Preparing for a tropical storm or hurricane

Tropical Storm Erika is still developing and its impact on the Orlando area is unknown, but Orange County Emergency Management says that now is the time to dust off that old hurricane kit.

You need to have water for each person in the home for at least a week and you need to have non-perishable food on hand. You want to make sure you have good identification for all members of the family, and if you have individuals that have medical needs, you need to have prescriptions filled for them and also copies of the prescriptions.

Central Florida hasn't seen a hurricane since 2004 and technology has changed since then, giving people more ways to access critical information. Orange County has a number of apps that will work on smartphones and mobile devices, and FOX 35 will post the latest updates on any storm through our FOX 35 Weather App. 

DOWNLOAD THE FOX 35 WEATHER APP: iPhone | iPad | Android

It's important to have a flashlight and a battery-powered radio available, in case the power goes out.  A weather radio costs about $10 and offers additional security with updates from the National Weather Service. 

Remember that, during a storm, you are encouraged to stay indoors.  Many first responders will not, and cannot, respond to an emergency if there are 45-mile per hour winds. 

To see a complete list of items to be included in a hurricane kit, visit OrlandoHurricane.com, where he have a downloadable hurricane guide linked on the page.