各位USM 和 WCU的中国留学生：
欢迎来到位于墨西哥湾的密西西比的hattiesburg (哈蒂斯堡），每年6-9月，这里有可能会遭受热带飓风的袭击，所以让同学们知道一些如何防范飓风的措施，是很有必要的。
一位热心的美国女士 MS.Larraine, 收集了一些资料，现在发布在这里，供大家阅读。(HCCC)
This is the time of year (June-November) when our area may experience tropical storms and hurricanes from the Gulf. It is important to be aware of what is happening, so you can be prepared. It is helpful to check the weather on a daily basis. You can do this by going to: www.weather.com or watching WDAM-TV, which also has a website www.wdam.com. If a storm does develop, you can get accurate maps of its projected path at http://www.nhc.noaa.gov. Usually there will be 2-3 days advance warning, if a tropical storm system is going to affect our area.
It is important to know the terms used for tropical storms:
- “Watch” means it is possible a storm may affect an area within 48 hours.
- “Warning” means a storm has developed and will affect an area within 36 hours or less.
- “Tropical storms” have winds of less than 74 miles per hour. They cause high winds, tornadoes and floods.
- “Hurricane” has winds of 74+ miles per hour.
- Hurricanes are measured by categories. A category 1 storm is a minimal storm. A category 5 storm is catastrophic.
- A variety of factors affect the strength and path of a storm.
It is important to be prepared ahead of time. Once a storm is predicted for this area, supplies of food, water, batteries, ice, etc. will sell out rapidly and it may be difficult to get gas for your car.
At this time of year some minimal preparations will help, such as having:
- A week’s worth of drinking water for each person in your household.
- Containers for water to use to wash and flush with.
- Batteries and flashlights.
- Non-perishable food items, enough for each person in your household for 3-5 days.
- Car cellphone charger [If the electricity goes out, you can use the car charger to charge your phone. Even if you don’t own a car, someone may let you use theirs. Note: The car needs to be on; otherwise it will drain your car battery
- Keep a half tank of gas in your car.
The American Red Cross has a Hurricane Preparation Checklist, which is available online at: http://www.redcross.org/
Evacuations:
If a storm is predicted for the Alabama-Mississippi-Louisiana Gulf Coast area, the authorities will decide whether or not to evacuate the Gulf Coast and New Orleans. If an evacuation order is issued, it will become very difficult to travel on the major highways (US highways 49 and 98; Interstate 59). Getting across town becomes slow and difficult. Here is a link to the MDOT’s Hurricane Evacuation Guide, which gives information on hurricane evacuation: http://www.hmc.org/hmc.nsf/
We hope that we will not have to use this information, but since we live in an area which is affected by tropical storms and hurricanes, we need to be aware so we can plan ahead and be prepared.