Hurricane hub

Water

The single most PR-specific preparation: municipal water often goes out with the power, because AAA's pumps and treatment plants need electricity. After María, parts of the island went weeks without reliable tap service. Plan for water the way mainland guides tell you to plan for batteries.

• Store at least one gallon per person per day — and in Puerto Rico, plan for 7–10 days, not the standard three.FEMA's baseline is 3 days for evacuation scenarios; PR restoration timelines argue for much deeper reserves at home.
• Fill bathtubs, cisterns, and large containers when a watch is issued — this water flushes toilets and washes; keep drinking water separate.
• Have a purification fallback: unscented household bleach (8 drops per gallon, 30 min) or a camping filter.Boiling works only while you have gas or power.
• If your building has a cistern, confirm BEFORE season whether the pump needs generator power and who maintains it.

Sources: Ready.gov — Water (opens in a new tab) · CDC — Making water safe (opens in a new tab)

Power & the fridge

Grid restoration in Puerto Rico is measured in weeks, not days — after María, months in parts of the island. Generators save lives and also take them: carbon monoxide from portable generators was a documented killer in the months after María.

• Run generators OUTSIDE only, at least 20 feet from doors and windows — never in a garage, marquesina, or breezeway.CO is invisible and odorless; a battery CO alarm costs less than a tank of fuel.
• Store fuel safely and legally in approved containers; rotate it — gasoline degrades in months.
• Freeze water bottles now: they hold fridge temperature longer during outages and become drinking water as they melt.
• Keep the fridge closed. A full freezer holds roughly 48 hours unopened; a fridge, about 4 hours.A cheap fridge thermometer settles the 'is this still safe' question.
• Charge everything when a watch is issued: power banks, laptops, rechargeable lanterns. Consider a small solar panel for phone charging.
• Report outages to LUMA through their app or outage map so your area is counted — and never touch downed lines.

Sources: CDC — Generator safety & carbon monoxide (opens in a new tab) · FoodSafety.gov — Food safety in a power outage (opens in a new tab) · LUMA — outage map (opens in a new tab)

Your home

Wind does most of its damage through openings and projectiles. An hour of yard work before a storm prevents more damage than anything you can do during one.

• Shutters or 5/8" plywood for every window — taped glass is a myth that leaves bigger shards.
• If you have a zinc (metal) roof, check fasteners and edges BEFORE season; loose panels become projectiles.
• Clear drains, gutters, and the street storm drain you share — most urban flood damage starts with a blocked drain.
• Bring in or tie down everything loose: planters, furniture, tanks. If it can blow, it will.
• Renters: photograph your unit and belongings now, and ask the landlord which shutters/panels belong to your unit.
• Know whether you're in a flood zone (FEMA flood maps cover PR) — it changes whether you shelter at home or leave.

Sources: Ready.gov — Hurricanes (opens in a new tab) · FEMA — Flood maps (opens in a new tab)

Papers & money

After María, card terminals and ATMs were down across the island for weeks — Puerto Rico briefly became a cash economy. Paperwork you can't produce is coverage you don't have.

• Keep cash in small bills — enough for fuel, food, and water for at least a week.
• One waterproof bag: IDs, passports, deeds/lease, insurance policies, medical lists, and a card with key phone numbers on paper.
• Photograph or video every room and the exterior BEFORE season — timestamped proof is the backbone of any insurance claim.
• Save digital copies somewhere off-island (cloud storage) — local devices can be lost with the house.
• Know your policy's hurricane deductible and whether you have flood coverage — standard homeowner policies in PR generally exclude flood.

Sources: Ready.gov — Financial preparedness (opens in a new tab) · FEMA — Document your property (opens in a new tab)

The kit

The standard checklist, adjusted for an island where help can be days away and resupply weeks.

• Water (see above — it's its own section for a reason) and 7–10 days of non-perishable food you'll actually eat, plus a manual can opener.
• Every prescription topped up before season peaks — pharmacies post-storm run on generators and short supplies.Ask your plan about early refills when a storm is named; many allow it.
• First-aid kit, flashlights (one per person), batteries, battery/solar radio — AM radio is how PR gets news when cell service drops.
• Hygiene basics, garbage bags, bleach, work gloves, and a tarp — the week-after kit matters as much as the storm-day kit.
• Pets: food, carrier, vaccination records — most shelters that accept pets require them.

Sources: Ready.gov — Build a kit (opens in a new tab)

Before, during & after

Watches mean conditions are possible within 48 hours; warnings mean expected within 36. What you do in each phase is different — and in every phase, official guidance outranks anything written here.

1. WATCH issued: execute — fill water, fuel the car and generator, charge devices, cash out, install shutters. Don't wait for the warning; supplies vanish first.
2. WARNING issued: finish and shelter. Decide now whether you're staying or going to a shelter — driving during the storm is how people die.Official shelter lists are published by PR emergency management (PREMA/NMEAD) as each storm approaches.
3. DURING: interior room, away from windows; the calm may be the eye — wait for official all-clear, not blue sky.
4. AFTER: the deadliest phase in PR's recent history. Assume every downed line is live, don't drive through water, run generators outside only, and treat tap water as suspect until AAA says otherwise.
5. Check on neighbors — after María, neighbors were the first responders almost everywhere.

Sources: NHC — Watches vs warnings (opens in a new tab) · PR emergency management (PREMA/NMEAD) (opens in a new tab) · NWS San Juan (opens in a new tab)