NHSI, Author at National Hurricane Survival Initiative

NOAA Predicts Active 2024 Atlantic Hurricane Season: Key Factors and Preparedness Tips

May 23, 2024 by NHSI

As we prepare for the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season, NOAA’s latest predictions indicate a higher-than-normal activity level. This season, running from June 1 to November 30, is forecasted to have 17 to 25 named storms, 8 to 13 hurricanes, and 4 to 7 major hurricanes. Key factors influencing this prediction include La Niña conditions and exceptionally warm Atlantic waters.

Discover the factors behind NOAA’s forecast and learn how to stay prepared. Read the full report and get detailed insights here.

Florida’s Perfect Storm— Extreme Weather and Insurance

February 25, 2021 by NHSI

Experts agree in virtual town hall: Link exists between extreme weather and rising costs of homeowner insurance in Florida

Ft. Lauderdale, FL. — Nationally renowned weather, insurance, and emergency management experts met as a panel on February 24 to address the relationship between extreme weather and the rising cost of homeowner insurance.

In this forum, panelists with national and international expertise in weather, disasters, and insurance spoke their minds and provided unique perspectives regarding the correlation between the rise in extreme weather events, climate change, and the rise in homeowner insurance. They also took questions from attendees. All of the panelists are available now for questions and interviews regarding these topics and recent developments in the Florida Legislature on the issues of climate change, disaster, insurance, and resiliency.

The event was hosted by the FAIR Foundation, a nonprofit organization conceived to create safer, stronger, more resilient communities by educating consumers on the risks of water, wind, and other natural disasters, promoting wind and flood mitigation, and reducing uninsured risk.

Watch the virtual Town Hall

Read the full transcript of the Town Hall

WHO:

Jay Neal, Esq. President and CEO, FAIR Foundation, Executive Chairman, Federal Association for Insurance Reform

Craig Fugate, Chief Emergency Management Officer, One Concern, and Former FEMA Administrator

Fred O. Karlinsky, Esq., Greenberg Traurig, Co-Chair of Insurance Practice Group

John Morales, Chief Meteorologist, WTVJ NBC-6, Miami, FL

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ABOUT THE PANELISTS:

Jay Neal, President and CEO, FAIR Foundation

Jay Neal is the President and CEO of the FAIR Foundation and Executive Chairman of the Board for the Federal Association for Insurance Reform. He has over 30 years of experience in insurance and finance as a consultant at the CEO and agency principal level. Jay’s career experience includes commercial real estate lending, real estate capital markets, reinsurance, and development of retail insurance products. He focuses on national strategic partnerships, development, and enhancing and strengthening corporate governance.

Craig Fugate, Emergency Manager

Craig Fugate served as FEMA Administrator from May 2009 to January 2017. Previously, he served as Florida Emergency Management Director from 2001- 2009. Fugate led FEMA through multiple record-breaking disaster years and oversaw the Federal Government’s response to major events such as the Joplin and Moore Tornadoes, Hurricane Sandy, Hurricane Matthew, and the 2016 Louisiana flooding. Fugate set a clear and compelling vision, mission, and priorities for FEMA and relentlessly drove the Agency to achieve better outcomes for survivors. FEMA’s effectiveness in dealing with more than 500 Presidentially-declared major disasters and emergencies under Fugate’s leadership restored the faith of the American people in the Federal Government’s ability to respond to disasters. Prior to his tenure at FEMA, Fugate was widely praised for his management, under Governor Jeb Bush, of the devastating effects of the 2004 and 2005 Florida hurricane seasons (Charley, Frances, Ivan, Jeanne, Dennis, Katrina, and Wilma). Craig currently provides senior level advice and consultation is the area of disaster management and resiliency policy through Craig Fugate Consulting LLC..

Fred E. Karlinsky, Shareholder, Greenberg Traurig

Fred E. Karlinsky is Co-Chair of Greenberg Traurig’s Insurance Regulatory and Transactions Practice Group. Fred has nearly 30 years of experience representing the interests of insurers, reinsurers and a wide variety of other insurance-related entities on their regulatory, transactional, corporate and governmental affairs matters. Fred is a recognized authority on national insurance regulatory and compliance issues and has taken a leadership position in many insurance trade organizations, has led many industry-driven legislative and regulatory initiatives, and is a sought after thought leader who has spoken and presented to insurance executives and governmental officials, both nationally and internationally. In addition to his role with Greenberg Traurig, Fred has been an Adjunct Professor of Law at Florida State University College of Law since 2008, where he teaches a course on Insurance Law and Risk Management. Fred is also a Florida Supreme Court Certified Mediator.

John Morales, Chief Meteorologist, WTVJ NBC-6

John Morales is the longest tenured broadcast meteorologist in South Florida, serving as a reassuring television presence for nearly three decades. His tropical weather acumen and steadfast character guided South Florida viewers through hurricanes Andrew, Irene, Katrina, Wilma, and most recently Hurricane Irma. For his life-saving work during the 2017 season, Mr. Morales was recognized with the John Coleman Broadcast Award at the National Tropical Weather Conference. He has twice been appointed to National Academies of Sciences (NAS) committees, co-authoring studies in 2012 and 2017 pertinent to America’s Weather Enterprise. He also wrote Huracanes, a Spanish-language reference book on hurricanes in 2000.

ABOUT THE FAIR FOUNDATION:

The FAIR Foundation educates and empowers consumers, promotes wind and flood mitigation, and reduces uninsured risk. We enable and promote practical solutions and protections by bringing consumers together with the best and brightest in the industry. For more information, visit the FAIR FOUNDATION

Active, Record-Setting 2020 Hurricane Season Closes

November 30, 2020 by NHSI

Preparedness and Recovery Key to Protection for Floridians.

Tallahassee, FL – 2020 will be remembered for making history in the most active Atlantic hurricane season since 2005, when a record-setting 28 storms formed. But that’s history now, as the 2020 season shattered the mark and now holds the record for the most named storms in a season at 30. This year’s storm season, which started early when Tropical Storm Arthur formed on May 16, officially ends today as the most active since official record keeping began in 1851.

Despite the many challenges posed by the global pandemic, Floridians largely escaped the full fury of hurricane season thanks to the preparations of emergency managers, the attentiveness of residents – and a measure of luck. Four of the storms touched Florida, but only one – Hurricane Eta earlier this month – made direct landfall in the state.

Twelve storms made landfall in the continental United States, a number of them targeting our neighbors to the west in Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana. The 2020 hurricane season also brought more devastation from the storms and longer-lasting effects than in recent years. And because additional storms are possible even though the calendar says hurricane season is ending, forecasters at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Hurricane Center will continuously monitor the tropics for storm development and activity.

“Like most things in 2020, this hurricane season was truly one for the record books,” said Craig Fugate, former Federal Emergency Management Administrator. “Thankfully, we now have an advanced lead time that emergency managers need to evacuate vulnerable areas and stage resources ahead of landfalling storms so we can help people withstand the worst impacts of wind and water.”

Paul Handerhan, a spokesman for Florida’s FAIR Foundation, said preparedness efforts among federal, state, and local emergency managers, and community groups helped protect lives and property. The FAIR Foundation is a nonprofit dedicated to creating safer, stronger, and more resilient communities in the face of natural disasters. Even though 13 of the storms became hurricanes – including six major hurricanes with winds topping 111 mph – the continental U.S. was largely spared the devastation experienced in Central America and elsewhere.

“The 2020 hurricane season caused at least $14 billion in damages in the U.S., and Florida alone has over a million homes that are vulnerable to storm surge but are uninsured for flood risk,” said Handerhan. “It’s critical that Floridians access affordable private flood insurance to properly insure their properties and narrow the insurance protection gap so they can get their lives back without the lingering impacts of financial devastation.”

This historic season saw record water levels in several locations, including along the Gulf Coast – soaked by Hurricane Sally, Pensacola experienced its highest observed water levels since Hurricane Katrina in 2005. But taken together, the collective U.S. damage caused by all the storms this season likely won’t come close to matching those of individual catastrophic storms that caused massive destruction in highly populated areas such as Katrina in 2005, Sandy in 2012, and Michael in 2018.

This is the fifth consecutive year with an above-normal Atlantic hurricane season, in keeping with a pattern that has seen 18 above-average seasons out of the past 26. Preparedness for this increasing number and intensity of storms by Floridians is a key factor also cited by Brittany Perkins Castillo, CEO of AshBritt Environmental, a rapid-response disaster recovery and environmental services company.

“We see the physical and emotional toll these storms have on entire communities long after the actual storm has passed,” Perkins Castillo said. “Our goal is to get families and communities back on their feet as quickly as possible. Every year carries the potential to be another record-breaker, and that’s why it’s so important that as part of annual hurricane planning, Floridians have to make it a priority to check in with their insurance providers ahead of time to review coverage and insurance plans.”

Unchartered territory: when preparing for hurricanes, factor in COVID-19

July 24, 2020 by NHSI

By Kent Koptiuch
Natural Resource Manager
Nestlé Waters North America

This year, our society has ventured into uncharted territory. Once again, we must all prepare for hurricane season, but this time we do so while faced with a full-scale global pandemic.

As a professional in the business of supplying water to others for healthy hydration, I have witnessed how the threat of COVID-19 changes the ways that families must prepare for, and respond to, hurricanes this season.

As we all assemble our hurricane kits, it’s critical that we include some key additional items for dealing with potential exposure to the coronavirus, whether our plan is to take shelter elsewhere or to shelter in place.

In addition to our typical inventory of non-perishable foods, water, flashlights, medical supplies, pet supplies, and battery-powered emergency radio, our hurricane kits should also be stocked with supplies for protecting our family members from the pandemic.

This should include hand sanitizer, disinfectant wipes, and at least two cloth masks per person.

Jared Moskowitz, management director for Florida’s Division of Emergency, now recommends that families stock a fourteen-day supply of necessary medicines, along with a seven-day cache of food, water, and other critical supplies for each family member.

Keep everything in a portable cooler or waterproof tote that’s easy to grab on short notice. Every person in your family needs one gallon of water per person per day for every day of the week.

You should also keep water purification tablets on hand and consider having portable devices like water bottles or plastic pitchers that come with filtration systems to ensure access to clean, potable drinking water.

Finally, we can extend the life of our fresh and frozen food supplies, while simultaneously increasing our water supply by freezing plastic containers filled with water. If the power goes out, this ice will keep food in the freezer, refrigerator, and coolers from spoiling for longer periods.

When the ice does melt, it becomes water for drinking and washing. Download hurricane safety checklists at hurricanesafety.org/prepare/hurricane-safety-checklists/ for more information.

It has been a rough start to the year for all of us. There’s an old proverb that states, “Diligence is the mother of good luck.” The importance of hoping for the best but preparing for the worst cannot be overstated.

By taking the time now to plan ahead, we can more ably ride out, not only the lurking danger from hurricanes but also COVID-19. Be safe and healthy, everyone.

Hurricane 2019: Get your documents and your data ready for a storm

June 4, 2019 by NHSI

As hurricane season begins, make an effort to implement a “set it and forget it” approach by preparing your physical and digital property ahead of time.

Missing Roof and Walls of Apartment on Gulf Coast in the Aftermath of Hurricane Michael

Preparing your property, papers and photos for a hurricane should start long before an approaching storm’s so-called “cone of uncertainty” falls upon the Tampa Bay area.

Implement a “set it and forget it” approach to this storm season by preparing your property — your home, your business and your most important documents and photos — ahead of time.

You may not have time to do all that as a storm approaches and handle other critical tasks, such as assembling food and water supplies. The following are some basic rules, and specific information that can be found online using resources such as the Federal Alliance for Safe Homes (www.flash.org) or the National Hurricane Survival Initiative (hurricanesafety.org.)

Protect your home

Seal it: Make sure all of your windows and doors are tightly sealed to keep wind and water out. This will help keep your possessions safe. But if you’ve been taping your windows all this time, experts say, that’s not doing much to protect them. Skip this step in favor of installing heavy hurricane shutters or boarding up windows with plywood that is at least five-eighths of an inch thick. Google the best way to install plywood for your particular house. If you do lose a window, you’ll need more plywood and some tarps to keep it covered until it’s fixed.

Fix your roof: Got a leak? It’s going to get worse. If you’re having issues with your roof, have it inspected to ensure it will not let water into your home and that there are no serious structural issues before a storm arrives. If something goes wrong, you’re going to need even more plastic tarps on hand to keep the roof covered until it gets fixed.

Disarmament: Remove anything from your yard that strong wind gusts could turn into an airborne weapon. That includes lawn decorations, furniture, planters and anything that isn’t tied or bolted down.

Reinforcements: The most vulnerable part of your home might be the garage door, depending on how old it is. A garage door that fails during the storm will leave the house and roof far more vulnerable to wind and rain damage than a broken window. Kits and products for bracing and reinforcing garage doors are sold at home improvement stores.

Protect your business

All of the advice for your home goes for your business, too. Check the structure’s roof, board up windows, bring everything inside and make any necessary repairs.

Needs a trim: Cut away any branches from nearby trees that may impact your business’ office during a hurricane. That goes for any unhealthy or rotting trees, too.

Power down: Turn off utilities, such as electricity, before a storm hits to help prevent surges after power is restored. Don’t forget about large appliances, such as the break room fridge (clean it out before you turn the power off, too; in fact, just clean it out).

Information security: Crucial documents that have not been backed up on hard drives and the cloud should be placed in waterproof containers. If the building is in an endangered area, or you’ll need to access them right after a storm, consider moving them to a safer, more accessible location.

Road trip: Make sure you have the equipment, documents, information and passwords you may need to run the business remotely after a storm.

Protect your documents, photos

Make a checklist of all your important documents and photos and consider storing physical copies in another location.

One word, plastics: Store your important documents and photos in a waterproof container or bag to protect them from being ruined by rain or flooding. It could be a waterproof lockbox or just a binder with plastic sleeves.

Card game: Don’t forget to gather, organize and store important items such as your driver’s license, passport, insurance information, medical documents, financial records, checkbooks, birth certificates and Social Security cards. You’ll want to bring cash along, too, because ATMs and credit cards may not function after a storm.

Portability: If you have to evacuate, make sure to take physical and digital (or both) copies of important documents, photos and records that you cannot do without, just in case you’re cut off from home for a period of time.

Self-preservation: The same steps should be taken to protect irreplaceable family photos. But it’s 2019, are you on the cloud yet? Digital photos and scanned PDF of documents can be stored on hard drives and using cloud services such as Apple’s iCloud, DropBox, Google Drive, Microsoft’s OneDrive, or Amazon Cloud Drive. Some services offer free storage space, so why not save multiple copies of your stuff?

Contact Malena Carollo at [email protected] or (727) 892-2249. Follow @malenacarollo.