Thanks, wildman, for posting this again this year. As a recent Florida transplant, the first thing I did when they started talking about Irma was log into the forums here and look for this thread.

At Hurcon 5, waiting to see if 4 is coming by the end of the week.

All of you in Florida stay safe. Our hopes and best wishes are with you. Stock up, keep your options open, and bug out earlier, rather than later, if that is your choice...

Several articles I have read today highlight the need for everyone to be prepared to take care of themselves. Large organizations have expended many resources on Harvey, and are now trying to prepare for Irma. They may have difficulty dealing with another disaster, and hurricane season is just beginning. All of the common sense preps need to be done at the individual and family/household level. Be ready to sustain yourself for several days at a minimum.

^^^ This ^^^ On the heels of Harvey, the aftermath and recovery from this one sounds like it could be unlike any other storm.

If you're a member of a CERT or similar team in the continental US but outside these disaster areas, I would suggest two things:

Don't self-deploy to those areas.

Be ready to deploy as part of the organized efforts, if you are asked to.