Moving to the area soon. What should we know about hurricanes and tornados. Without a basement where do you go for protection?
When the Hurricanes are in town you go to the PNC Bank arena. Regarding tornadoes we always have an interior room with no windows and preferably a bathtub.
you can also get the Weather Warnings on your cell phone--text and calls alerts Code Red Weather Warning is what it's called I think. Crawl spaces can be safe as well, just make sure you don't fill it with junk. If on a slab, the most interior room or a room with pipes in the wall works best. If your Bathroom is the best room and has a window, bring in pillows or a small mattress if you have time (to protect from the glass, not to chill out on)
This is some very good advice for tornadoes. Please understand, if you didn't pick up on it, that the Hurricanes are our hockey team ... Where are you moving here from? I only ask because if you're from the midwest, you probably have more experience with tornadoes than most in this area ... if you're from the east coast, you have about as much experience with hurricanes. With hurricanes and tropical storms, there's usually time to try and plan and prepare - we don't often have to go to the extreme of boarding up windows, filling tubs and sinks with water, stocking up on emergency supplies - but we watch the forecasts during hurricane season. Fran was the last big one to hit this immediate area, back in '96. Usually when there's a hurricane or tropical storm in the area, it's a day of high winds and nervous people. I'm from Missouri and it still makes me nervous, not having a basement. When the weather is starting to look really bad, I get my animals' leashes and collars prepared so I can grab them quickly - and plan the best place in my house away from windows.
Invest in a good generator and keep it well maintained so it's ready to run when you need it! Talk to an electrician about how to backfeed it to your homes electricity (breaker box) so you can use the necessities.
I think I got my generator and manual transfer switch, and installed it all myself for under $1000 in a few hours. That was about 7 years ago. Has worked great every time I have used it. It powers everything in my house except my central HVAC. It does do my well pump, lights, fridge, TVs, window A/C unit, etc. And I use the fireplace for heat if needed. I used it for days a few years ago when that ice storm hit and knocked out power for a while. Best money I ever spent.
