Here in St. Petersburg, sunshine and blue skies are a way of life. But from June through November, we also live with the reality of hurricane season. While residents know to stock up on batteries and bottled water, it’s equally important to prepare for the unique health challenges a storm can bring. As a local physician, I see firsthand how a hurricane can impact well-being beyond the immediate physical threat. This guide will help you and your family stay safe and healthy before, during, and after a storm makes its approach.
Before the Storm: Your Health Preparedness Checklist
Proactive preparation is the single most important factor in weathering a storm safely. Don’t wait until a hurricane watch is issued to get your medical supplies in order.
Secure Your Prescription Medications: This is your top priority. Pharmacies may close for extended periods or run out of stock during a rush. Aim to have at least a 14-day supply of all essential medications on hand. This includes insulin, blood pressure medicine, inhalers, and any other daily prescriptions. Talk to your doctor or pharmacist about getting an early refill for hurricane preparedness.
Build a Hurricane-Ready First-Aid Kit: Your standard kit is a good start, but it needs reinforcements. In addition to bandages and gauze, ensure your kit includes antiseptic wipes, waterproof tape, antibiotic ointment, pain relievers like ibuprofen or acetaminophen, and allergy medication (e.g., Diphenhydramine). If you have specific medical needs, add items like glucose test strips, lancets, or extra wound care supplies.
Organize Medical Information and Power: Keep a waterproof bag with copies of your prescriptions, your doctor's contact information, and your insurance cards. For those who rely on powered medical devices like a CPAP machine, nebulizer, or oxygen concentrator, you must have a backup plan. A generator or a portable power station can be a lifesaver, but make sure you know how to operate it safely to avoid carbon monoxide poisoning.
During the Storm: Staying Calm and Safe Indoors
Once you are sheltered in place, the focus shifts to managing stress and being prepared for an emergency. The sound of howling wind and driving rain can be incredibly stressful, and it’s normal to feel anxious. Limit your exposure to constant, alarming news updates. Instead, create a sense of normalcy by playing board games, reading a book, or listening to music. If you experience a true medical emergency, such as chest pain, shortness of breath, or signs of a stroke, call 911 immediately. Be prepared to give clear information about your location and condition, but understand that emergency services may be delayed due to dangerous conditions.
After the Storm: Navigating Hidden Health Hazards
The danger doesn't pass when the storm does. The post-hurricane environment is filled with hidden health risks.
Water Contamination: Assume that all floodwater is contaminated. It can contain bacteria, sewage, chemicals, and other dangerous materials. Never drink from or cook with tap water until local officials have declared it safe. Until then, use only your stored bottled water for drinking, cooking, and hygiene.
Cleanup Injuries: The post-storm cleanup is when hospitals often see a surge in injuries. Always wear sturdy, closed-toe shoes to protect your feet from nails, broken glass, and sharp debris. Use heavy gloves when handling wreckage. Be mindful of exhaustion and dehydration; drink plenty of clean water and take frequent breaks.
Mold Growth: After water damage, mold can begin to grow within just 24 to 48 hours. This is a significant health risk, especially for individuals with asthma, allergies, or compromised immune systems. Prioritize drying out your home safely. Open windows and use fans once it's safe to do so, and consider professional remediation if the water damage is extensive.
Preparing your health is just as critical as boarding up your windows. By taking these steps, you can protect yourself and your loved ones from the many hidden risks of hurricane season. Stay safe, St. Pete.
Oxygen-Dependent Patients
If you or a family member uses supplemental oxygen, hurricane planning is not optional — it is a medical necessity that needs to begin before the first named storm of the season.
- Work with your DME (durable medical equipment) supplier on backup tanks. Ask specifically how many hours of reserve you have at your prescribed flow rate and how to request extra tanks ahead of a storm.
- Register with Duke Energy or your local utility as a medically essential customer. This does not guarantee power, but it places you on a priority restoration list and is a free program.
- Ask about a portable oxygen concentrator with battery. Many newer units run 4 to 8 hours on a charge and can be powered by a car adapter — a critical option if you must evacuate.
- Define your evacuation threshold in advance. "I will leave if my zone is called" is clearer than "I will see how it looks." Write it down and share it with your family.
Insulin-Dependent Diabetics
Heat and power loss create two separate insulin problems: keeping it cool enough, and knowing when warm insulin is still safe to use.
- Use a small insulated cooler with gel packs. Do not place insulin directly on ice or allow it to freeze — frozen insulin must be discarded.
- Know the "in-use" rules. Humalog, Novolog, and Lantus generally tolerate room-range temperatures (roughly 56 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit) for up to 28 days once a vial or pen is in use. Unopened vials should stay refrigerated as long as possible. Check the package insert for your specific insulin, since brands vary.
- Plan for sliding-scale management without power. Write down your correction factor and target glucose so that you can dose safely without needing to pull up an app.
- Keep glucose tabs or juice boxes in your go-bag for hypoglycemia during stressful, physically active post-storm days.
Dialysis Patients
Missing a single session is dangerous. Call your dialysis center at the storm-watch stage, not after landfall, to confirm:
- Whether your center will operate, close, or refer you to a backup location.
- The address and phone number of that backup center.
- What to bring (paperwork, medications, access supplies).
If you must evacuate out of county or state, your center can coordinate a transfer treatment so you do not go more than your prescribed interval between sessions.
Pinellas County Special-Needs Shelter Registration
The Pinellas County Special Needs Shelter program is for residents with medical conditions that require some level of assistance during an evacuation. Important points people often get wrong:
- Register ahead of hurricane season, not during the storm. The online form through Pinellas County Emergency Management takes a few minutes and reserves your spot.
- It is not a medical facility. It is a safer shelter with basic power and medical staff on-site. You are expected to bring your own medications, supplies, bedding, food for special diets, and your regular caregiver.
- Bring your caregiver. Spouses, adult children, or paid aides are welcome and often required — a shelter is not a substitute for the care you already have in place.
- If you might qualify but are unsure, ask your physician to help you complete the medical portion of the application.
A Post-Storm Water-Safety Checklist
More illness happens in the week after a storm than during it. Three simple rules prevent most of it.
- Respect boil-water advisories. Use bottled water or water that has been brought to a rolling boil for at least 1 minute for drinking, brushing teeth, making ice, and washing produce until the advisory is officially lifted.
- Do not wade through standing water. It commonly contains sewage, fuel, sharp debris, and Vibrio bacteria. If you must cross it, wear closed-toe boots and wash and dress any new cuts the same day.
- Discard refrigerated food after 4 hours without power, and any frozen food that has fully thawed. When in doubt, throw it out — food poisoning in a home without reliable water is miserable and sometimes dangerous.
A thoughtful plan built before June beats a frantic plan built in August every time. Build yours now, share it with your family, and revisit it each season.
Chronic Conditions That Need Their Own Storm Plan
A general preparedness kit covers a healthy household. If you manage a chronic condition, you need a few extra decisions made in June rather than in the cone of uncertainty.
Insulin, glucose supplies, and a refrigerator with no power
If you take insulin glargine or insulin lispro, know before the storm how your specific product behaves without refrigeration, because unopened and in-use vials and pens follow different rules and manufacturers publish them. Keep a cooler and frozen gel packs ready, but never let insulin sit directly on ice or freeze. Stock extra test strips, lancets, and ketone strips, and keep fast-acting carbohydrate within reach in case meals get irregular. Anyone with diabetes mellitus should also pack extra socks and check their feet daily during cleanup, and our diabetic foot care guide explains why that matters more than it sounds.
Blood pressure, heart failure, and a house without air conditioning
Losing air conditioning in September is a medical event for some of my patients, not an inconvenience. Heat drives dehydration, and dehydration plus a diuretic such as furosemide can drop blood pressure and strain the kidneys. If you have congestive heart failure, keep weighing yourself daily on a battery scale and know your action weight. If you have high blood pressure, keep taking your medication on schedule and check readings at home. Decide in advance where you will go if the house reaches an unsafe temperature; our guide to managing chronic conditions in Florida heat covers the thresholds.
Inhalers, CPAP, and blood thinners
Mold and generator exhaust both aggravate asthma and COPD, so keep a full rescue inhaler of albuterol with an unexpired date and a spacer that does not need power. CPAP users should ask their supplier about a battery and a DC adapter before the season. If you take apixaban or warfarin, a cleanup laceration is a bigger deal than it looks, so pack gauze and pressure dressings and get evaluated early for anything that will not stop bleeding. If your medicines were submerged or left in heat, the FDA's guidance on safe drug use after a natural disaster tells you what to discard, and Ready.gov's hurricane page covers the rest of the household plan.
Related Resources
Related conditions and services at Zimmer Medical Group
Trusted external sources
- NOAA National Hurricane Center
- CDC — hurricane health and safety
- Florida Division of Emergency Management
Questions about anything on this page? Schedule a visit with Zimmer Medical Group in St. Petersburg, FL.
