National Hurricane Survival Initiative

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Hurricane Safety

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Survey: Americans are increasingly worried about extreme weather, blaming climate change, but doubt official storm predictions

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TALLAHASSEE, Florida – Despite unprecedented devastation inflicted by powerful hurricanes in recent years – and a new survey showing that two-thirds of Americans believe climate change has increased the intensity of storms – more than half of Americans believe government agencies, political leaders, and news media exaggerate storm threats. Those are among key findings of a new national survey by the National Hurricane Survival Initiative, which has been informing and educating Americans about hurricanes for more than 25 years.

With the 2024 hurricane season officially beginning this Saturday, only slightly more than half of Americans say they are somewhat prepared for a hurricane. Surprisingly, more residents of the Mid-Atlantic states say they are prepared (71%) than in hurricane-prone Florida (63%). Mid-Atlantic residents also report the greatest concerns that their region will be impacted by what is predicted to be a hyper-active hurricane season.

“Finding trusted sources of information with a storm bearing down – and listening to them – may well determine survival,” said Michelle Ubben, national spokesperson for the National Hurricane Survival Initiative. “It’s alarming that so many Americans are skeptical about official storm warnings, even as predictions about where and when storms will make landfall have become more and more accurate.”

The National Hurricane Survival Initiative (NHSI) is a public education project of Sachs Media. For more than a quarter-century, NHSI has been an important source of information in hurricane-prone regions about how to prepare for, survive, and recover from a hurricane. Sachs Media is a leading producer of public education initiatives and a trusted source of crisis communications support in the aftermath of a natural disaster.

The national survey, which polled 975 adults May 27-29, 2024, found that while only 54% of Americans report that they are at least “somewhat” prepared, the vast majority have growing concerns about weather events. Nine in 10 Americans say they are more concerned about extreme weather events such as extreme heat and cold, tornadoes, or floods, than they were just five years ago, and 1 in 3 (33%) cited hurricanes as a weather event causing them to lose sleep. 

Almost three-quarters of Americans (72%) say climate change is contributing in some measure to the more intense weather, with 44% thinking it plays a major role. Despite this, only about one-third of Americans (31%) expressed an increased level of concern that a hurricane would affect them personally. Even among those who have been personally impacted by a hurricane, less than half (47%) said their level of concern had increased in the past year.

“The vast majority of Americans are increasingly concerned about extreme weather in all its forms,” said Lisa Garcia, a senior producer for the National Hurricane Survival Initiative. “This underscores the need for heightened awareness and preparedness efforts as we face increasingly severe weather events.”

In releasing the survey results, the National Hurricane Survival Initiative also cited the good news that hurricane forecasts are getting more accurate. In the 1990s, 72-hour estimates missed the actual landfall location by an average of 282 miles – the distance from Miami to Tampa – but in 2021, landfall estimates were accurate within just 75 miles. Forecasters have also improved how accurately they can predict total hurricane activity each season, although that may be an ominous sign given this year’s official NOAA estimate of 17 to 25 total named storms, with 8 to 13 hurricanes –including 4 to 7 major hurricanes.

Even in the face of massive devastation and far more accurate forecasting, more than half of Americans believe public officials, news outlets, and even meteorologists overstate storm threats, according to the survey. Men are particularly skeptical of media reports, with 61% expressing doubts.

Full survey findings are available here.

Stay Informed, Stay Safe: Harnessing the Power of Social Media During a Disaster

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Hurricanes are among the most common and costly catastrophes in the United States, so chances are you’ve tuned in to social media only to see horrific images and videos of homes washing away from powerful storm surges, power lines blockading neighborhoods from strong winds, and towns left devastated – often for months on end.

In today’s age of instant communication, social media allows everyone to play the role of the journalist in sharing events that are happening all around them. During a disaster, social media enables messages to be shared quickly – by a vast amount of people simultaneously. According to the Pew Research Center, “half of U.S. adults get news at least sometimes from social media.”

While social media is a great outlet for disseminating information, it can also be used as an effective emergency management tool to help those in the affected areas provide and receive updates, connect, and locate necessary resources. So, how can you harness these social media platforms to benefit your emergency preparedness?

Below are a few actions you can take today to have full access to information that might just save someone’s life.

Before Disaster Strikes

  • Research and follow various government entities that help prepare for disasters, such as the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the National Hurricane Center, The Salvation Army, the National Emergency Management Association, and others. Don’t forget about local entities that are likely to share timely updates, such as the county police or fire department.
  • Make sure all electronic devices are fully charged and backup batteries or wireless chargers are in multiple locations.
  • Sign up to receive RSS feeds from some of your trusted sources.

During a Disaster

  • Regularly check your social media feeds for updates and emergency communications warnings.
  • Use posts on social media accounts to request assistance in an emergency situation.
  • Monitor other users’ social media activities and posts to establish situational awareness and find out what the conditions are in surrounding areas.

Following a Disaster

  • Use various visual social media applications to upload images to create damage estimates.
  • Communicate with loved ones and friends to notify them of your safety quickly and efficiently. This can be done through direct messages or even tools within the platform such as the Safety Check feature on Facebook
  • If disaster recovery resources are needed, use social platforms to find local non-profits that are distributing resources in your community.
  • Turn to social media to find out—in real-time—what local companies, such as gas stations and restaurants, have power and are open. Even if you don’t have power, a friend or family member who does may be able to relay this information to you through a phone call.

To help you prepare, below are some trusted social media resources you can access today. Follow or bookmark these profiles now so that you know where to turn later.

Facebook:

X:

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

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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.

How to Hurricane-Proof Your Home… Affordably

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Close-up of craftsman hands in protective gloves measuring wooden plank with ruler and pencil. Woodwork and renovation concept.

Hurricanes can cause tremendous stress to homeowners, even before they hit. From grocery stores jam-packed with frantic shoppers to gas stations lined up with thirsty cars, preparing for an upcoming storm causes stress for just about everyone around town. And even after the storm has passed, it often may leave countless obstacles scattered in its wake. One of the most daunting post-hurricane challenges is assessing the damage to your home (and figuring out how to pay large, unexpected bills to repair the damage).

Now imagine a different way. Instead of the usual stress and frustration associated with such an ordeal, you can be calm and collected while assessing the storm’s aftermath. You’re able to do this because you were fully prepared to face the storm before it hit. Your home was already armed with a backup generator, storm shutters, and wind- and water-resistant measures securely in place. The best part is, you were able to do it all through 100% financing with no money down.

A unique and efficient program called Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) makes this possible. Scientific American has proclaimed the PACE program as one of its top 20 “world-changing” ideas; PACE is an affordable program that allows homeowners to make energy efficient and hurricane protection improvements to their homes that will continue to benefit them long after hurricane season has passed.

According to a survey by the National Hurricane Survival Initiative, 66% of Floridians identified installation of impact-resistant windows as one of their top three home-hardening preferences. With wind and water damage contributing significantly to a hurricane’s disastrous after-effects, PACE eligible storm protection improvements can greatly reduce the potential damage of a hurricane, including high-impact doors and basement membrane waterproofing.

“Everyone wants their home to be able to withstand the worst of a hurricane, but not every family’s budget has the means to make home hardening possible,” says David Kelly, Senior Vice President of Sales with Ygrene, a PACE provider and national leader in clean energy financing for storm home improvements. “Floridians are fortunate that the state is one of just three in the nation that allow residential PACE, so they should take advantage by investing in their future while increasing their property’s value now.”

The process for getting PACE financing approval is simple, taking just three easy steps:

  1.     Get qualified
  2.     Select a project
  3.     Choose a contractor.

Homeowners can get prequalified in less than thirty minutes with an online application, and their entire project is 100% financed with no money down. Even repaying the financing is easy; payments are added onto and made with the owner’s property tax bill and can be delayed up to a year or more, with the cost spread out over the lifetime of the financing agreement (sometimes up to 30 years). Eligibility is primarily based on factors other than credit score, such as home equity.

Hundreds of Projects Qualify including solar, heating and AC, and roofing.

PACE projects aren’t just proactive ways to start preparing for the inevitable challenges of hurricane season. PACE home improvement solutions can also result in a more sustainable home for you and your family. Options such as solar panels, electric vehicle charging stations, and wind turbines may help lower your utility bills.

In the end, the greatest value of PACE-financed improvement is the peace of mind that comes with knowing your home is properly hardened against the forces of nature, before they happen. The more prepared you are before the hurricane, the less you’ll need to worry once it arrives.

Ygrene PACE Financing How it Works from Ygrene Energy Fund on Vimeo.

For more information regarding Ygrene and how you can begin the PACE process today, visit Ygrene.com.

When Typical Homeowners’ Insurance Isn’t Enough

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People want the best home protection possible for their families, and Floridians in particular understand how important this is when it comes to hurricane preparation. As a former Florida insurance commissioner, Kevin McCarty understands this better than most.

McCarty’s career with  the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation began right before Hurricane Andrew devastated much of South Florida in 1992, providing him a firsthand look at how severely a storm can impact the state. Through the intensity of the 2004 and 2005 hurricane seasons, when Florida was battered by eight named storms including hurricanes Wilma and Katrina, McCarty was witness to massive disaster areas with tens of billions of dollars’ worth of damages. McCarty knows how unexpectedly dangerous and damaging hurricanes can be.

“It is unfortunate that many people only learn the terms of their homeowners’ policy coverage after a catastrophic event occurs. Imagine their surprise and regret when they learn that things like spoiled food, evacuation costs, family mementos, luxury goods and similar items are not in fact covered under their standard policy,” McCarty says. “Fortunately, a new innovative new product allows homeowners to obtain affordable supplemental coverage with proactive claims processing that will put cash in their hands quickly and allow them to return to their normal routines as soon as possible, without the stress of the traditional claims adjusting process.”

To protect his own family, McCarty uses a supplemental coverage called StormPeace. Offered by Assured Risk Cover, StormPeace strengthens a homeowner’s policy with no inspections, adjusters, or deductibles by covering expenses that are normally excluded in homeowners’ policies. McCarty  recognizes the reality of many families in Florida who live paycheck to paycheck – as well as the urgency to resume their lives and the helpless frustration they feel over long claim times. StormPeace offers peace of mind in these situations; after Hurricane Irma, for example, 100% of StormPeace’s policyholders were paid,  with 98% of them receiving funds via direct deposit within 72 hours.

No Deductibles or Adjustments

StormPeace is available for homeowners, renters, and mobile homes. A claim and attestation of damage is all it takes to initiate payments, and a detailed listing of actual losses is available afterwards. The streamlined claim filing system has been modeled so the process is quick and hassle-free.

A Parametric System

StormPeace is what’s called a “parametric” insurance, meaning policyholders can receive payments once the specified parameters are met. StormPeace focuses on two predetermined factors: the distance between your property and the center of the hurricane, and the strength of the storm when it’s closest to your property.

Reduced Waiting Period

Since the parameters are easy to find out and verify, the claims process is simplified and access to funds is almost immediate. The National Hurricane Center provides real-time hurricane tracking, so once the payment conditions are met, StormPeace uses the GPS locations for insured properties to reach out to policyholders about their claims eligibility within 24 hours of the hurricane end. All that’s required is a claim and attestation of damages to receive your payment within 72 hours!

No Landfall, No Problem

All nearby hurricanes are eligible, even if they don’t actually make landfall. StormPeace understands that hurricanes can cause significant damage, regardless of landfall or not.

Not Your Typical Coverage

Payments can be used for any out-of-pocket expense that directly resulted from the hurricane, including water damage of all types, as well as  spoiled food, damaged pools, and fallen trees. Another potentially major expense that isn’t covered by most typical insurance policies is the cost associated with evacuating. A survey by the National Hurricane Survival Initiative revealed that 40% of respondents spent $500 or more as a result of evacuating for Hurricane Irma, and 58% stayed put despite evacuation recommendations.

Learn more about how StormPeace works here or visit www.stormpeace.com