How to prepare children for a hurricane

HARLINGEN, TX (ValleyCentral) — Preparing for a hurricane is crucial. While having a plan for yourself and your family is important, it is also critical to keep your children in the know about different scenarios.

Parents should always have a plan, make a safety kit with food and water and know where you’ll go if you have to evacuate. If you have children, prepare them as well.

Experiencing a hurricane is very stressful, not only for us as adults, but for your children as well. Including them in your preparation plans will determine how they will respond to a storm.

At Long Elementary School in Harlingen, students are getting the opportunity to learn about the dangers of hurricanes from the Cameron County Emergency Management staff. Students are finding out how they can prepare for a storm in a child-friendly way.

It is an initiative the school takes every year. Principal Bobbie Hushen tells ValleyCentral for children who are unfamiliar with hurricanes it can get very scary for them.

“We know that a lot of times whether it is a hurricane or a tornado, a bad storm it can cause a lot of anxiety for our children," Hushen said. We hold drill here at school all the time and we can see for some children that anxiety level goes up.”

Through interactive videos and hands-on activities second graders have a better idea of what a hurricane actually is.

“It’s a storm and there’s lighting and there’s thunder and you light might go out and you house might break down and you have to prepare food and get somewhere safe," said second grader Brisae.

School counselor Andrea Salinas tells Valley Central children experiencing a hurricane can become overly stressed with not knowing what is going to happen. Salinas said there are ways parents can help their children cope at home, like keeping them in the conversation on how you as a family are going to prepare and what to do when the storm hits.

“Give them some activities they can do during that time, so they won’t be thinking about what is going on outside," Salinas said. "Whether it is taking some deep breaths to calm them down, listening to some music, or maybe involving some crafts during that time.”

While going through a hurricane can be scary even for those of us who are prepared, Principal Hushen said having that first-hand knowledge before can make a world of difference.

“If we can teach them what it is not to be afraid and how to deal with that fear as we do here in school through our drills we talk to them afterwards, it’s a great learning opportunity and they can that experience and take it home so the whole family is aware what to do,” Hushen said.