PREPARATION THE KEY TO HURRICANE SEASON. THE WESH 2 HURRICANE SURVIVAL GUIDE POSTED ON WESH DOT COM CAN HELP YOU BUILD OUT THE ALL IMPORTANT HURRICANE KIT. BUT WHAT ELSE SHOULD YOU DO TO PREPARE? I WENT TO ONE OF OUR COMMUNITY EXPERTS, SEMINOLE COUNTY EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT DIRECTOR, TO FIND OUT HOW HE PREPS FOR STORM SEASON. ALAN, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR HAVING US IN YOUR HOME. WHAT DO YOU DO TO PREPARE FOR HURRICANES SEASON? SURE. SO YOU CAN SEE LONG TIME. I’M ALAN HARRIS INVITED US HIS HOME TO TELL US WHAT HE DOES. HE STARTED OFF ON THE OUTSIDE OF THE HOME, THEN WORKED INSIDE. WHEN WE’RE IN THE BACKYARD, I LOOK FOR ANYTHING THAT COULD BECOME A MISSILE. ANYTHING THAT’S GOING TO FLY LIKE AN UMBRELLA. I TIE THIS DOWN WITH A TIE. TIES THAT WOULD BE USED LIKE ON A BLUE TARP, ON A ROOF. SO IT’S A VERY, VERY STRONG ROPE. FILL IT UP COMPLETELY. WHILE DOING A BACKGROUND CHECK, ALLAN, ALSO MAKES SURE ALL OF THESE TREES ARE TRIMMED AWAY FROM THE HOUSE AND ANY POWER LINES. SO I’VE CUT BACK THE LIMBS. THEY’RE ALL THE WAY TO THE POLE. SO IF ANYTHING DOES HAPPEN, IF ANY BRANCHES FALL DOWN, IT SHOULDN’T THIS OR THE MAST ARM, WHICH IS ON THE ROOF. A LOT OF TIMES DURING HURRICANES, WHAT WE SEE IS THAT IT’LL HIT THE LINE IN THE STORM COMES DOWN. THAT’S THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE HOMEOWNER. THAT IS NOT THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE POWER COMPANY. NEXT, WE HEAD TO THE GARAGE TO CHECK OUT ONE OF HIS MOST IMPORTANT ITEMS, HIS GENERATOR. AND IS THIS SOMETHING THAT YOU WANT TO KEEP INSIDE YOUR GARAGE. I STORED INSIDE, OF COURSE, BUT IF THIS IS OPERATIONAL, I TAKE IT TO THE BACKYARD. FROM KEEPING THE REFRIGERATOR ON TO POWERING THE WINDOW AC UNIT. THIS GENERATOR PROVIDES THE FAMILY RELIEF IN A STORM. BUT THE KEY THING ALLEN WANTS YOU TO KNOW IF YOU HAVE A GENERATOR. SO THIS ISN’T SOMETHING WHERE YOU CAN KEEP IN THE GARAGE, KEEP THE GARAGE DOOR UP. THAT’S THAT’S NOT SOMETHING THAT YOU WANT TO DO. MY AIR INTAKE IS RIGHT HERE. SO THAT WOULD BE CARBON MONOXIDE POISON. WE DON’T EVEN REALLY SUGGEST IN THE FRONT. UNFORTUNATELY, EVEN AT THE COUNTY LEVEL, WE’VE HAD PEOPLE TRY TO STEAL OUR GENERATORS AT TRAFFIC SIGNALS. ALL OF THOSE ARE GEO LOCATED, THOUGH. SO CAN SEE IT DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD AND A DEPUTY WILL CATCH YOU. FROM THERE, WE HEAD OVER TO HIS EXPANSIVE DISASTER KIT THAT HAS THINGS LIKE EXTRA POWER CORDS, BUNGEE CORDS, SAFETY GOGGLES, HANGING CAMPING LIGHTS, A BUCKET, TOOLS COOLER, A LARGE FAN AND MUCH MORE. THESE ARE ALL STORED IN WATERPROOF CONTAINER SO THEY DON’T GET DAMAGED. IN HIS KIT, ALLEN ALSO HAS A RADIO. THE CELL TOWERS GO DOWN. THIS IS THE ONLY WAY WE’RE GOING TO GET INFORMATION MOST LIKELY. THIS IS JUST THE TIP OF THE ICEBERG. DURING OUR VISIT WITH ALLAN HARRIS FOR A MORE IN-DEPTH LOOK AT HOW H