Retrospective Thoughts on Hurricane Hermine

By Tiffany Battle on September 11, 2016

Hurricane Hermine is by no means the first or worst hurricane I have lived through. I was in fourth grade when Hurricane Ivan hit Pensacola, a category 3 by the time it made landfall, and the effects were devastating. I remember (not-so-fondly) sleeping on a mattress in my living room for 9 days in front of a generator-powered fan, eating MRE’s (Meals Ready to Eat), and seeing blue roof tarps on every street. I remember my teacher stopping by my house to check up on me because school was cancelled for two weeks. I know people who didn’t only lose their power but their entire home. My family was one of the luckier ones.

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Of course, being a small human being with no knowledge of hurricanes or how to prepare for them, my parents took care of everything. Although I was inconvenienced and hot, I was cared for and happy for any excuse to miss school.

Fast forward 12 years later. I am now the adult responsible for taking care of things when natural disasters hit. I now have my own home to protect, not to mention a giant needy cat to care for.

Until about 1 P.M. on Thursday, I wasn’t really taking Hermine seriously. I figured that the power would probably go out for a few hours, there would be tree limbs down on the roads, and a decent bit of rain. Nothing I haven’t experienced before, right?

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Wrong. Going through a natural disaster when you are young = not too stressful. Going through it when you are an adult = how am I allowed to live on my own?

However, I made it through the storm and the days following with a new insight. And the things I learned were things I should have already known to do from watching and listening to my parents, but were nevertheless learned the hard way instead. The next time a hurricane rolls through town, even a category 1, I’ll be prepared.

Important acts of preparation to take in the event of a natural disaster:

  1. Fill up your gas tank. The days following the storm, many gas stations will be without power, and the few that are up and running will be swarmed with people just like you who are irritable and willing to cut in line to get out of there as quickly as possible. Trust me, this is not a pretty sight, and you are better off avoiding being in this situation like the plague.
  2. Make sure all your medications are refilled. You absolutely don’t want to be caught stuck without your necessary prescriptions until the pharmacies open days later. On that note, also make sure you have your non-prescriptions as well: ibuprofen, tylenol, etc.
  3. Don’t wait until the day of to stop by your local Wal-Mart for non-perishables. On top of the long lines and hectic shoppers, the store will probably have run out of many items that you planned on purchasing. By the time you finally find everything you need and check out, the storm will be rolling in, meaning you will most definitely be caught in the torrential downpour. Be smart and go days before when everyone is still at work, and the skies are still clear.
  4.  Go to an ATM and get cash. There will doubtless be many places after the storm whose systems will be down, and unless you know you can go many days without buying anything- don’t skip this step. It’s better to be prepared than roll up to Starbucks expecting your coffee fix only to be met with a CASH ONLY sign taped to the door (I’m not bitter about this or anything).
  5. If you live in an apartment like me, you now know that generators are not an option for us. Before the storm, hit up anyone you know in town that lives in a house and ask them if a) they have a generator and b) you can crash at their place until the power returns. At the very least, they will be able to offer you cold storage for all your refrigerated items and possibly a hot shower.
  6. Charge everything you possibly can. Your phone, your laptop, your iPad, etc. When the lights go out, you can play movies on your devices, and you’ll be able to call, text, and get in touch with worried friends and relatives.

Although this list doesn’t cover everything you should do before a storm hits, they are the main things I found useful. Hermine may be over, but let’s be real. This is Florida, and this won’t be the last hurricane any of us see.

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