Hurricane Preparedness Blog

Supplies and home preparation

Prepare Before a Storm Forms

Use these guides when you are building supplies, protecting the home, organizing documents, and preparing pets or vulnerable household members.

• Hurricane Emergency Kit ChecklistPreparedness
• Hurricane Preparation Timeline: 72, 48, and 24 HoursPreparedness
• Hurricane Home Preparedness: Room-by-Room ChecklistPreparedness
• Hurricane Home Hardening: Roof, Door and Window ChecklistPreparedness

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Warnings and evacuation

Understand Watches, Warnings, and Evacuation

Start here when an alert appears and you need to translate official wording into household action without guessing.

• How to Read a Hurricane Watch or Warning MessageSafety & Warnings
• NWS Hurricane Alert Meanings: Watch, Warning, Surge, Flood, TornadoSafety & Warnings
• Storm Surge Warning vs. Hurricane WarningSafety & Warnings
• Hurricane Evacuation ChecklistPreparedness

Decode an alert

Maps and forecast uncertainty

Read Tracker Maps and Forecast Products

Learn how to interpret the cone, models, radar, satellite, category, and distance before relying on a single map signal.

• Real-Time Hurricane Tracking: 2026 Late-Season GuideTracking & Forecasting
• How to Read the Hurricane Cone of UncertaintyTracking & Forecasting
• How to Read Hurricane Spaghetti Models: A Practical GuideTracking & Forecasting
• Hurricane Radar vs. Satellite: What Each View ShowsTracking & Forecasting
• Eyewall Replacement Cycle Explained: Why Hurricane Winds Can ChangePreparedness

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Insurance and outages

Plan for Flooding, Outages, and Recovery

Use these articles for the problems that continue after landfall: flooding, food safety, medicine, insurance records, and recovery documentation.

• Hurricane Power Outage Plan for Food, Medicine, and DevicesPreparedness
• Hurricane Flood Insurance: What NFIP and Private Policies Cover, and How to File a ClaimInsurance & Recovery
• Hurricane Insurance Claims: Documentation and Step-by-Step ProcessInsurance & Recovery
• What to Do After a Hurricane: A Step-by-Step Recovery GuideInsurance & Recovery

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Storm science and hazards

Learn Hurricane Basics

Use these explainers when you want the science and vocabulary behind hurricane products before a storm is threatening your area.

• Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale Explained: What Each Category Really MeansScience & Basics
• Hurricane vs Typhoon vs Cyclone: What Is the Difference?Science & Basics
• Hurricane Storm Surge Forecasts: Read Flood Maps and AlertsTracking & Forecasting
• Hurricane Rapid Intensification: Observations and ForecastsTracking & Forecasting
• Official Hurricane Information Sources: How to Verify Storm UpdatesPreparedness

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Maps and forecasts

Hurricane Tracking and Map Reading

Check where a storm is, where it may go, and how official forecasts compare with radar and satellite imagery.

Local safety and evacuation

Local Hurricane Risk and Evacuation

Find city and state resources, storm surge alerts, evacuation zones, and local instructions for your address.

Household planning

Hurricane Preparedness and Household Planning

Prepare supplies, documents, communication plans, and outage arrangements before conditions deteriorate.

Official warnings and next steps

Warnings, Watches, and Official Alert Language

Understand an official watch, warning, advisory, or evacuation instruction and identify the next protective action.

Insurance and recovery

Flooding, Insurance, and Recovery After Landfall

Document damage, review flood insurance, and plan safe power restoration, cleanup, and recovery.

I am tracking an active storm.

Use articles for context, then move to the live map, radar, alerts, and storm pages for current information.

• Open live hurricane tracker
• Use radar and satellite map
• Browse active storm pages

I need local hurricane risk.

Start with local city and state trackers, then use tools to turn that local context into a household plan.

• Browse city hurricane trackers
• Open state trackers
• Build local risk plan

I need to understand official alert language.

Pair watch, warning, flood, surge, and evacuation explainers with live NWS alert pages and the action decoder.

• Decode an alert
• Check active NWS alerts
• Read watch vs warning guide

I am preparing a household plan.

Move from reading into practical tools for supplies, evacuation, communication, power, and special household needs.

• Generate preparedness checklist
• Create family communication plan
• Build power outage plan