Hurricane Season Draws Near – Prepare Now, Not Later
By Alyssa Brown
Associate Editor
Photo courtesy Pensacola News
Journal, Copyright 2004
STORM SURGE — Hurricane winds
and flooding cause
the most
damage during a storm.
Here, Hurricane Ivan destroys
sections of the
I-10 bridge
near Pensacola.
Floridians have learned to anticipate – with great trepidation – the annual onset of hurricane season. And with less than a month to go until the 2006 season begins, most everyone in Florida must be wondering what this year will bring.
If the 2004 Hurricane Season wasn’t a good enough teacher, the 2005 season certainly has trained Floridians – and other coastal states – to pay close attention to the weather.
From June 1 to Nov. 30, eyes are glued to the Weather Channel’s radar screen. But the Weather Channel isn’t the only resource for member dentists. The Florida Dental Health Foundation (FDHF) and the Florida Dental Association have worked tirelessly in recent years to develop and implement a disaster response system that addresses dentists’ needs before, during and after a hurricane.
FDHF Eased Tough Times
Photo provided by Dr. Wunderlich
DESTRUCTION — (above) August 2004
brought
Hurricane Charley
pounding Port Charlotte,
and ripping across
Central Florida.
To say the last few hurricane seasons have been rough is an understatement. The 2004 season, a wake-up call from years of relatively peaceful storm seasons, turned out to be a mere opening act for hurricane season 2005, which was the most destructive in recorded history. To add insult to injury, the 2005 season overstayed its welcome, with an Atlantic storm, Zeta, appearing as late as Dec. 30.
Several dentists affected by these storms have one thing in common: the Florida Dental Health Foundation.
“Hurricane Ivan damaged Pensacola extensively – my practice was unusable for nearly three weeks after,” Dr. Kim Jernigan said. “We were preparing to move to a new office, and for nine weeks after Ivan, the building was so crippled by ongoing water damage we couldn’t get out of it.”
“The FDHF really came through for me in a huge way,” Dr. Jernigan said.
In 2005, Hurricane Katrina’s aftershocks rumbled in the Panhandle, even though it didn’t make landfall in that area. Hurricane Dennis, a formidable, if less powerful storm, hit Pensacola, crushing residents’ morale.
“Hurricane Dennis was harder in some ways because it pushed the progress made in the Panhandle back to square one in many cases,” said Dr. Pervaneh Mahmoudzadeh, who also received aid through the FDHF.
Hurricane Wilma, which made landfall on Oct. 24, smashed into Southwest Florida during times of halted transportation, newly displaced residents and businesses, and sky-high gas prices left over from Katrina.
“Hurricane Wilma completely destroyed our practice,” said Dr. Robert Brown, who shares his Pompano Beach practice with his wife, Cynthia Brown. “The help we received from the FDHF helped us financially and lifted our spirits by reminding us we belong to a caring, statewide dental community.”
Another Active Season on Horizon
Forecasters expect another active Atlantic hurricane season with as many as 17 named storms, compared to 27 in 2005. Though fewer storms are expected to hit land than last year, it’s still imperative to prepare:
• Visit the FDHF Hurricane Preparedness and Recovery for Dentists Web site: If you haven’t already, download Five Steps to Disaster Preparedness and Recovery at http://www.floridadental.org/foundation/disaster.html#Prepare. Five Steps is based on actual experiences of dentists who have lost their homes or offices to a hurricane. There also is information on what to do if your patients’ records are damaged or lost, and disaster-fund and Small Business Association loan forms. Five Steps also is available in the Today’s FDA Sourcebook.
Photo provided by Dr. Wunderlich
DEVASTATION — The 2004 and 2005
hurricane seasons
left behind
trails of condemned buildings
and demolished homes.
• Help your insurance company protect you: If you don’t know already, consult your homeowners insurance and office-package carrier(s) to find out what inventory-related documents it needs. Store those documents in a cool, dry place.
• Keep financial information handy. You’ll need this information if you have to apply for emergency loans, grants or other funding.
• If it isn’t a flood-insurance policy, it probably doesn’t cover flood damage. Most hurricane insurance policies don’t cover flood damage, which often can be the most destructive storm-related effect. Find out if your policy covers flood. If it doesn’t, contact FDA Services at (800) 877-7597, (or another insurance agent) as soon as possible to obtain flood insurance.
• Save, save and save again. Back up your computer records frequently and store back-ups in a cool, dry, off-site location.
• Water + computer hardware = Disaster. Wrap your computer hardware and software in plastic and store in an elevated area. The higher, the better, but in most cases, storing it at desk-level will protect it from flood waters.
• Don’t ride out the storm. Evacuation orders are designed to protect you. If officials say go – go. Staying behind puts you and your family and employees in jeopardy. If you lose power, nobody will be productive at work and you could end up sitting with your employees in the dark for a long time.
2006 Hurricane Names
The 2006 Hurricane Season starts June 1. These are the names slated for this year’s storms. Hopefully, we won’t need to use the Greek alphabet again! In 2005, we needed six extra names (Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, Epsilon, Zeta).
Alberto
Beryl
Chris
Debby
Ernesto
Florence
Gordon
Helene
Isaac
Joyce
Kirk
Leslie
Michael
Nadine
Oscar
Patty
Rafael
Sandy
Tony
Valerie
William
Ms. Brown is the FDA’s associate editor. She can be reached at (800) 877-9922, Ext. 114, or abrown@floridadental.org.