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Hurricanes
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Prepare for a hurricane before it strikes - information to help you understand the dangers and what you can do before a disaster (information below).
Recover from a hurricane - recognize possible environmental hazards and what you can do to protect your and your family's health, and for commercial buildings and schools (information below).
Many of the links below go to sites outside EPA. 
Prepare for a hurricane before it strikes.
Make any preparations that can minimize injury and property damage. Households, utilities, and businesses should plan for disaster before hurricane season starts, or make any possible preparations when a hurricane is predicted.
General info: What to do before hurricane season, or before a hurricane strikes. (from fema.gov) más en español
Other sites related
to preparedness
Before a Hurricane and
During a hurricane
- Federal Emergency Management Agency
Hurricane preparedness
- American Red Cross
Prepare for a hurricane
- Homeland Security & ready.gov
Hurricane Prediction Center
- National Weather Service
Drinking water and food
- Make a kit of supplies. (ready.gov) Keep at least a 3-day water supply per person -and don't forget pets. What you can do to protect your household drinking water well.
- Prepare food supplies for a weather emergency. Get a fridge thermometer to be sure of safe storage temperatures. Freeze extra containers of water ahead of time. Use ice chests in case power is out for more than four hours. More information...
For water and wastewater facilities - Suggested pre-hurricane activities to help facilities prepare for severe weather conditions.
Planning For Disaster Debris Debris from disasters can overwhelm a community's ability to handle in terms of volume or type of debris. This guide highlights the need for communities to plan ahead for debris cleanup after a major natural or man-made disaster, plus case studies. Read a printable version (PDF) (94 pp 1.9 MB, about PDF).
Well-designed storage of fertilizer and chemicals - Properly designed or modified storage facilities enhance worker safety and minimize the risk contamination.
Summary of regulatory requirements related to shutdown operations - For complex industrial processes, shutdown operations require special care beyond normal operations. Facility owners and operators are required to minimize chemical releases during process shutdown operations; and if reportable releases occur, they must be reported immediately upon constructive knowledge of occurrence. Read more about applicable regulations: Reminder to minimize process shutdown-related releases and report releases in a timely manner.
ALERT
Boil Drinking Water
If your water may not be safe, bring drinking water to a rolling boil for 1 minute to kill water-borne diseases.
More info | en español
Recover from a hurricane.
General info: What to do after a hurricane. (fema.gov)
ALERT: Generator exhaust is toxic. Always put generators outside well away from doors, windows, and vents. Never use a generator inside homes, garages, crawlspaces, sheds, or similar areas. Carbon monoxide (CO) is deadly, can build up quickly, and linger for hours. More information
Drinking water and food
Other sites related
to recovery
Recovering from disasters.
Health and safety guidelines, returning home, seeking assistance, more
- Federal Emergency Management Agency
After the hurricane
- American Red Cross
- Boiling water information To kill all major water-borne bacterial pathogens, bring water to a rolling boil for 1 minute. Boil 3 minutes at elevations above 5280 ft (1 mile or 1.6 km). Getting water (fema.gov)
- Make sure older adults have enough water to drink. Older adults may feel thirsty less, and dehydration can be life threatening to an elderly person. More info...
- What to do about water from household wells after a flood . Do not turn on the pump - danger of electric shock. Do not drink or wash with water from the flooded well. More info. General info about household wells.
- Keeping food safe during an emergency. Don't test spoiled food by tasting it! (usda.gov)
- What do I do with my home septic system after a flood? Do not drink your well water until it is tested. Do not use the sewage system until water in the soil absorption field is lower than the water level around the house. If you have a home-based or small business and your septic system has received chemicals, take extra precautions to prevent contact with water or inhaling fumes. Proper clean-up depends on the kinds of chemicals in the wastewater. More information about your septic system.
- For water and wastewater facilities - Suggested post-hurricane activities to help facilities recover from severe weather conditions.
- Flood cleanup: keeping air healthy inside Mold can cause serious health problems. The key to mold control is moisture control. After the flood, remove standing water and dry indoor areas. Remove and discard anything that has been wet for more than 24-48 hours.
- Safely cleaning a flood-damaged home from cdc.gov and Repair your flooded home from redcross.org
- Mold cleanup in schools and commercial buildings. information for building managers, custodians, and others who are responsible for commercial building and school maintenance.
- General - Mold, moisture, and your home
Pesticides, chemical and oil spills, hazardous waste
- Call the National Response Center 1-800-424-8802 (24 hours a day every day). For those without 800 access, please call 202-267-2675.
- Industries and businesses that encounter spills or discharges in a hurricane's aftermath should contact the National Response Center immediately.
- National Pesticide Information Center: 1-800-858-7378. Pesticide contacts in government, states, and other organizations.
- How to report environmental emergencies and spills.
Debris
- What To Do With Disaster Debris - Disasters can generate tons of debris, some possibly dangerous, for example building rubble, soil and sediments, green waste (e.g., trees and shrubs), personal property, machinery, ash and charred wood, dead animals, and more.
- Burying or burning is no longer acceptable because of the side effects of smoke and fire from burning, and potential water and soil contamination from burial or decay.
- Typical ways to recycle or dispose in a landfill often cannot be used for disaster debris because of the large amounts of waste that can overwhelm existing disposal capacity.
- Safety guidelines for debris piles Do not place debris on or near fire hydrants, utility boxes or gas meters. Keep children away from debris piles. More information from FEMA.