The 2011 Hurricane Season began today, June 1st in Florida and will be with us until November 30th this autumn.
Here are some things I have mentioned in earlier posts that you should keep in mind. First, the State of Florida has a website that you can use to help your family or business get ready for disasters such as hurricanes. You can visit it by clicking on the following link: http://www.floridadisaster.org/ There are a lot of useful tips there that can help you. It is still not to late to visit this site and get your supplies. When a storm is on the way it is amazing how fast the stores will empty of needed items. Canned goods, plywood, batteries, etc. will fly off the shelves. Wait too long and you may go home empty-handed.
You may also want to review your home's flood risk. Many homeowners do not realize that their property insurance policy will not cover flood damage. You need flood insurance for that. Do be aware that once you get a policy, coverage will not start for 30 days. So, again, waiting until the last minute could get you in a lot of trouble. In Florida many areas look nice and dry. But it can be very surprising how wet they can get when several inches of rain fall. So why not stop by the National Flood Insurance Program website to learn more about this special insurance coverage and see if you are at risk. You can get there by clicking on this link: http://www.floodsmart.gov/floodsmart/
A third thing you need to consider is that whenever there is a storm threat on any part of our Florida coast the regular insurance companies will stop writing new policies and accepting new clients. So if you do not have property insurance (some people without mortgages try to go uninsured), do not think that you can wait until a storm is coming before you get coverage. You may find yourself riding out a storm with crossed fingers hoping that your roof does not blow off or your home is not damaged in some other way. If you are in the process of buying a home here, make sure your contract has language in it that allows you to delay your purchase until the companies are again writing new policies.
This may also be a good time to review your current coverage with your provider to make sure you have a policy that will protect your home the way you want it to.
You may want to also consider purchasing a weather radio. These are inexpensive and can save your lives. With hurricanes, we normally have a lot of warning that they are coming, and these radios can help keep you up-to-date on current conditions. What are really dangerous are tornadoes which can pop-up very quickly and can show up in the middle of the night when you are sound asleep. Most weather radios have alarms so that if a tornado is in your area, you will be immediately warned and can take steps to protect yourself and your family. Very effective and economical protection if you ask me!
When storms do appear to be headed for our state, I try to do updates here on my blog so that my readers can keep abreast of the events that are taking place. So you may want to stop by from time-to-time during this year's hurricane season. Let's hope that it is a quiet and uneventful one! A lot of the local television stations will also allow you to track storms via your computers.
Please do not hesitate to contact me about this topic. You can call me at: 813-783-4444 or e-mail me at: jelwell1@tampabay.rr.com You are also welcome to visit my webpage at: www.jelwell.century21bnr.com
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