MORE STORIES

• SHUTTERS

  Season brings lower prices, shorter waits

  Folks with bare windows, take note. The bad economy makes this a good year to buy shutters, impact-resistant windows and other hurricane protection products.

• INSURANCE

  On the way: higher bills, less help from state

  South Floridians know the drill: Hurricane season is about to start. It's time to check your homeowners' insurance policy to make sure you have sufficient coverage.

• FOOD

  Surviving power outages, eating well

  This hurricane season will be my 30th in South Florida. Though blessedly spared outright devastation, we have, of course, been touched.

• STORM PREPARATION

  Talk to experts, see products at expos

  The American Red Cross of Greater Miami and the Keys and Miami-Dade County will host a Storm Prep Expo: Get Ready for Hurricane Season from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at the Miami Beach Convention Center, 1901 Convention Center Dr.

• Hurricane Guide: Get ready

  Are you ready?

• Opinion: Long-range storm forecast a tarot reading

  There's a little bit of the control freak in every scientist. And perhaps no profession is immune from the illusion that any problem eventually will yield to diligence and intelligence. But in the case of hurricane forecasting, human folly has given way to humbling hilarity.

• Drone aircraft used for storm predictions

  The U.S. government is experimenting with a new weapon in its quest for more accurate hurricane tracking and predictions: unmanned airplanes.

• Portable generators

  Lowe's sells portable generators from John Deering and Troy-Bilt ranging from five to eight kilowatts. The Troy-Bilt 5000-watt Electric Start, at $698, is among the most popular, said James Inman, store manager for Lowe's in Homestead. Annette Sanchez, the store's install sales manager, said that model would be sufficient to simultaneously power a refrigerator, a window air-conditioning unit, a television and a light.

• When the grid goes, it all goes

  A hurricane's winds can tear down transmission lines and power poles.

• Protecting your pool

  Storm damage to a swimming pool can be expensive to repair. So, take the proper precautions before a storm hits.

• Wattage requirements for appliances

  ITEM WATT USAGE

• Driving around town without traffic signals

• Water

  Store a two-week supply -- at least one gallon per person per day.

• Useful websites

  • America’s Emergency Network: www.aen911.com/beta/

• How FPL restores power

  Florida Power & Light's strategy to restore service to customers without power is based on safety and need, the company says.

• Caring for your boat

  The annual hurricane prep seminar at Black Point Marina in Cutler Ridge is full of advice for boat owners seeking to protect their boats from the next big storm. But it's the photos taken after Katrina, Wilma, Andrew and other hurricanes that make the biggest impression on the crowd that gathers every May at the marina's Ocean Grill.

• FEMA's sequence of delivering aid

  EMERGENCY PHASE

• Generator safety tips

  Read labels and follow instructions in the owner's manual.

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