Hurricane Season

Hurricane season starts June 1st! Now is the time to review your flood insurance needs – because most policies have a 30 day waiting period before coverage starts. If there is a hurricane headed our way, it’s too late to get coverage.  That’s like trying to call for car insurance after you have an accident. Remember that your homeowner’s insurance DOES NOT cover flood damage! Remember as well that hurricanes aren’t the only source of flooding. Any source of rising water, even heavy rainfall, can cause flood damage.  In fact, 20% of claims come from moderate to low risk zones.

Forecast

Colorado State University is forecasting an above average hurricane season. They are forecasting 16 named storms this season, as opposed to an average of 12.1. There is a 45% probability of a storm making landfall on the east coast, as opposed to an average of 31%

Now for the twist

Evacuating during a pandemic might not be a good idea. It’s very important for us to limit exposure to people outside of our homes. Traveling to a crowded shelter or hotel go against that, and will expose you to a higher level of Covid-19 risk. The Enki research blog suggests that if you are out of the storm surge area and you don’t live in a mobile home, you should consider sheltering in place for a Category 2 or lower storm. Yes, this goes against the “better safe than sorry” mentality that has come up in recent years. We’re not saying that you should defy a mandatory evacuation order, but we would suggest that you not evacuate unless you truly need to. Remember that sheltering in place can mean going without utilities (including cell service and water) for a period of time. The recommendation is be be prepared to go 72 hours on your own. If you do evacuate, avoid shelters and hotels if you can. Stay with a friend, relative, or maybe find an AirBnB.

Preparation

You can find additional information from our hurricane season post from last year. Also, we have a hurricane preparation guide that we would be happy to send you. Stay safe, and don’t hesitate to contact us if there is anything we can do for you.