with duct tape to prevent them from shattering. Most people have either shutters or some wood to nail up against windows by now. There are also tons of shelters you can go to (I've never been to one, however. I ride the storms out!
) now which didn't really exist then.
Tips, for your first time.
- Avoid the news from now until Tuesday, otherwise the natural fluctuations of the direction of the storm are going to drive you insane. One time the media/government (the media hyped the storm so much that the local government put in a curfew. All businesses closed.
) kept us indoors for a whole weekend while a storm did loop-de-loops some miles offshore. I'm not joking. I watched about 15 movies that weekend.
- Don't bother driving north to escape it, even if the tolls are lifted. The temptation to come back right after a storm is too great. Also, the thing could turn north unexpectedly and you'll be out of familiar territory.
- If you're in an evacuation zone, evacuate. Don't risk it.
- Find a friend who has a generator. Promise dessert.
- Stock up. Only don't stock up before Ana (I can bet this one will not hit us) but after. Enough to last you a week should do it, including water.
- Do not go out for any free handouts. You will get there and be forced to be trapped in a long line for hours just to get a bag of melting ice. You can live without ice.
- Appreciate your air conditioning RIGHT NOW. After you lose power you will want to kill yourself. (Or spend like $100 on gas just to sit in your car for a few hours and blast the A/C)
- Enjoy the storm, if you enjoy storms and such. I personally love waking up in the middle of the night hearing thunderstorms.
- Spend the days after the storm, when you're confined to your neighborhood, meeting neighbors and enjoying "block parties." It works out because you can keep an eye on each other's property and share different foodstuffs. There's only so much canned ravioli one can eat.
- Get creative. My mom makes pasta on the backyard grill.
- Remember to look up. After power is knocked out the skies will be clear of light pollution and clouds (actually, all bad weather is sucked up by the storm, so the next few days after a storm are usually gorgeous) alike. You'll be able to see all the stars you want!
All in all, the only things that are really scary about hurricanes are the tornadoes that tend to spawn during them. No amount of shutters or preparation can protect you from that. But no matter where you live there's always some impending disaster threatening you, so you just have to deal with it. If it happens, it happens.