Storm Stories of North Carolina

What can I do now to prepare for a future hurricane?

This month, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration released an updated forecast of above-normal hurricane activity in the Atlantic, predicting between 14 and 21 named storms.

In the face of a hurricane, and other weather events, preparation is your best defense. Here's how you can ensure the safety and well-being of yourself and your loved ones.

The most important thing to do now, before any hurricane warnings, is to make a plan.

This PSA gives useful tips for before the storm and after the storm.

BEFORE THE STORM

Prepare an emergency kit, including cash, prescription medicines and three days’ worth of food and water (for people and pets). If your house floods and you can’t return immediately, this kit will be essential. Be sure to consider provisions for those with special needs, like older people.

Emergency Kit

Start by assembling an emergency kit. It should include cash, three days of non-perishable food (for people and pets), water, medications, a flashlight, batteries, a first aid kit, documents, and cash.

Evacuation Plan

Create an evacuation plan. Know your local evacuation routes and shelters. Communicate the plan with your family members, and practice it regularly. If you live in a coastal area, it’s important to become familiar with community evacuation plans, zones, and routes. And plan a meeting spot for your family. Don’t count on cell phones. Remember hurricanes can impact communities far inland away from the coast.


Stay Informed

Listen to local news media for the most up-to-date information on how to prepare and when to evacuate from the area. Have a battery-powered weather radio and a way to charge your cell phone. Sign up for emergency alerts.


Secure Your Home

Reinforce windows, doors, and garage doors. Trim trees and shrubs, and secure outdoor objects that could become projectiles.

Stock up on supplies.

Don't forget essentials like baby supplies, pet food, and hygiene items. Ensure you have enough for several days.

Emergency Contacts

Compile a list of emergency contacts, including family, friends, and neighbors. Make sure everyone knows how to reach each other.

Check Insurance

Review your insurance policies, ensuring they cover hurricane damage. Take photos or videos of your belongings for documentation.

Medications and Health

If you rely on medications or have special health needs, ensure you have a supply to last through the storm and its aftermath.

Secure Important Documents

Protect important documents. Keep copies in a waterproof container or digitally, including passports, IDs, and insurance policies.

AFTER THE STORM

Check on neighbors, especially the elderly and those with special needs.

After the hurricane passes, be cautious. Watch out for downed power lines, flooding, and other hazards. Avoid floodwaters.

Water is dangerous. Many fatalities and injuries in past storms have come from exposure to bacteria and chemicals in the water.

Come together as a community.

Remember, hurricanes can be unpredictable, but with careful preparation and a sense of community, we can weather the storm together.

Visit the New Hanover County Emergency Management website for more useful information.

Want to vote early in coastal North Carolina? Here's how.

¿Quieres votar temprano en la costa de Carolina del Norte? Escucha este anuncio. 

This is an important message from the New Hanover Disaster Coalition: There is free testing for COVID-19 in New Hanover County.  All you have to do is call  910-798-6800 to talk with a nurse to setup an appointment.  That is 910-798-6800 to set up a free COVID-19 test in New Hanover County.  

Illicit drug users face unique challenges during disasters like Hurricane Florence and COVID-19. What happens when dealers leave town or shelter-in-place? How do overdose rates change? Find out on this week's episode of Storm Stories.

When people living with HIV in coastal North Carolina talk about how they prepared for Hurricane Florence, their considerations are about the same as the average person - with exceptions.

HIV-positive community members have to think about their medications - how they'll get them and where they'll store them. They have to think about access to healthcare, and whether they feel comfortable disclosing their status to whoever they stay with during the storm. And the anxiety that accompanies these considerations is much like the anxiety people are feeling during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Storm Stories is a collection of stories about the effects of hurricanes. This podcast and radio series explores resilience and recovery in the coastal region through local stories.

In this episode, we explore how the coronavirus pandemic is impacting people who are still in recovery from Hurricane Florence. We also talk about how our experience with hurricanes in coastal North Carolina has prepared us to deal with the impacts of COVID-19 - and how it hasn't.

Storm Stories is a collection of stories about the effects of hurricanes. This podcast and radio series explores resilience and recovery in the coastal region through local stories.

For the second episode of Storm Stories, we're diving deep into the transactional sex industry during and after hurricanes. How does the market for transactional sex change when natural disasters hit, and how do sex workers deal with these changes? We talk to Katie, who tells us about the days leading up to and following Hurricane Florence, and Rebecca, executive director of the nonprofit Five14 Revolution.

We kick off Season 2 of Storm Stories with stories about the struggle for affordable housing in the year and a half since Hurricane Florence. In this episode, two women tell us about losing their homes and communities and what they're doing about it.

In this short special, grassroots journalist and activist Yndiana Montes discusses how our water sources are impacted by discharge from the hog and poultry industries after storms. Montes uses audio clips from meetings with the Cape Fear River watch to support what she sees happening in her community. 

Storm Stories podcast asked folks to call in messages of support to their neighbors and the response so far has been overwhelming - over 45 calls across 7 counties. Take a listen, and consider sharing your own message of encouragement by calling 910-604-6519. We will keep adding to and sharing these messages! #ilmstrong #dorian #hurricanedorian