Hurricane season is a time when many people start to worry about the safety of their friends and family, but as insurancejournal.com notes, Hurricane Season can be a great time to host a Hurricane Party. For those of us living in Florida—especially us natives—hurricanes are usually not a concern until they get to a category 3 or 4.
There are many things that you can do to stay safe during a hurricane, but don’t let it stop you from having fun!
A Hurricane Party Can Be An Opportunity to Have a Fun Time
In this blog article we will discuss how to have a hurricane party by making sure that your guests know the risks and how they can prepare for them.
Hurricanes are a major part of Florida’s culture. When they show up on the radar, we know that it’s about time to get our supplies and make plans for evacuation with loved ones who live close by.
Hurricane season ranges from June 1st until November 30th but most hurricanes usually come around August or September as those months represent peak hurricane activity due to warm waters off the coast. A typical year sees 12-14 named storms (which includes tropical depression) so you can expect at least 6-8 hurricanes per decade with a major hurricane making landfall every 10-15 years, depending on where you live.
Just for a recap, here’s a list of major hurricanes that made landfall affecting Florida since 1990.
| Storm | Category | Date of Landfall | Landfall Location |
| Andrew | 5 | August 24, 1992 | Near Homestead |
| Opal | 3 | October 4, 1995 | Pensacola Beach |
| Charley | 4 | August 13, 2004 | Cayo Costa |
| Ivan | 3 | September 16, 2004 | Near Gulf Shores, AL |
| Jeanne | 3 | September 26, 2004 | Hutchinson Island |
| Dennis | 3 | July 10, 2005 | Santa Rosa Island |
| Wilma | 3 | October 24, 2005 | Cape Romano |
| Irma | 4 | September 10, 2017 | Cudjoe Key |
| Michael | 5 | October 10, 2018 | Panama City, Mexico Beach |
Stock up on non-perishable food and water
The hurricane party can be an opportunity to gather some comfort food that you might not otherwise eat. For example, if a store is closed because of power outages and flooding then the only way to get perishable items like eggs or butter would be from your own refrigerator. This means you’ll need to stock up on these before they go bad! However, this also presents a great chance for grocery shopping in bulk so there will still be plenty of food even if stores are closed down due to high winds and downed trees blocking roads.
Use Your Resources While You Can
Keep one TV on the local news to get any hurricane updates as they come.
Turn on another TV and stream movies, music, or games to keep people entertained during the storm
It’s important to keep your kitchen stocked with any necessary items for cooking like oil, flour, sugar, and spices. You’ll also want some canned goods on hand as well in case stores close down due to flooding or power outages during the storm.
After stocking up at home now is a good time to go ahead and make sure you have plenty of gas in your car so that you can travel when needed. Don’t forget about flashlights! If the electricity goes out then it will be essential to have these around just in case there are no lights whatsoever during a hurricane party.
Create an evacuation plan in case you have to leave your home
It’s important to have a plan in place for if you need to evacuate your house. First, make sure that everyone has an emergency bag packed with anything they’ll need like clothes and medications. You should also make copies of any valuable documents such as insurance policies or passports and store them somewhere safe outside the home where they will be accessible if necessary.
Make sure you know how to get out of town too- figure out which routes are blocked by floods or landslides so that when it comes time there is no hesitation about what roadways not to take through order to avoid traffic jams. Finally, come up with two lists: one containing all contact information including addresses, phone numbers, email addresses of anyone who might help like family members or neighbors.
Play games while waiting out the storm
When they say you should have a hurricane party, it really means games and alcohol. I’ve found that card and board games work best for the situation because don’t take up too much space or make lots of noise indoors. It’s important to be safe when playing football with other people by not kicking the ball too hard so nothing breaks during your game – but if you want something more adrenaline-pumping go ahead!
The best thing you can do in the event of a hurricane is to be prepared. Your fridge should be set on its coldest setting about two days before landfall, and closed as much as possible so that food will stay fresh for longer if there’s an outage. Make sure your cell phone battery is fully charged- it may come in handy when power goes out! If you have any corded phones without electricity requirements, they will work too; just make sure to tape up windows with masking or blue painter’s tape – this way they won’t break against debris flying around during severe weather conditions
If you’re hosting a party at home, make sure all pets are safe indoors before you start celebrating!
Hurricane parties are a lot of fun when you’re responsible about it. Hurricanes can be no joke, so please take some time to plan ahead and get all the supplies in order for this extravaganza because sleep is important. Be smart if you have to go outside during one too – there may not be any power or water (or food) until after everything calms down again!
When you are hosting a hurricane party, make sure to have plenty of space for people who will be staying over and enough sleeping bags or air mattresses. Keep an extra few in case some forget their own supplies. You want your guests to enjoy themselves without needing too much attention from the host while preparing food outside during these times can be tricky so it is best not take any risks when approached by other parties that may need help with clearing debris off roofs or something similar if they ask nicely at least first! Sleep should also not go unaddressed as it’s important–you’ll probably only get about 5 hours on average but this could still mean life-or-death given how dangerous hurricanes are even after landfall.
If you are in an area that is going to be affected by a hurricane, there are some things you can do to make sure your party goes off without a hitch. Don’t forget about the basics like food and water (canned items last longer than perishable ones), pay attention to the news for updates on what areas will be impacted first, plan on staying inside for at least two weeks after it passes through, have an evacuation plan ready with family or friends outside of town who may not know how long they need to stay away from their homes, and have fun!
