Don’t be left unprepared this storm season

Summer is here.

That means children are out of classrooms and are instead on playgrounds and ball fields.

With the little ones out of school, it’s also probably time to take that much-needed summer trip to the beach or maybe to the country to see those long-lost relatives that we don’t see enough of.

A busy time it is, indeed.

But in the midst of the blur, don’t forget to add one more thing onto your to-do list: hurricane preparedness.

June is well under way, which means that we are officially in the active stages of hurricane season.

The National Weather Service lists the season as being active from June 1 – November 30.

This year’s season has already given birth to its first storm – Tropical Storm Andrea sprouted up in the Gulf of Mexico and then poured buckets of rain on Florida and then the East Coast.

Be prepared.

Those are not words meant to strike fear – they were merely aimed to urge caution to our readers.

Forecasters expect this season to be above average in activity, which means there is a pretty good chance that a hurricane will enter the Gulf of Mexico in the coming months, which will force you and your family to make a decision.

If you stay, now is the time to begin planning.

When you do this, make sure to pinpoint destinations in all directions, because as we know from history – no two storms are alike.

The angle that the storm approaches dictates the best place to evacuate.

If you don’t want to, or are unable to leave, then now is the time to make your living arrangement “hurricane proof”.

There’s no need to board the windows or anything like that until a storm would approach.

But this is a good time to buy foods that have a long shelf life – Vienna sausage, potted meat – the traditional hurricane buffet.

If there is a little extra storage space within your dwelling, stocking it with batteries and water probably wouldn’t be such a bad idea, either.

If blessed enough to own a generator, you should probably take it out and give her a start. It’s better to know now if there’s anything wrong with your machinery.

Again, no reason for panic, nor chaos.

It’s just always better to be ready.

Hurricane season is finally here.

With the peak months of August and September looming, that leaves plenty of time to create a plan of protection in case another storm decides to make a stop in Louisiana.