North Carolina Residents Should Take Steps Now to Protect Against Gustav
Contact: Wendy Fontaine
September 9, 2002
Tampa – Residents along the North Carolina coast can take steps now, before Gustav gets closer, to protect their homes from wind, rain and storm surge.
The Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) says there are three things everyone should do:
Clean your yard. Remove anything that will become flying or floating debris, including lawn furniture, garbage cans, dead limbs and broken fencing.
Protect your openings. If you do not have impact resistant windows and doors, use the materials you’ve prepared as part of your hurricane plan
(e.g. minimum 7/16” thick plywood panels, garage door bracing).
“Batten down the hatches”. Be sure to close and lock all windows, doors, skylights and vents in your home to prevent water intrusion.
Flooding and storm surge may be the biggest threat, so pay attention to local weather updates and obey emergency officials if evacuation orders are given.
For more comprehensive protection, homeowners can also reference the IBHS booklets, Is Your Home Protected From Hurricane Disaster? A Homeowner’s Guide to Hurricane Retrofit and Protect Your Home Against Hurricane Damage. Both are available in Spanish and English. This information can be viewed and downloaded from www.disastersafety.org. For a free copy of either publication, call IBHS toll-free at 1(866) 657-IBHS (4247).
The Institute for Business & Home Safety is a national nonprofit initiative of the insurance industry to reduce deaths, injuries, property damage, economic losses and human suffering caused by natural disasters.
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