Storm Safety Tips For Your Home

Despite advanced warnings, people are regularly injured and homes are damaged by severe storms. Some may have missed the warning but others heard and chose not to respond. Don’t be that family! There are a few simple things you and your family can do in order to protect your people and property during a severe storm. Check out our storm safety tips for your home below.

Tune In & Take Cover

Being in the know can help tremendously when storms are lurking. Use an NOAA weather radio to capture storm updates from the National Weather Service for your specific county (or any battery-powered standard radio). Knowing the severity of a nearby storm can help you determine whether you should stay put, take cover or evacuate. If you don’t have a safe room, parking yourselves in the center-most point in your home or the basement can keep you and your family away from windows and other glass during high and severe winds. Evacuate manufactured homes that are easily overturned and punctured.

 

Watches, Warnings & Advisories

Knowing the various types of weather cautions you’ll be hearing on the radio can also help. A storm watch doesn’t guarantee a life- and property-threatening storm event but announces the possibility of one occurring in the next 24-48 hours. A storm warning, on the other hand, indicates that a severe storm has already developed. A storm advisory is less severe in that the expected damage is much less than that of a storm warning. It’s also worth noting that you’ll want to familiarize yourself with your city’s emergency storm warning system.

 

Plan For The Worst

As with house fire and home burglary safety, having an emergency plan that you practice with your entire household can make the difference. Knowing that everyone is on board and knows what to do in case of an emergency also provides peace of mind. If you have a particularly large family and there are small children or pets in the home, your plan might involve designating an adult or adults to account for all of them. If your kids spend time in the house unsupervised, instilling the confidence in them to know where to go and what to do when you are gone can also be a big help. The planning process is great at extracting the many what-if scenarios that are harder to think of during the actual emergency.

 

Keep Your Home Safe Even When You’re Away

You don’t have to be away long for things to go awry at home! For those times when storms strike during a family vacation or even while you’re at work, know when the power is out or flood waters are invading as it happens, not hours or days later. Our environmental monitoring service will alert you immediately if any type of water leak is attempting to flood your home, and, your home security system combined with remote access will alert you to any power outages all via your smartphone or other web-enabled devices. Essentially, our 24/7 alarm monitoring center is always home, even when you’re not.

 

Secure Your Belongings

If you are home and only when it’s safe to do so, securing your outdoor items may mean the difference between pricey replacements and even personal injuries. Remove or secure outdoor items such as:

• Patio furniture and porch swings
• Grills and cooking areas
• Garbage and recycling bins
• Jungle gyms and other child or pet toys
• Any lawn decor, patio lights, portable coverings, etc.
• Clothing line/laundry
• Move cars and boats to the garage or moor/strap your boat securely
• Dead/rotting trees or branches
• Shutters on windows
• Trees and shrubbery (keeping them trimmed makes them more wind resistant)

 

Thunderstorm safety checklist from the American Red Cross.