Hurricane Irene Verizon Wireless Readiness Tips

In light of the threat of Hurricane Irene, Verizon Wireless has placed its emergency response team (ERT) on soft-activation to prepare for the possibility of an emergency situation on the North Carolina coast at the end of this week. We wanted to share with you some wireless tips for your readers on preparing for the threat of hurricane:

• Weather widgets and local TV stations' apps for smartphones and tablets can keep people update on what the weather is doing if they've lost power in their house and can't watch the news.
• Limit non-emergency calls to conserve battery power and free up wireless networks for emergency agencies and operations.
• Send brief text messages rather than making voice calls for the same reasons.
• Don't leave the house without car-chargers to ensure you have back-up power.
• Keep phones, laptops, PDAs, batteries, chargers and other equipment in a dry, accessible location.
• Forward your home phone calls to your wireless number if you have to evacuate.

Strangely enough, most people say they'd never thought about wireless being a big part of hurricane prep. I rarely see things like having a car charger listed in hurricane emergency kits. But don't you know we all go to our cell phones first for news, contact and really everything these days!

Safely,

         Carolina Mama


PS  While writing this post, I felt a tremor... maybe the boys got up from their "Reading and Rest" time?  No, Tiger B came in and asked... we both realized we felt the Earthquake in North Carolina! Yes!