StormStock · Hurricane guides
How to prepare for a hurricane
Preparation is mostly a question of timing. Almost everything below is easy three days out and impossible twelve hours out, because that is when the shelves empty and the queues start.
72 hours before landfall
This is the window where preparing is still cheap and calm. Once a watch becomes a warning, every store within reach is picked over.
- Find your evacuation zone and write it down. In Florida, look it up on your county site or the state "Know Your Zone" tool — zones are lettered A through F, and only officials decide when yours is called.
- Fill every vehicle. Fuel is the first thing to run out, and stations cannot pump without power after the storm.
- Draw cash. Card readers fail when the network does.
- Refill prescriptions. Pharmacies close and may stay closed for days.
- Photograph each room and your documents. This is what an insurance claim rests on, and it takes ten minutes now versus arguing later.
48 hours before
Supplies go first, then the ability to move.
- One gallon of water per person per day, for at least three days. A week is better and barely costs more.
- Food that needs no cooking and no refrigeration.
- Ice, and a cooler. Power outages are measured in days, not hours.
- Batteries, flashlights and a battery or hand-crank radio. Do not rely on candles.
- Portable phone chargers, charged now.
- Bring in anything the wind can pick up: furniture, planters, grills, bins.
24 hours before
By now, movement is the constraint. Roads jam and stations run dry.
- If you are told to evacuate, go. Evacuation is usually a matter of tens of miles, not hundreds — you are leaving a surge zone, not the state.
- Fill bathtubs and containers with water for washing and flushing.
- Turn the refrigerator to its coldest setting and keep it closed.
- Charge everything. Park away from trees.
- Tell family where you are and how you will check in. Agree on a plan for when the phone network is congested.
What people forget
The lists above are standard. These are the ones that get missed:
- Cash in small bills. Nobody has change after a storm.
- A manual can opener.
- Pet food, medication and a carrier — most shelters that take pets require one.
- Copies of insurance policies and IDs, saved somewhere reachable offline.
- A full tank in a second vehicle, if you have one, kept in reserve.
Common questions
How much water do I actually need?
One gallon per person per day is the standard figure, and it covers drinking plus minimal washing. Three days is the minimum planning figure; a week is more realistic in a bad outage. Add water for pets.
When should I fill my car?
Three days out, before a watch becomes a warning. Fuel is consistently the first thing to run short, and after the storm stations cannot pump without power even when they still have fuel underground.
Do I have to evacuate?
Only if officials call your zone. Evacuation orders are about storm surge, not wind, which is why they are issued zone by zone rather than for a whole city. If your zone is called, leaving is not optional — surge is what kills most people in a hurricane.
Is a Category 1 hurricane safe to ride out?
The category only describes sustained wind. It says nothing about surge, rainfall or tornadoes, and a Category 1 with a slow track can flood far more than a fast Category 3. Judge the specific storm, not the number.
This guide follows official guidance from the National Hurricane Center, FEMA and Florida emergency management. It does not replace instructions from your local officials. In an emergency, call 911.