Hurricane Matthew is making it’s way toward Florida, and we have been making preparations all day. We have brought in all the loose items in the yard, removed our wreath, bought supplies, and found the flashlights. As lifelong Floridians we normally do very little to prepare for Hurricanes. In our area we almost never see more than rain and a little wind, really nothing more than thunderstorms. Matthew is different. Matthew will skirt the coast of Florida all the way up to Jacksonville, where we live, and beyond. Many people on the coast have been evacuated, but we are further inland, so we are sticking it out at home. We have followed all the usual advice. All but one bit of advice that I am absolutely not taking!
One very common recommendation to prepare for a hurricane is to fill the bathtubs with water. In the event that the water is out people use this water for hand washing, to flush the toilet, and even drinking if your tub is super clean. I can remember my parents doing this during Hurricane Kate as a kid, and I had several people tell me that they planned to fill the tub. This is GREAT advice for homes without young children, but its contrary to anything you would normally do with small children in the house. We buy locks to put on the toilets, gates to put around pools, and we would never leave standing water anywhere that a toddler could access it.
According to WebMD “an infant or young child can drown in as little as an inch of water”. Toddlers, especially with their big toddler heads, are more susceptible since they are so top heavy. They could lean forward to touch the water out of curiosity and fall in. Our daughter is just 18 months and she is a sneaky little thing! One minute she is right next to you, and the next she is half way up the stairs following her big brother. She can’t open a door yet, but they sort of work as a team. Like when I was in the bathroom earlier, and I saw her little hand under the door and then suddenly the door opened. At first I thought she opened the door on her own, because she is totally a genius, but it turns out she had an assist. That being said I have no plans of leaving a bathtub full of water in the house that she could access even for a moment.
If you missed the opportunity to get supplies earlier don’t worry! Stores may be out of water now, but they will get more. In the meantime, here are some tips to make sure you have enough water to get by:
- Start with the recycle bin- If you have a toddler in the house I bet you also have empty milk gallons in your recycle bin. If you drink bottled water or 2 liter sodas, refill those bottles too. They don’t have to be super clean if you are using the water to flush the toilet.
- Empty the ice maker into plastic bags, so it can continue to make ice. You can use the stored ice as drinking water later or to keep food cold.
- Fill plastic storage containers with water and freeze them. Again, this can be used as drinking water or you can put them in your refrigerator to keep your food cool.
- Fill all your pitchers and large containers- just make sure to keep them out of reach.
If you don’t have small children in the home go ahead and fill up your tub, but please skip this if you have small children in the home. Stay inside and stay safe!
For more ideas on how to prepare for a hurricane check out my Hurricane Prep Pinterest board.
Let’s hear how you prep for a big storm! Share your tips for prepping for a storm. Also, I would love to hear how you keep the kids entertained when you can’t get out of the house.
Sam says
True that Amy! When we get typhoons here we are also encouraged to fill up the bathtub and sinks with water for the same reason. I opt to spend money on lots of jugs of water instead. Even with our extremely deep Japanese style bathtubs (there’s no way AJ can even climb into it) the thought of her drowning is way worse than anything else. I’m on board with you on this one for sure.
TwoLittleRippers says
It turns out we didn’t need the water anyway, but I am so glad this message connected with so many people! On another note… I am off to google Japanese style bathtub, because they sound awesome!