National Hurricane Survival Initiative

Saving Lives & Minimizing Damage -- Is your community prepared?

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.

Financing to help Florida’s SNFs meet power requirements

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Revered for its year-round warm temperatures and relaxing lifestyle, Florida is home to the largest population of aging and elderly Americans who retire to the Sunshine State. However, Florida is also known for its disruptive weather, especially during the summer months that often bring with them devastating hurricanes and record-breaking heat waves.
2017’s hurricane season was particularly destructive in Florida. Hurricane Irma cost the state billions and took more than 70 lives. Among the victims were 12 residents of a Hollywood, Florida nursing home, who died after the facility lost power in the days following Irma’s wrath.

In response to this tragic event, a new mandate from Gov. Rick Scott requires all senior living facilities to install power generators, and to have enough fuel supply to run the generators for 72 hours. Nursing homes and assisted living facilities have until July 1 to comply. Although thousands are already in compliance, many are without the financial resources required to make these expensive system upgrades.

There is a widely available, but lesser known, program that can help. Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy Financing (C-PACE) is a program that provides business owners with funding for improvement projects such as the installation of impact-resistant windows and doors, roofing, HVAC and solar panels.

Through a voluntary assessment on their property tax bill, property owners pay for the improvement projects over time. C-PACE loans are tied to the property itself and not the property owner, offering a rare chance for property owners to overcome common barriers of the upfront costs.

Ygrene is one of the nation’s leading providers of C-PACE. Our program is currently available in more than 150 cities and counties in Florida; however, most property owners do not know that C-PACE is an option for them. In fact, a recent survey commissioned by the National Hurricane Survival Initiative revealed that less than 8% of Floridians are aware of the program.

It’s important that nursing homes and assisted living facilities in Florida know that they are eligible for the C-PACE program, as they all share the same goal of ensuring residents are kept safe and cared for during disasters. C-PACE providers like Ygrene can help nursing homes meet the governor’s new mandate for backup power supply, but beyond that, C-PACE is a practical option for affording other projects that will improve facility conditions for the seniors in their care.

With the official start to Florida’s hurricane season having begun on June 1, and the deadline for complying with the new state mandate just around the corner, facility upgrades for nursing homes should be a top priority.

As we all know, when the stifling heat and punishing storms hit Florida this summer, our seniors are among the most vulnerable. They’ve taken care of us, now it’s time to take care of them.

Kate Wesner is the Senior Director of Government Affairs at Ygrene, national leader in residential and commercial energy efficiency and resiliency project financing.