Hurricanes are the single most damaging storms in all of weather. Though a tornado may devastate an inland community with more ferocity, it's damage is confined to a single narrow path perhaps a few miles long. Hurricanes, on the other hand, can affect as much as 300 miles of coastland simultaneously, and can bring wrath far inland. Most of the Top-10 weather disasters are hurricanes and other tropical systems, and, according to the National Climate Data Center, in the last 25 years, 24 hurricanes caused more than 300 billion dollars in damage.

HURRICANE FACTS

• Hurricanes note large-scale storms with sustained wind speeds over 74 miles per hour.
• They strengthen over warm ocean waters, and always weaken over land.
• The winds from a hurricane often do not cause most of its damage.
• The 'eye wall' of a hurricane is the strongest part of the storm, whereas the exact center features calm winds, and sometimes clear skies.
• Hurricanes can bring damaging winds and rain across hundreds of miles all at once.
• Often toward the center of a hurricane, lightning almost never strikes.
• Massachusetts (and New England in General) gets affected by a tropical system usually every few years.

POTENTIAL HAZARDS FROM A HURRICANE

HURRICANE SAFETY

The NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE will issue a "Hurricane Watch"  when storm conditions are 'possible' in the watch area, usually within about 36 hours.

The NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE will issue a "Hurricane Warning" when storm conditions are 'expected' or 'imminent' within the next 24 hours.

BEFORE THE STORM:

• Prepare an Evacuation Plan - If you live near the coast, often emergency management officials will issue mandatory evacuation orders for entire towns, cities, and regions. It is important that you heed these alerts, and move inland or to higher ground. Consider ahead of time where you will go, how you can get there quickly, and even alternate routes in case there's road closures or damage. Also, knowing a list of phone numbers is important, in addition to having others know where you are, and where you're headed. Inland areas are often not evacuated, but flood safety guidelines should be followed in the likely event of hurricane-induced floods.
• Assemble a Disaster Supply Kit - Often in a hurricane, just about everything will be damaged or shut down for as much as days on end. Many necessary supplies and utilities will become scarce. It is important that you have critical medical supplies stocked up, in addition to a good supply of drinking water, batteries, and protective clothing.
• Consider Your Insurance Situation - Some insurance companies cover wind damage on their homeowners policies, but not if they come from hurricanes. Some cover hurricanes, but not their flooding. Some cover floods, but not wind damage, etc. etc. Make sure you are aware of what your policy does and does not cover, and consider maximizing your protection against loss given your risk of hurricane damage.

WHEN A 'HURRICANE WATCH' IS ISSUED:

• Follow Local Media For the Most Updated Information - Having a battery-powered radio is also a good idea if you're going to be moving around in the time leading up to a possible hurricane landfall.
• Get Ready to Make Precautions - When bracing your home and valuables for a possible hurricane strike, it takes a lot of coordination to get all preparations made in a timely and sturdy manner. Know what you need to bring in from outside, what to board up, where to get supplies, fill the car up with gas, charge the cell phone, etc.
• Check Your Disaster Supply Kit - Make sure you have enough of everything you need in the kit (obviously, some things get used up if you have multiple disasters). Often necessary medical prescriptions and the like are lacking here.
• Consider Preparing Your Home - Since there's not a whole lot of time before a hurricane strike, compared to all the tasks involved in bracing your home, you might want to consider taking some steps in advance, even if in the end a Hurricane Warning (or actual hurricane effects) never materializes. Sometimes you can do little things in advance to give you an edge when it comes time to take action. Having your preparation supplies already stocked up (plywood with predrilled holes, etc.) can save lots of precious time. Also, keeping tabs on wayward branches of nearby trees can minimize the threat of damage caused by them.

WHEN A 'HURRICANE WARNING' IS ISSUED:

• Heed the Warnings of Local Emergency Officials - If they tell you to evacuate, and you feel that you aren't adequately prepared, this is a dangerous situation, and often in the end your life IS more valuable than your property.
• Complete Preparations For Your Home - Windows are often damaged during a hurricane, and they provide the weakest-link in securing things inside from hurricanes. Taping windows DOES NOT provide adequate protection from winds (they're just too strong across the face of a window). Using 1/2" Plywood and boarding them up is the best idea. Though nails are often used, anchors are the best for securing plywood.
• Inspect Your Property - Make sure there's nothing outside that can be blown away (or into your home). If you live in a manufactured home, check the tie-downs to make sure all is secure.
• Stay Indoors - If not advised to evacuate (often never happens for inland communities), it's important to not increase the threat to yourself on purpose by venturing out or standing near windows.
• Put Your Plan in Action - Make sure all family members know what the action will be in any given situation before the storm actually hits. Often there's several hours of ever-increasing winds/rains before the core of a hurricane even reaches a location.

DURING A HURRICANE:

• Stay Indoors - It's important to remember this fact, in addition to being away from windows. Often ordinary objects can become airborne missiles in a hurricane, there's no subjecting yourself to their hazards.
• Avoid Driving - This is a must unless it's utterly necessary. Damage can come upon you at once in a storm, and sometimes you can find yourself trapped due to blocked roads. Also, never drive near flooded waters (which could be just about anywhere in a hurricane).
• Beware the Eye of the Storm - When conditions get quickly calm in a hurricane, often this is a very dangerous time. People sometimes think it's safe to go outside or come out of shelter when in fact it's a momentary lull. Yes, it is often calm and sunny in the eye of a hurricane, but since landfalling hurricanes are always on the move (and often very fast in New England), in mere moments it will cloud over again with similar ferocity-- and winds from the opposite direction, which can often snap objects that managed to withstand the initial barage from the first half of the storm.
• Be Alert For Tornadoes - Though hurricane winds themselves are often stronger than those of the tornadoes they spawn, tornadoes are compact, with swirling wind patterns that can drill through an area with more concentrated power. The biggest threat for tornadoes would be in the Northeast quadrant of a landfalling hurricane.
• Watch for Floodwaters - If you live in a flood-prone area, even when bracing for a hurricane it's important to always know the water levels, because you could be in the dire situation of having to abandon your house during a storm to escape flooding (hurricanes' biggest killer). This is especially true well inland from a landfall site, as the winds are often much less severe but the rains no less pounding.

AFTER A HURRICANE:

• Pay Attention to Local Media - Often emergency officials will pass instructions and updates through them first because they reach a wide audience.
• Wait to Return - Until emergency officials give the 'O.K.', do not return to an evacuated area. Often problems are just beginning after a hurricane departs.
• Inspect Your Home For Damage - And keep records of it (for insurance purposes). Photographs are often helpful in this situation.
• Reconnect with People - It's important that others know you are safe after a storm, so make sure you are in contact with someone regarding this.
• Use Flashlights - If the power is still out in your community after you are allowed to return. Candles, while cheaper to burn, pose the added threat for fire.
• Avoid Storm Damage - Whether it's on your home, on the road, or in the neighborhood, it is not safe to approach semi-collapsed walls, fallen powerlines, or teetering branches. Nearly all injuries suffered here are avoidable.
• Assume It's Not Safe Until Told Otherwise - This goes for water from the faucet, firing up industrial appliances, or removing damage from your home. Use the elements of your disaster supply kit until you've been told it's safer.
• Always Know Who to Call - In the event of a hurricane, you may have a limited time to file insurance claims, or to contact FEMA (federal assistance), make sure you have the numbers you need.