In my last post (Hurricane Preparedness Guide: What Miami Needs to Know) we showed a process for determining the most likely disaster scenario that you will be presented with based on where you live, and showed how we determined that Miami residents need to focus their prepping efforts on Hurricane Preparedness.
In this post we begin our discussion of preparing for an actual hurricane. We will start by assuming that we take FEMA’s advice and evacuate (Bug Out), discussing the advantages and disadvantages of bugging out from a hurricane, as well as some of the unique challenges that bugging out presents.
There is ALWAYS advanced warning of hurricanes in Miami, and following the guidance of FEMA and government organizations is typically sound, and conservative advice.
So we know there is a hurricane headed for Miami, and we know that we have an evacuation order. What to do now?
In this post we will assume that we follow the guidance of the government, pack the car and leave.
- Where will we go?
The first and potentially the most important decision you need to make is to decide where will you go. You don’t have to make a perfect decision here, but having a few places predetermined, and the cash on hand for the hotel or accommodations needed on your arrival will make your evacuation easier.
- How long do we need to be prepared to be gone?
72 hours is a good starting point.
- What should we bring?
See The Basics
- Risks of Bugging Out
Unfortunately bugging out does not guarantee your safety during the storm. As we saw with Hurricane Helene in 2024, occasionally storms change directions and are extremely destructive even far inland. It’s very important that if you have chosen to bug out you go far enough away and continue to very closely monitor the situation. You have abandoned the safety of a structure and are now living on the road. You need to avoid this storm and any other dangerous affects of the storm.
Of course eventually you will stop at a hotel or friends house to stay. You need to consider what might happen if the storm changes direction and heads towards you while staying there. During Hurricane Helene we saw hotels kicking people out after 12 hours of lost power, leaving those travelers with nowhere safe to go.
During Hurricane Helene we also saw people being surrounded by flooding in their vehicles, unaware they had even entered an area experiencing extreme weather. Tune into local radio stations, and utilize your emergency radio to monitor the local NOAA weather bulletins, as these will provide up to date information.
It’s impossible to always avoid dangerous weather events, but I am confident that as long as you maintain your situational awareness while bugging out and recognize how vulnerable you are while evacuating that you will be able to avoid dangerous situations by playing it safe.
Make your plan today. It can be as simple as talking about the plan with your family, and making a list of items you would want to bring if you needed to evacuate your home.
Practical Prepping 