It’s Hurricane Season. Are you ready?

Tips from NC Emergency Management

NC Emergency Management Meteorologist Laura Youngman shares hurricane prep tips with Carolina Country readers.

Forecasters at both NC State University and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) are predicting an active hurricane season this year. NC State projects anywhere from 15 to 20 named storms may form in the Atlantic basin, while NOAA is forecasting a range of 17 to 25 total named storms. The number of predicted named storms is significantly higher than the long-term average of 11 (1951 to 2023).

The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 through November 30, and preparation is key to weathering any storms impacting North Carolina.

“In NC, we build resiliency through a whole-of-community approach, which includes individuals and families,” says NC Emergency Management (NCEM) Director Will Ray. “I encourage everyone to ensure you have a disaster plan and a preparedness kit and not wait for an emergency to occur.”

Plan

Where will you evacuate to? How will you communicate with family? Addressing these items now will alleviate some of the stress of needing to evacuate from home. Visit ReadyNC.gov for planning info.

Prepare

A power outage or emergency can affect your community at any time. You should have enough drinking water, food, and supplies for three to seven days for each person in your home. Visit ReadyNC.gov for more information on how to build your kit!

Stay Informed

Utilize reputable sources of information (like the National Weather Service and local media) and enable emergency alerts on your cell phone to make protective decisions for your family. Should an outage occur, your local co-op’s social media pages can provide helpful restoration updates, but be wary of getting general storm information from social media unless you can verify the source.

Know Your Zone

If you live near the NC coast, you can look up your address by visiting knowyourzone.nc.gov. Then you will know when it’s time to evacuate!

Flooding

Visit fiman.nc.gov to explore the NC Flood Inundation Mapping and Alert Network (FIMAN) and to set up flooding alerts.

Hurricane Myths vs. Reality

Myth: If you are outside the cone of uncertainty, you are safe.
Reality: “The cone of uncertainty only shows the forecast for the track of the center of the storm and is not a reflection of what the impacts will be” says NCEM Chief Meteorologist Katie Webster.

Myth: The higher the category storm, the greater the impacts.
Reality: “Any tropical system has the potential to be impactful, even as a tropical storm,” explains NCEM Meteorologist Diana Thomas. “Hurricane Matthew, for example, never made landfall in NC and caused millions of dollars in damage”

Myth: Winds are the deadliest aspect of a hurricane.
Reality: “Storm surge and inland flooding have been the leading cause of fatalities” clarifies NCEM Meteorologist Laura Youngman.