Charlie the day before a hurricane a few years ago (he was in no danger of going over the side!!!)I moved to the Charleston, SC area in April, 1989. Hurricane Hugo arrived September 21, 1989. I will never forget that week, the hours leading up to the storm, during the storm as well as the aftermath.
As I write this hurricane Dorian is wrecking havoc off the coast of Puerto Rico and as of this morning, looks to be headed towards Florida, however, that can all change! Charleston, SC looks to be on the lesser side of having it travel our way, HOWEVER, the problem with the forecasts and our obsession watching them, is that the storm will go where the storm wants to go. So it can look fine one minute and dire the next. All you can do is stay tuned. Have your food/water on hand. Know what you’re going to grab if you evacuate. HAVE A PLAN. One hurricane (before cell phones with the ability to pull up a map) we were thrilled to find a SC map in the glovebox. It took hours to get to the interstate (we heard on the radio), so we went back roads. We went to Charlotte, NC. A drive that normally takes 3.5 hours took over 10. No gas stations, nowhere to eat. When you evacuate, if you don’t leave early, that’s what happens. Everything is closed because EVERYONE is evacuating. Therefore no bathrooms, no food, no gas, and trust me, no fun!
When you hear that a hurricane may be headed your way it’s a stomach churning moment. I made it through hurricane Hugo (along with my sister) – that’s a post I will save for next month! To think of WHAT to buy… ugh, I cannot come up with anything (relatively) healthy that can stay fresh if there is no power. One year I thought pasta/red sauce could be a viable option (gas stove), but HOW do you wash the pans with no water? Another hurricane I went the all healthy route. Coconut water, wheat bread, peanut butter, apples, nuts, Fig Bars. The storm came, it was nerve-racking… what did we eat? Not much. Nothing sounded good. It’s hard to eat when you’re in that state. The only thing we wanted was something sweet. We ran to the grocery store and got the last box of Entenmann’s doughnuts. They were expired. They were stale. They were awesome, and I’m not a lover of doughnuts…
After that, I pick up the healthy stuff, along with a few cans of Chef-Boyardee single cans of ravioli (I guess eat it cold?) – what I want to know is…
WHAT DO YOU BUY TO EAT FOR A UPCOMING STORM where you could possibly lose power for days… and possibly water as well…
Some thoughts… but I am interested in hearing what YOU buy. Either send me a message via the contact link above or comment!
- My #1 go to is Peanut butter! BUT, Fred doesn’t like peanut butter (or any nut butter) so…
- Fruit that doesn’t have to be refrigerated and a few cans of fruit (or better yet, jars). Starbuck’s VIA instant coffee (that actually tastes pretty darn good) and half and half that is unrefrigerated, the little individual ones (only for use during a power outage).
- Crackers (use up the cheese in the fridge)
- Bread for sandwiches
- Coconut water or Gatorade because after a hurricane if no power it’s extremely hot and humid and you will need this!
- Don’t laugh… Pop Tarts! I buy unfrosted, Fred buys frosted. Emergencies only… I am always thankful to give this food away at the end of hurricane season!
- In the past I’ve made a big batch of cookies trying to get rid of some nervous energy. Pretty much any storm that we have, I will be making Clementine’s Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe by Ghirardelli! It seems like they could sustain you for quite a while!
- Water, of course! Or a filter to filter the water from the tap…
If you are in the storms path (whatever storm it may be) here is some good info from:
Charlestoncounty.org (Hurricane Guide)
South Carolina Emergency Management Division (SCEMD)
Gathering your Family Emergency Kit (SCEMD)
Catch you back here tomorrow!