Emergency Supplies and Resources to Have in Case of Hurricane Warning

Tropical Storm Beryl is heading toward the Texas coast and Houston residents are bracing for its impact.

The National Hurricane Center (NHC) has predicted an above-normal Atlantic hurricane season, and Beryl is the earliest Category 5 hurricane in Atlantic history. Originally forming as a hurricane and making landfall in Jamaica, it was downgraded to a tropical storm as it moved through the Gulf of Mexico.

The hurricane has now gained strength and is expected to become a hurricane again once it makes landfall in Matagorda, south of the Houston area, Monday morning. Beryl is expected to bring hurricane-force winds to the coast, while Houston and the surrounding area are expected to see significant rain and flooding late tonight into tomorrow, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Here is a list of resources to help you prepare for the storm:

Things to do now

If you haven’t already, don’t forget to pack a hurricane emergency kit. Most of the items you need are right at home, especially if you’ve been camping. If you don’t have them, head to your local store to stock up now.

Here are some proactive steps you can take:

• Have enough non-perishable food for each person in your household to last three days.
• Keep water bottles safe.
• Stock up on first aid supplies.
• Have a whistle handy in case you need to call for help.
• Have rain ponchos.
• Have trash bags for waste.
• Have cash on hand.
• Make sure to collect important documents and store them in zip-lock bags.

Phone numbers to have on hand

• Text GULF2024 to 888777
• Call 311 for debris removal, transportation, infrastructure and other services
• Call 911 only in life-threatening emergencies
• Call 1-800-452-9292 for traffic and road conditions
• Text READY to 281-609-9093 to receive accessibility alerts from ReadyHarris
• Call 211 to register with the Texas State Emergency Assistance Registry
• Call 979-864-1064 for the Brazoria County 24-Hour Emergency Management Call Center
• Call 713-880-HELP (4357) to reach the SPCA if you see a stray animal

Alert systems for surrounding counties

Online resources

This is not an exhaustive list of resources for the Houston area. If you have additional resources that Houstonians should know about, please email [email protected] And [email protected].

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