Cleco Gives Safety Tips to Residents for National Hurricane Preparedness Week

National Hurricane Preparedness Week is an effort to improve the nation’s readiness for hurricanes before they form.

ABC 31 News Reporter Keisha Swafford has the story on what residents can do to get ready for a storm.

With hurricane season approaching, Cleco urges residents to prepare for the worst.

Cleco Communications Representative Madeline Ducote says, “Some things they can do is preparing their storm kit such as gathering supplies, like a flashlight, batteries, some canned food items, a mechanical can opener, because a lot of people are using electric can openers now and don’t realize that’s not going to work when your power is out.”

Meteorologists from Colorado State University predict six storms to become hurricanes.

“We’re just trying to educate the community on being prepared, being proactive instead of reactive.”

Before a storm happens, it is important to check your generator.

“So, make sure you’re operating your generator in a well-ventilated area, away from combustible materials, away from mud and oil, and if you are putting gas back into your generator, make sure that it’s off and that it’s cool.”

Another tip is for residents to take pictures of their home for insurance needs.

“This is actually an area that people often forget about is reading up on their insurance policy, what is covered during a major storm such as a hurricane, and what damage is going to be covered and what their deductibles are.”

Ducote says Cleco works to fix any down power lines in a storm.

“Every Cleco employee, whether you’re in accounting, whether you’re a line mechanic, we are all involved in helping restore power if that is making sure the linemen have a place to sleep or making sure they are fed or communicating to the government what our status is, we all involved on our 21 different storm teams.”

Colorado State meteorologists predict two storms will become Category 3 or higher.

Hurricane season officially starts on June 1st.