Hurricane Preperations

After Hurricane Rita hit, I vowed I wouldn't leave Houston unless a Cat 4 or 5 is barreling up the Houston Ship Channel. Even then I'm not so sure I'd leave.

Rita evacuations were a disaster. Houston issued a general evacuation with no real plan in place. I got lucky. I was released from work a day earlier than most people. It still took me six hours to drive to San Antonio. That's because I know the back ways. Had I waited another day the drive was closer to twenty hours. It was so bad people were running out of gas on the road. Others were still on the highways with the hurricane only a few hours to land fall. It was an absolute mess.

When Ike came rolling through I stayed put. Some what. I rented a five star hotel in the Galleria area and rode the storm out there. This time I'll ride it out at my luxurious Midtown Houston apartment. This building is sturdy. I can't even drive nails into the wall to hang stuff.

Instead I'm stocking up on hurricane supplies. I'm building an inventory of water. I have a couple of cases of bottled water. I need to buy at least a few gallons of bottle stuff. I have plenty of canned goods.

I'm also adding MREs to the inventory. I have four left over from Ike and just ordered another case from Ebay. I might buy one more case before the summer hits. In the event of a power outage I have plenty of propane to cook any perishables first. I will eat those first and if ice is available from the PODs after the storm, I can use that to try and make it last a little longer. If nothing else I can use the propane to boil water if my supplies run out. At the very worst, I'll be eating cans of corn and green beans heated on my gas stove.

As for gasoline, I need to figure something out. I have a ten gallon can. Maybe get one more and have them in stand by. Rotate them frequently and keep fresh gas in them. I need to look up how long gas can last in a can. Hate to put some bad stuff in my car or truck.

I hope others are starting to take the storms more serious to. I was fortunate the last one. This year I'll be prepared. Only thing I ask God is to keep the building off my head.