Hurricanes and "Hurricane food"

Q. Just what is a hurricane?

 

A. A hurricane is a tropical storm with winds that have reached a constant speed of at least 74 mph in the North Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea, or Gulf of Mexico. A hurricane's winds blow in a large spiral around a relatively calm center of extremely low pressure known as the eye of the storm. Around the rim of the eye, winds may gust to more than 200 mph. The eye of a storm is usually 20 to 30 miles wide and may extend over 400 miles. The entire storm can be up to 340 miles in diameter, dominating the ocean surface and lower atmosphere for thousands of square miles.

The dangers of a storm include torrential rains, high winds, and storm surges. A hurricane can last for 2 weeks or more over open water and can follow a path across the entire length of the eastern seaboard, coastal areas, and barrier islands. All Atlantic and Gulf coastal areas are subject to hurricanes or tropical storms. Although rarely struck by hurricanes, parts of the Southwest and Pacific Coast suffer heavy rains and floods each year from the remnants of hurricanes spawned off Mexico. Islands such as Hawaii, Guam, American Samoa, and Puerto Rico also are subject to hurricanes.

Q. Is a hurricane the same as a cyclone?

A. A hurricane is actually one of three kinds of tropical storms, or cyclones, that circulate over tropical waters. The circulation is counterclockwise in the Northern Hemisphere. Tropical cyclones are classified as follows:

• Tropical depression

  An organized system of clouds and thunderstorms with a defined circulation and maximum sustained winds of 38 mph (33 knots) or less.

• Tropical storm

  An organized system of strong thunderstorms with a defined circulation and maximum sustained winds of 39 to 73 mph (34 to 63 knots).

• Hurricane

  An intense tropical weather system with a well-defined circulation and maximum sustained winds of 74 mph (64 knots) or higher. In the western Pacific, hurricanes are called typhoons. Similar storms in the Indian Ocean are called cyclones.
  Hurricanes are further classified by rank according to how strong their winds are.

Q. How are hurricanes classified?

A. The Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale is a 1-5 rating based on the hurricane's present intensity. This is used to give an estimate of the potential property damage and flooding expected along the coast from a hurricane landfall. Wind speed is the determining factor in the scale, as storm surge values are highly dependent on the slope of the continental shelf in the landfall region. Wind speeds are measured using a 1-minute average.

Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale	Average Wind (mph)	Representative Hurricanes
Category One	74 - 95	Danny; 1997
Category Two	96 - 110	Bonnie & Georges; 1998
Category Three	111 - 130	Rita; 2005
Category Four	131 - 155	Charley; 2004
Category Five	156 +	Andrew; 1992

Q. What causes a hurricane to happen?

A. A tropical ocean and its atmosphere create the right conditions for a hurricane. Hurricanes draw their energy from the warm surface waters of the tropics (usually above 27°C, or about 81°F) and the latent heat of condensation. Powered by heat from the sea, they are steered by the easterly trade winds and the temperate westerlies, as well as by their own ferocious energy. Around their core, winds grow with great velocity, generating violent seas. Moving ashore, they sweep the ocean inward while spawning tornadoes and producing torrential rain and floods. When hurricanes move over cold water or over large landmasses, they can die out quickly because they lose the power of the heat and condensation.

 

Here is a helpful hint from someone who has been though a hurricane. Thought you would enjoy it!

One method of cooking that we found when we were in Hollywood and the power went out because of a hurricane, was an empty #10 can.  George used his snippers to cut down the sides about  1/2 of the way and bent the pieces outward.  This space holds a large frying pan or smaller pan.  Just put a sterno candle in the bottom and it is amazing how well it cooks meat or warms soup, etc.    We had to eat what was in the freezer so we probably ate better for those few days than normally.   Just another idea.

 

From our friends in the Weston Ward! 

Here we are beginning another hurricane season and I have LOTS of information for you today.

 

 Here is a friend we all should have...The National Hurricane Center (http://www.facebook.com/US.NOAA.NationalHurricaneCenter.gov?ref=ts&sk=wall). They will keep you updated with any changes. Facebook is also good to give status updates, as long as your particular tower wasn't affected. Remember to have a regular, NON cordless phone plugged in during storms too...they are often more reliable than cell phones because often the lines are underground and not as susceptible to wind damage.

 

Another great thing to mention is those power packs that charge your phone and camera's during an outage. I have one a medium sized one from home depot, it is like a little electric generator. I charge it when a storm is coming and I have something to plug my small electronics into for charging. It runs for four or five hours worth and was under a hundred. Your kid's ipod may save your sanity at this time! Here is a link to Amazon (http://www.amazon.com/s?ie=UTF8&keywords=Emergency%20Phone%20Charger&rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3AEmergency%20Phone%20Charger&page=1) that has emergency phone chargers, some with handcranked flashlights included! I can't vouch for any brand; I haven't tried them yet. They sound very handy though and I wonder about the shelf life!

 

FEMA also has a hurricane preparedness website which is worth a look, (http://www.fema.gov/). We are in region 4; right now they are busy with the severe flooding in Mississippi and Tennessee's severe storms. You can also receive FEMA updates HERE(https://service.govdelivery.com/service/subscribe.html?code=USDHSFEMA_153). It is best to rely on ourselves, but FEMA is a great organization that is really trying to offer support to those hit with disasters and they know a lot about disaster needs. The more sources of information we can read, the better prepared we will be.

 

Prepare now by getting some basic 72 hour kit items in case of power outages. We are urged to do a 3 month supply and long term food storage, but hurricane preparedness is something altogether different. We should have at least a week's supply of food that does not require refrigeration or lots of preparation. We will be stressed out and things will be chaotic. We need comfort foods, games for the kids and an adventurous, happy camper attitude! This will make all the difference! Some items that are indispensable at my house are individual fruit and/or applesauce cups, granola bars, snacks and comfort foods of all types. Hide them away somewhere for when a storm is inbound. Tuna and/or sardines and crackers are hits at my house, those bags of tuna are great; they store flat and are easy to throw away when trash service is stalled. Vienna sausages are great too. I also like to keep lots of fresh fruit and veges that can be eaten raw or roasted on the grill in the days following outages. Cereal can be eaten out of hand. Snack foods come in handy. I like to make a big pot of soup, granola and cookies when a big one is coming in...have a family party! Easy Mac is nice for kids and easy. Grilling is popular then, and you can take a lesson from your scouts and make foil dinners. Ensure you have propane and a side element is nice if you have one. You can boil water there, saute up some Clam Linguine, see below for recipe.

 

When a storm is coming, turn your frig and freezer to as cold as possible. Purchase a refrigerator thermometer and keep frig between 35-40 degrees for safety. Freeze gallon jugs and even individual water bottles and fit everything tightly in your freezer for best keeping power. THEN you can put your jugs in your refrigerator if need be and keep it for a time, just don't open the door much! When the temp dips, put your food in a cooler with your frozen jugs and eat camping style! Wash your tubs with bleach and fill them up, then keep a bucket near each one for flushing in case the water is off. This makes things so much more pleasant! Some people will turn off their hot water heaters so that the water in them is still good, and after the storm they are ok to use the water until the tank runs out. WATER is the most important thing to store and ICE is a blessed luxury. Store as many water bottles in your freezer as you can when a storm approaches.

 

Always keep your gas tank at least 1/2 full!!!!!

 

Generators anyone? They are great things, expensive, noisy and very dangerous...PLUS they need gasoline which isn't storable long term.  The best thing is to buy a moderate one to run a fan or a window ac unit and maybe your frig. PLEASE Keep it away from your house and AWAY from open windows and NEVER EVER EVER use it indoors. Entire families are found dead that way. Ask your local firefighter! Carbon monoxide is colorless and doesn't smell but can kill really quick. Take no chances., get a carbon monoxide alarm if you have one running near your house.

Clam Linguine (hurricane style)

Sauté some dried onions, dried basil and fresh garlic in heated olive oil. Add red spaghetti sauce and drained liquid from a can of clams, heat a few minutes to reduce and throw in clams. Serve over boiled and drained linguine and top with parsley. This is REALLY good!

 

Bean Burritos
2 c Cooked black beans -or- 1 can Black beans or food storage refried beans (YUM, and I'm not kidding. I use them weekly!)
1/4 md Onion Minced garlic (to taste)
4 c Steamed rice (opt)
2 tsp Black pepper

Bring the black beans to a simmer in their own juices. Use fresh garlic and slice it very fine so it nearly disappears when you add it to the beans with the pepper After about five minutes, add the onions. When serving, use twice as much rice as beans and about a third as much lettuce, all wrapped in a nice flour tortilla.

Chunky Humus

2 cups canned chickpeas, drained and rinsed

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

3 tbsp raw tahini (or soy sauce)

3 tbsp fresh lemon juice

1tbsp dried parsley or more if you have fresh

2 finely minced garlic cloves

¼ tsp paprika, ¼ tsp salt, ¼ tsp pepper

Place chickpeas in bowl and squeeze by hand until they are thick and pasty. Add oil, spices and then mash.

Nachos Supreme

Litter a large cookie sheet with tostada chips, scatter with canned, drained chicken, drained and rinsed beans, jalapenos if desired! Top with cheese and place on closed grill. Delicious if you have cheese to use up!