Projection via NOAA
A reader sends in a few words of advice about preparing for the Frankenstorm and some things you might want to have on hand or consider getting in advance of Sandy’s arrival:
Battery operated radios / weather radios or even the hand crank ones. Also if the cable goes out have a digital TV antenna so you can still get news over the air waves.
Bottled water. In extreme cases people can fill there bath tubs with potable water to use.
Flashlights with batteries, candle are good too but they come with a huge fire risk.
Can’t call 911 if cell service is lost or your mobile is dead so know where your nearest fire or police station is.
Have canned food but eat what’s perishable or frozen first if power goes out.
Know where utility hook up and switches are to turn off gas or electricity if supplies lines break or become exposed.
If you live in a managed multi unit building contacting the front desk or management company about their emergency plans would be helpful too.
Pets, pets freak out during storms and even before there are any signs of the storm. They can be sensitive to the low pressures. Make sure to have food and water for your pets too.
List of friends and family on paper with address.
For DC specific stuff
http://eic.rrc.dc.gov/eic/cwp/view.asp?a=1272&q=568018&cat=1
NOAA has a good PDF that explains warnings and preparedness.
Guidelines for a disaster supplies kit.
What happened to this missing DC and hitting NYC/Boston?
Don’t forget the gin!
+1 need to get some cocktail fixins!
You sould also get whisky. A martini without ice is very disappointing. And by the second or third day there might not be any ice left.
Actually Sportsman liquors in Mt. Pleasant had Gosling dark rum & Ginger Beer – for the most appropriate “Dark and stormy!” And does everyone know the couple that owns this place are the nicest people in the world?
There was a preparedness guide in the Washington Post that looked good:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/hurricane-sandy-how-to-prepare-for-the-storm/2012/10/25/7d6846c0-1ec5-11e2-9746-908f727990d8_story.html
why is it called Frankenstorm?
‘Cause it’s like a freakish monster mash-up of Hurricane, Nor’Easter, with a full moon (high tides) thrown in.
Don’t forget the Arctic Blast!
It’s now the mash.
Also, make sure you have lots of beer on hand!
My beer is safe and secure.
is it okay that i’m not all that concerned?
God no! Haven’t you been watching The Weather Channel? You have a civic duty to absorb the panic they’re spreading!
Freeze gallon jugs of ice, they last much longer than cubed ice and can help keep your fridge cool for a couple days…
Second this tip, or even reuse plastic water bottles. You can put them in a cooler and keep your beer or food cold, depending on your priorities.
As my friend Larry says “beer beer beer beer, beer beer beer beer”
Thanks for the tip! I just filled up all the water bottles in my house–half in the fridge, half in the freezer, and a full Brita. Hope 3 Stars has power to do growler fills on Saturday
Anyone know when this is expected to really hit us?
We’re all going to die!!!
Someone needs to make the movie “Frankenstorm Vs. Thunder Snow.” Come on Hollywood, help us out here!
Beer and cigarettes acquired.
Oh, Bloomingdale. Put on a wetsuit.
kayaks!
Storms like this was so much more fun before i became a dad…ugh…I can already hear my wife worrying about the frozen breast milk. the horror.
I love all the comments about booze and smokes!
She’s probably worrying because it’s a slow and tedious process to pump it all. But then you’re not the one doing it, so who GAF?
Ugh the grocery stores are going to be packed with people stocking up on entire carts full of chips. Because that is what you apparently need to survive a hurricane, I’ve learned through observation over the years.
Also I am so smugly thankful for underground power lines in my neighorhood.
I also have underground lines, and haven’t lost power in the 23 years I’ve been here. I just hate going in for routine weekly shopping and having to contend with the store-long lines of people panicking in this neighborhood with underground lines. Who doesn’t have 2 days or so worth of food sitting around the house at any given time?
We also have underground lines and 22 years in the house.
We used to lose power a LOT in the summer. You could hear the transformer go boom, then, no power. I think they must have upgraded the transformers.
A few years ago, we lost power on Christmas night. Never did find out what caused that.
Wife went to store during lunch to grab something for an office birthday party, and apparently the water shelves are already being pilllaged!
Guess I’ll be left eating wadded beef and creamed eels.
Eels? Are you British??
my beef’s in a wad, too.
You need the chips for the hurricane party!
frankenstorm…halloween costume!!!!!
Check if you’re in a floodplain. Columbia Heights, Petworth, etc. is all fine. Just make sure the drains are working OK – storm drains and the drains in your backyard.
http://ddoe.dc.gov/floodplainmap
Good map to look at on a day like today to see whether your house is in a flood plain. If you click on “subwatershed” it shows that there’s a creek that’s now underground running from the old soldiers home, down Monroe to 14th, under some buildings to Columbia and on through the city to the Potomac.
Probably not a bad idea to check/clear your gutters (depending on access and fear of heights), and to try to get debris out of the gutters in the road so that it doesn’t clog up the catchbasins.
I can’t remember if it was here or elsewhere, but I liked it when someone was speculating a while back on the D.C. storm trifecta of bread, milk, and toilet paper, and asking, “What’s the deal? Is everyone going to make French toast??”
jeezus. this storm has, like, a Category 5 publicist. take a deep breath. pour a glass of wine. it’s gonna rain a little. maybe a lot. it’s rained before; it’ll rain again. you won’t melt.
“Reader” who posted the suggestions should have a grammar book on hand.
LOL I enjoy all of the chaos these little storms create. People preparing for an end times scenario that never happens. It’s just rain people, the power does seem to go out around here for the smallest of weather bugs. But overall, we will survive this rain like we always do.
Those of you who live where the power is notorious for going out for a week or longer: Be sure you buy lots of fresh meat, dairy, and frozen goods. That way, when a TV reporter roves your neighborhood on Day 5, you will be able to have an atomic conniption on camera about how you had to throw out hundreds of dollars food that spoiled because the power’s out.