By Haskell L. Moore, W5HLM
President, Hurricane Preparedness Training and Consulting, LLC
For weeks, maybe months, you’ve prepared. You’ve stocked up on supplies, reinforced your home, and made your emergency checklists. But once the hurricane itself arrives, the preparation phase ends, and the survival phase begins. At that point, your mission is simple and absolute: keep your family, pets, and yourself safe until the storm passes.
While every hurricane brings its own personality—different speeds, rainfall amounts, and damage patterns—the fundamentals of riding out a storm remain the same. This article will walk you through what to expect, how to shelter effectively, and what lessons we’ve learned from some of the worst storms in recent history.
Finding the Safest Place in Your Home
Where you choose to shelter in place matters. A well-chosen room can mean the difference between inconvenience and tragedy. Ideally, select an interior room with load-bearing walls and few or no windows. Bathrooms often make good candidates in apartments and high-rise buildings.
If you haven’t installed storm shutters, give priority to reinforcing the windows in your chosen safe room, even if you can’t cover every opening in the house. Once the storm is raging outside, broken glass is one hazard you don’t want in the one place meant for refuge. Don’t bother taping windows; tape offers no support or reinforcement and only leaves a gummy mess on the glass.
Be sure to also check around your home for hazards. A stately oak tree shading your roof in good times can become a deadly hazard in hurricane winds. If it topples, where will it land? Choose a room as far as possible from that potential danger. Similarly, if flooding is a risk, make sure you have a backup plan to move upward—second floor if you have one, or even sturdy tables and counters for kids and pets if you don’t. Floodwaters rise faster than many imagine, and you need to be ready. You should also secure trampolines by removing the mat and storing it indoors, then flipping over the frame and anchoring it to the ground with stakes.
What the Storm Will Sound Like
If you’ve never lived through a hurricane, you may be unprepared for how it sounds. People often describe the wind as a freight train barreling up the driveway. During Hurricane Ike in 2008, with winds in my Houston neighborhood “only” at 80 mph, the roar was deafening.
Noise levels depend on wind speed, storm size, and even how your home is constructed. Shutters or plywood over windows can dampen the racket, but don’t expect silence. Rain, too, can pound relentlessly hour after hour. At times, it may seem endless. The large, slow-moving storms are the most punishing, dragging on for 12, 18, or even 24 hours or more.
And then there are tornados. Embedded tornados, spinning out of hurricanes, are most common in the storm’s right-front quadrant—the so-called “dirty side.” They are generally smaller and shorter-lived than those on the Plains, but can still be quite dangerous. The unsettling truth: you may never hear them coming over the roar of the hurricane itself.
Utilities You Can Expect to Lose
Plan on losing power, internet, cable, and possibly even cell service. Hurricanes can easily topple power lines and cell towers. When the power goes out, many of these key services can also be interrupted. Even if your neighborhood has underground lines, the system almost always connects to above-ground feeds that are vulnerable.
Natural gas service is often the exception because it usually remains uninterrupted during hurricanes. But never assume. Always keep alternative cooking methods and lighting ready: camp stoves, battery-powered lanterns, and of course, reliable flashlights.
Critical To-Dos While the Storm Is Overhead
Even when hunkered down, you’re not passive. You’ll have tasks:
- Stay informed. A battery-powered weather radio is an absolute essential. You need updates on tornado warnings, storm surge advisories, or evacuation orders that can come mid-storm.
- Monitor for leaks. Hurricanes drive water into places you never thought possible. Roof vents and small cracks can suddenly gush. Check ceilings periodically. Catching leaks early reduces damage.
- Watch for flooding. If you see water rising outside, be ready to cut power at the breaker box. Electricity and floodwater are a deadly mix.
- Limit going outside. Once winds exceed 39 mph (tropical storm strength), even stepping onto your porch is dangerous. Debris becomes shrapnel at those speeds. If you must open a door, brace it carefully—gusts can rip it from your grasp with bone-breaking force.
Lessons From Flooding: When the Water Rises
Wind is what we picture when we think of hurricanes. But ask survivors of Hurricane Harvey, and many will tell you it was the water that nearly did them in. Houston saw over 50 inches of rainfall—an unimaginable figure until you’re watching the water creep higher against your back door.
Here’s what Harvey taught us about protecting homes and lives:
- Elevate valuables early. Move heirlooms, important papers, and electronics upstairs if possible. No second story? Use counters and tables as makeshift storage to get your most prized possessions above flood waters.
- Improvise protections. Wrap furniture legs in heavy-duty trash bags and seal them with duct tape to reduce water damage. Use waterproof containers with strong latches for photographs or computer backup hard drives.
- Prioritize food safety. Keep food in sealed, high-quality coolers. If floodwater touches any food, even canned goods, treat it as contaminated.
I used to think having a life preserver for every member of the family was overkill before Hurricane Harvey. But after seeing how quickly the flood waters rose, and how many people were rescued from flood waters, I now consider them essential. Rescue by boat is perilous—wet, dark, chaotic. A life vest can turn a nightmare into survivable chaos.
Staying Connected When 911 Can’t Answer
In a flood emergency, your phone may be your only lifeline. But remember: networks clog, batteries die, and calls may not connect. Prepare by:
- Carrying extra charging power banks, fully tested beforehand.
- Conserving phone battery by dimming the screen and disabling Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.
- Knowing that text messages often succeed when calls fail, and it requires much less battery power to send a text message than make a call.
- Identifying out-of-area friends who can call local emergency numbers on your behalf if you can’t get through.
During Harvey, many turned to Facebook and Twitter when 911 hold times stretched past an hour. While social media is no substitute for official channels, in a life-threatening flood, you use whatever works.
The Hidden Killer: Electricity in Water
Floodwater is not just dirty—it’s deadly. Of the 70 fatalities related to Hurricane Harvey, four were from electrocution. Inside your own home, a surge protector or in-floor outlet under even a few inches of water can electrify a room.
The rule is simple: if water threatens to enter, shut off power at the breaker. If you don’t know how, have an electrician show you before hurricane season.
Essential Gear That Saves Lives
From both wind and flood, here’s what experienced survivors and rescuers recommend:
- A dependable flashlight. Not a $5 grocery-store special, but a rugged, high-lumen model. In the dark, waving one at rescuers could be your lifeline.
- Chemical light sticks. Rescuers suggest Cyalume® 12-hour green sticks for visibility. Clip one to each family member when in or around floodwaters.
- A loud whistle. Shouting is useless against wind and rain. A whistle carries farther, with less effort.
- Sturdy ladder. If water rises in a one-story home, your attic is not a refuge. Officials now advise climbing to the roof, not the attic, to avoid entrapment.
The Mental Game of Riding It Out
Perhaps the hardest part of a hurricane is psychological. Hours of roaring winds and pounding rain wear on even the steadiest nerves. Pets grow restless. Children sense your tension.
Plan distractions: books, board games, music, downloaded movies. Remind yourself—and your family—that the chaos outside does not have to dictate the mood inside. A calm parent is a steady anchor for anxious children. If prescribed by your veterinarian, sedatives may help calm your pets or help them sleep through the worst of the storm.
Final Thoughts: Preparedness Pays Off
Riding out a hurricane safely is less about courage and more about preparation and discipline. Choose the right room. Anticipate power and communication failures. Plan for flooding even if you think you’re safe from it.
Every storm is different, but the mindset remains the same: anticipate, adapt, and protect.
And remember—your home and belongings can often be replaced. Your family cannot.
Huge Discounts on Critical Hurricane Preparedness Products
To save you money on the purchases of quality emergency lighting and power, here are two exclusive discount codes from companies that support preparedness year-round:
- Firman Generators: Save 30% on new generators and accessories at https://firmanpowerequipment.com/collections/allow-coupons by entering discount code PREPARE30 at checkout.
- MAGLITE Flashlights: Receive 10% off your entire order at Maglite.com by entering discount code HURRICANE10 at checkout.
Haskell L. Moore is president of Hurricane Preparedness Training and Consulting, LLC, and author of Hurricane Preparedness for the Home and Family. Visit HideFromTheWind.com for more preparedness tips, product recommendations, and resources.
