University of FloridaSolutions for Your Life

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Publication #FAR5014

Hurricane Preparation1

Mary Harrison2

Floridians experienced one of the most dramatic hurricane seasons on record in 2004. Few residents would likely want to think about preparing for the next hurricane season, but waiting until the storms are forming could be too late.

One of the best preparations for any storm is to inspect the trees in your yard. What is their condition? Are there limbs that need to be removed because they are weak or hang too low over the roof?

Spring is the best time to prepare trees for storm season. It's the ideal time to call a reliable, licensed tree service for an inspection. With leaves off many trees, it's a good time to see the condition of the trunk and limbs. Dead, dying, and diseased trees cause severe damage during hurricanes and severe storms. During last summer's hurricanes, trees falling on rooftops, cars, and utility lines caused millions of dollars in damages.

Tree pruning and removal should be done by a licensed tree service with adequate liability insurance. Get written estimates from two or more services and a description of work to be done before hiring anyone. Remember to include cleanup and trash removal. Never pay for work before it's completed and you are satisfied with the work.

Giving attention to trees before they become a problem can save a family hundreds, maybe thousands, of dollars and what could potentially become months of stressful cleanup and recovery.

Listening, learning, and living together: it's the science of life. "Family Album" is a co-production of University of Florida IFAS Extension, the Department of Family, Youth and Community Sciences and of WUFT-FM. If you'd like to learn more, please visit our Web site at http://www.familyalbumradio.org.

To listen to the radio broadcast:

http://www.radiosource.net/radio_stories/hurprep.mp3

http://www.radiosource.net/radio_stories/hurprep.wav

Footnotes

1.

This document is FAR5014, one of a series of the Department of Family, Youth and Community Sciences, Florida Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida. First published January 2008. In the interest of time or clarity, the broadcast version of this script may have been modified. Please visit the EDIS Web site at http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu.

2.

Mary Harrison, professor, Department of Family, Youth and Community Sciences, Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611.

The Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (IFAS) is an Equal Opportunity Institution authorized to provide research, educational information and other services only to individuals and institutions that function with non-discrimination with respect to race, creed, color, religion, age, disability, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, national origin, political opinions or affiliations. For more information on obtaining other extension publications, contact your county Cooperative Extension service.

U.S. Department of Agriculture, Cooperative Extension Service, University of Florida, IFAS, Florida A. & M. University Cooperative Extension Program, and Boards of County Commissioners Cooperating. Larry Arrington, Dean.