Red Cross Issues Top 10 Things to Do Now to Be Ready for the 2018 Hurricane Season

WASHINGTON, May 16, 2018 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The 2018 Atlantic hurricane season starts June 1, and forecasters are reporting we could once again see above-normal storm activity. It only takes one storm to threaten millions of people and the American Red Cross wants everyone to be safe between now and when the season ends in November.

The Red Cross is getting ready to respond to any storms that may hit the U.S. and here are the top ten things people should do now to be ready should a hurricane or tropical storm threaten:

1. Talk with household members about what to do if a hurricane strikes and create an evacuation plan. Talking about it ahead of time will help ease fears, especially in younger children.
2. Build an emergency kit in an easy-to-carry container with items including a gallon of water per person, per day, non-perishable food, a flashlight, battery-powered radio, first aid kit, medications, supplies for  infants and pets.
3. Be informed. Learn about your community's hurricane response plan. Plan routes to local shelters and register family members with special medical needs as required.
4. Get access to NOAA radio broadcasts. Purchase a battery-powered or hand-crank NOAA weather radio in the Red Cross Store.
5. Keep important papers and valuables in a safe deposit box in a place less likely to see flooding damage. You can take pictures with your phone or keep copies on a flash drive to carry with you on your keys.
6. Protect windows with permanent storm shutters or invest in one-half inch marine plywood that is pre-cut to fit your doors and windows.
7. Identify a place to store lawn furniture, toys, gardening tools and trash cans (away from stairs and exits) to prevent them from being moved by high winds and possibly hurting someone.
8. Clear clogged rain gutters and downspouts.
9. Download the free Red Cross Emergency App (text 'GETEMERGENCY' to 90999) for expert guidance on what to do before, during and after hurricanes as well as 34 other types of emergencies.
10. Take a First Aid and CPR/Course (redcross.org/takeaclass) to learn what to do in case emergency help is delayed.

Visit redcross.org/hurricane for full information about what to do before, during and after a hurricane

CORPORATIONS HELP  The generous donations from members of the Red Cross Annual Disaster Giving Program (ADGP) and the Disaster Responder Program enable the American Red Cross to prepare communities for disasters big and small, respond whenever and wherever disasters occur and help families during the recovery process.

ADGP $1 Million members are: Adelson Family Foundation; American Airlines; Anheuser-Busch Foundation; Anthem Foundation; Bank of America; Brown & Brown, Inc.; Caterpillar Foundation; The Clorox Company; ConocoPhillips; Costco Wholesale; Delta Air Lines; Enterprise Rent-A-Car Foundation; FedEx; Grainger; The Home Depot Foundation; LDS Charities; Lowe's Companies, Inc.; Mazda North American Operations; Microsoft Corp.; Nationwide Foundation; New Balance Foundation and New Balance Athletics; PepsiCo Foundation; State Farm; Target; VSP Global; Walmart and the Walmart Foundation; and The Walt Disney Company.

ADGP $500,000 members are: Altria Group; American Express; Aon; Capital One; Cisco Foundation; Citi Foundation; Darden Restaurants, Inc. Foundation; Discover; Edison International; Energy Transfer/Sunoco Foundation; Ford Motor Company; General Motors Foundation; Humble Bundle; International Paper; John Deere Foundation; Johnson Controls; LabCorp; Medtronic Foundation; Meijer; Merck Foundation; Mondel?z International Foundation; Procter & Gamble Company; PwC; Ryder; Southwest Airlines; Tata Consultancy Services; TD Ameritrade; The TJX Companies, Inc.; United Airlines; UPS; The Wawa Foundation; and Wells Fargo.

Disaster Responder Program members are: 7-Eleven Cares Foundation; Adobe; AdvoCare International L.P.; Alliance Data; Assurant; AT&T; AvalonBay Communities, Inc.; Avangrid Foundation; AXA; The Ball Foundation; BMW of North America; Boise Paper; CarMax; Cox Automotive; Duke Energy; Entergy Corporation; Farmers Insurance; Harbor Freight Tools Foundation; Hewlett Packard Enterprise Foundation; HP Foundation; HSBC Bank; IBM Corporation; Ingersoll Rand Foundation; The J.M. Smucker Company; Land O'Lakes, Inc.; Mastercard; Morgan Stanley; Neiman Marcus Group; Northrop Grumman Corporation; Northwestern Mutual and the Northwestern Mutual Foundation; Prudential Foundation; Raytheon Company; SC Johnson; Southeastern Grocers Home of BI-LO Harveys Winn Dixie; Standard Textile; Stearns Bank; Toyota; U-Haul International; United Technologies Corporation; USAA; U.S. Bank; and Visa.

About the American Red Cross:
The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies about 40 percent of the nation's blood; teaches skills that save lives; provides international humanitarian aid; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a not-for-profit organization that depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its mission. For more information, please visit redcross.org or cruzrojaamericana.org, or visit us on Twitter at @RedCross.

SOURCE American Red Cross