May 1st through the 7th is National Hurricane Preparedness Week. If you don’t live in an area prone to hurricanes, you probably haven’t given them much thought. However, if you live in Florida or the surrounding area, chances are hurricanes have impacted your life in one way or another.
How did Hurricane Preparedness Week start?
Prior to 2004, Hurricane Preparedness Week had been known as Hurricane Awareness Week. The first Hurricane Warning Service originated in Cuba and was adopted by the United States Weather Bureau during the 1870s. On June 1, 1956 the National Hurricane Center was founded in Miami, Florida.
The change from Awareness to Preparedness was an initiative to encourage communities to be prepared prior to a hurricane hitting land. Costing billions of dollars in damages every year just in the United States alone, hurricanes are considered one of Mother Nature’s most destructive events worldwide.
Outside of the United States, hurricanes are often referred to as typhoons or tropical cyclones. Other countries, such as China, experience the same destructive forces and are reported to have the most typhoons annually than any other country in the world.
With continual changes in weather patterns and rising sea levels, hurricanes will continue to be destructive storms hitting our coast. As a community, we hope we can use this week to educate our neighbors on preparing before the hurricane, how to stay safe during the storm and what to expect following a devastating hurricane.
Follow us this week as we continue to cover different topics and provide resources to prepare for this upcoming hurricane season. If you’re still battling your insurance claims from prior hurricanes, please reach out to our team members to help get you the support you need: click here.
Additional resources:
National Today Hurricane Preparedness Week,
National Weather Service Hurricane Preparedness Week
NOAA: National Hurricane Preparedness