Join DCDEE in Being Hurricane Ready!

Be prepared for hurricane dangers - Know Your Risk, Get Prepared and Stay Informed

With Hurricane Florence approaching NC now, DCDEE is asking the child care community to be hurricane ready. DCDEE asks everyone involved in providing child care to think actively about their facility's hurricane and emergency preparedness plans and implement those plans as needed.

Once the storm has passed, Division staff and Child Care Consultants will assess the child care community to determine what damage has occurred and to offer assistance with locating temporary child care arrangements, wherever necessary.  It is our hope that everyone will be safe and that little to no devastation occurs. 

DCDEE has added a number of new hurricane preparedness resources to our newly redesigned website and encourages all providers to visit https://ncchildcare.ncdhhs.gov/ and utilize the tools offered there.  

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There are 3 main components to being hurricane prepared - know your risk, get prepared, and stay informed.

Hurricanes are not just a threat to coastal communities. As North Carolina has witnessed in the past, hurricanes, wind and water can cause damage statewide. High winds, heavy rainfall, tornadoes, and flooding can be felt hundreds of miles inland, potentially causing loss of life and catastrophic damage to property. As past experience has shown us, it is not only major hurricanes (Category 3 or higher) to worry about, but all hurricanes can cause significant damage.

DCDEE is committed to ensuring the safety of children and child care providers and is calling on programs to prepare with us. Knowing your risk, getting prepared, and staying informed are the primary steps you should take to get ready for impending storms and all of hurricane season.

Know Your Risk:

To search for general information about risks in your area and ways to have a plan in place, visit the Ready NC website. You can also download the free Be Ready NC app for emergency preparedness.

Get Prepared:

Steps to Take in a Watch (hurricane conditions possible within 48 hours)

• Review and update your Emergency Preparedness and Response (EPR) Plan
  • Print the updated EPR Plan and secure it in your Ready to Go File.
  • Review your procedures to follow in a hurricane in the Emergency Responses to Specific Events section of your EPR Plan.
  • Know your local evacuation route(s) and listen to local officials. 

•   Prepare your facility
  • Bring loose objects like outdoor furniture, trash cans, non-anchored playground equipment, commercial trikes/scooters, and Bye-Bye Buggies inside. These items could become projectiles in strong winds. Anchor objects like propane tanks, which could be unsafe to bring inside.
  • Minimize outside hazards. Cover vulnerable glass, as necessary, and identify and resolve tree, wind and flooding hazards.

• Fill gas tanks in vehicles that may need to be used to transport children.

• Check the supplies in your Ready To Go Kit. Maintain an adequate supply of emergency drinking water and food and hygiene items like diapers and wipes. Ready.gov recommends having supplies on hand for at least 3 days.

• Decide if the facility must close, or if you plan to close, how you will notify families?

• Update staff and families using your emergency communication procedures.

Steps to Take in a Warning (hurricane conditions are expected within 36 hours)

• If a hurricane warning is given, close as soon as possible or plan for closure.
• Remind parents of your program's communication process, reunification plan, closing notifications and plan for re-opening.
• Charge your cell phone(s).
• Turn refrigerators or freezers to the coldest setting and open only when necessary.
• If evacuation is necessary, implement your plan to relocate or find temporary shelter. 
• Always follow the orders of local emergency management officials
• Ready NC has more information available about safe evacuation procedures.

*Know your zone - Evacuations are more common than people realize. Make yourself familiar with your community's evacuation zones so you'll know exactly where to go if you are asked or need to evacuate. If a hurricane threatens your community and local officials say it's time to evacuate, don't hesitate -- go early.

*Review your facility communication plan - Plan how you will assemble, or contact your staff and families of enrolled children, and anticipate where you will go for different situations. Talk with your staff and share with families how you will be in contact in an emergency and identify meeting locations or evacuation locations.

*Download the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) app - The FEMA App includes disaster resources, weather alerts, safety tips, and a feature that enables users to receive push notifications on their devices to prepare their homes and families for disasters. The app also provides a customizable checklist of emergency supplies, maps of open shelters and recovery centers, tips on how to survive disasters, and weather alerts from the National Weather Service.

Stay Informed:

Know where to go for trusted information during a hurricane event. Sign up for alerts from your local emergency management office so notifications, including evacuation orders, go directly to your phone and email. Monitor local news for hurricane watches and warnings in your area and follow directions of local officials. Make sure you have a battery-operated or hand-crank radio available should the power go out.

Additional information is available at www.ready.gov/hurricanes (FEMA) and

https://readync.org/ (NC Emergency Management).