Five Easy Hurricane Prep Tips to Do Now
It’s Hurricane Preparation Week. Do You Know Where Your Shut Off
Valve Is?
VOORHEES, N.J.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Today is the beginning of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration’s (NOAA) Hurricane
Preparedness Week, a time designated to prepare for a potential
land-falling storm. The
Weather Channel predicts seven hurricanes in the 2016 season. Here
are five ways to prepare for weather, which New Jersey residents are,
unfortunately, all too familiar with.
Develop an evacuation plan: If you live in a storm surge
hurricane evacuation zone, or if you are in a home that would be unsafe
during a hurricane, figure out where you would go and how you would get
there if told to evacuate. Not sure? Check out http://1.usa.gov/1S9IKAR.
Have an insurance checkup: Call your insurance company or agent
in order to make sure you have enough homeowners insurance to repair or
even replace your home. Do not forget coverage for your car and boat.
Remember, standard homeowners’ insurance does not typically cover
flooding. Check out http://bit.ly/1FsBiOh
for more info.
Assemble your disaster supplies: You may need more than eggs and
bread to not just get through the storm, but for the potentially lengthy
and unpleasant aftermath. Have enough non-perishable food, water and
medicine to last each person in your family for at least a week. Get
advice at http://1.usa.gov/1qJW1cD.
Strengthen your home: Make sure your home is in good repair and
up to local hurricane building code specifications. Remember, the garage
door is the most vulnerable part of the home. It must be able to
withstand high winds. You can get more storm mitigation information at http://1.usa.gov/1p1lvRo.
And, most people forget this one…
Know where your home’s water shut off valve is located: A lot of
people were flooded twice during Hurricane Sandy. Once by the storm
surge, and then again by their home plumbing breaking. This resulted in
water flowing in the home, even after the storm had abated. These people
evacuated without turning off their home’s shut off valve. It’s usually
located close to where your service line comes into your home. Put a tag
on it, available at http://bit.ly/1cRWHVe
and make sure everyone in the house knows where it is. If you have to
evacuate, make sure it’s turned off.
New Jersey American Water, a subsidiary of American Water, is the
largest investor-owned water utility in the state, providing
high-quality and reliable water and/or wastewater services to
approximately 2.7 million people. For more information, visit www.NJamwater.com
or https://www.facebook.com/njamwater
Contacts
New Jersey American Water
Peter A. Eschbach, 856-782-2376
peter.eschbach@amwater.com
