Yes, Hurricanes can hit us here in the Raleigh area. As you can see, Hurricane Fran went right through Raleigh.
During Hurricane Fran in 1996, we had winds of up to 79 mph in Cary. We had a basement then, and we all slept down there. The winds were so bad I felt like the windows would all crash in on us. We heard trees cracking and falling all night. My friend Phyllis had 17 trees down in her yard.
During Fran, people in Cary had no electricity from 1 to 9 days. There were 4.5 million people without power in North Carolina and Virginia.
Right here in Cary, we had 9 inches of rain in one day. The ground floor of Crabtree Mall in Raleigh was completely flooded.
How can you prepare for a hurricane?
You’ll want a way to make some electricity. You can buy a little inverter for $20 that sticks into the cigarette lighter in your car, and you can plug in one item at a time. A more expensive inverter with more wattage or voltage (about $100) could power your microwave or freezer.
Or, you can buy a generator for $1000-$2000. This can run almost everything in your house at once.
Fill up freezer with ice.
When you know a hurricane is coming, fill a bunch of bottles with water and fill up all the empty spaces in your freezer. A fuller freezer stays frozen longer without power.
Be sure and fill up your car with gas. The gas stations might be without power, so you won’t be able to buy gas.
Get your bikes repaired, figure out other ways to travel besides by car.
Do all the laundry and run the dishwasher, and kiss your electricity goodbye, because you’ll be washing by hand for awhile.
Store money in small denominations. When the power is out, some stores will be open for business, but they will only take cash. You’ll be paying more for things if you can’t make the correct change.
Bring in outdoor items.
Don’t underestimate the power of high winds. Even with 79 mph winds, anything left outside becomes a flying projectile. Be sure to store everything in the garage or in the house. If you want to, you can take off your detachable screens, but you’ll want to put them back up so you can open the windows with no air conditioning.
There were thousands of houses with trees through the roof, and unfortunately a few people killed when trees fell on them inside their houses. Sleep downstairs near the center of the house. and don’t sleep near windows, the glass could break.
Park away from trees. If you have big trees in your yard, think of parking your car in a nearby parking lot instead of your driveway.
(continued tomorrow)
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