Hurricane Preparedness Week : May 9 – 15

By Ryan West


Disaster preparedness is at the very core of Love City Strong’s mission. Importantly, each May we highlight Hurricane Preparedness Week – this year, from May 9th through 15th. The week serves as a perfect time to assess your personal hurricane risk and preparedness. Predictions indicate an above average activity level this season but clearly, it only takes one storm to change your community. 

Before hurricane season begins on June 1st, you should begin doing the following things:

  1. Determine your risk
  2. Develop your sheltering or evacuation plan.
  3. Assemble disaster supplies, or “Build A Kit” as Ready.gov says!
  4. Get an insurance check up
  5. Strengthen your home
  6. Help your neighbors
  7. Complete a written plan

If you’re a resident of a community at high risk for hurricanes, like the USVI, then you likely already have some or all of these components in place. Nevertheless, it is important to review your preparedness plans each year. Furthermore, once you’ve updated them, make sure your family and friends are aware of your plans. 

Make sure to check in with your local emergency management agency (for the USVI that’s VITEMA) to learn about any changes to sheltering, evacuations, or other things that could impact your plan. You can also inquire about Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) training. CERT is available nationwide, and can help you to better support your community in the event of a disaster. Here in the Territory, VITEMA hosts these trainings regularly on St Croix, St Thomas, and St John. If you are interested in volunteering, you can check in with your local Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD), to learn about which local and national organizations might have volunteer opportunities in your area. 

Starting Sunday, we will be focusing on a different area of preparedness each day. Tune in to our social media (Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter) to learn more! Additionally, you can visit our “What to Know” page here on the website for downloadable resources.