Hurricane Preparedness Blog

With the movement to cordless and cellular telephones, fewer and fewer homes remain equipped with this hurricane kit essential - a corded telephone. How many phones in your house plug into both the telephone jack AND into a power outlet? If it’s cordless, has an answering machine, caller ID or any other feature beyond making and receiving calls, chances are it uses a power outlet or batties. Now, why is this a problem?

If (or shall we say when) you inevitably lose power during a hurricane, most powered telephones won’t function at all - period. Try it. Unplug it’s power cord and try making a call. What happened? If you have dial tone, let me know where to find one of those!

Am I suggesting to go out and buy an old-fashioned telephone (if you can find one)? Not necessarily. If you’re anything like me, your phone from 10 years ago is in the attic or basement somewhere… and it still works like a charm. Dig it out and add it to your hurricane kit! When the weather begins turning for the worse, plug it in to the jack that’s closest to your safe room.

Additionally, if you pick up an extra long phone cord on your next trip to the store (only a couple dollars), you’ll be able to move that phone more easily around the house. Keep it near you at all times, along with a list of important phone numbers.

Lastly, do not make unnecessary calls from any type of phone during an emergency. Keep the lines free for those who need them most.