Tampa group plans to sponsor 500 families for hurricane preparedness

With the threat of Hurricane Dorian now behind Florida, the Tampa Business Emergency Council is launching an effort to sponsor 500 low-income families in Tampa to provide them with hurricane supplies. 

The group is soliciting business partners who can provide supplies or $500 cash donations to support the initiative. 

The group’s goal is to help families who would not otherwise be able to afford preparing for a hurricane. Families who are unable to prepare suffer disproportionately during such situations because they are financially unable to harden their homes, stock up on necessities or evacuate if danger is imminent.  

TBEC and the City of Tampa’s Office of Emergency Management partnered with Feeding Tampa Bay to provide hurricane preparedness kits for low-income families to provide food and other items to get them through at least three days after a hurricane.  

TBEC is a not-for-profit clearinghouse of emergency preparedness and disaster recovery information and serves as a liaison between the Tampa Bay business community and the city of Tampa’s Office of Emergency Management. TBEC member organizations include larger enterprise businesses and smaller firms and associations located within the Tampa Bay region.

Most hurricane preparedness recommendations include stocking up on a three- to seven-day supply of water with one gallon per person for each day, non-perishable food items, pet food, medicine, flashlights, batteries, gas and other essentials. 

Many low-income families struggle to put food on the table each day, let alone stock up for a longer period of time. Further, safeguarding a home can also get costly for low-income homeowners as they do things like board up windows or remove debris from their yards.

TBEC is accepting cash donations to fund its initiative through Feeding Tampa Bay at its website. The group is collecting physical items to build hurricane kits for families.

Suggested items include:

— Non-perishable food or grocery store gift cards

— Bags/backpacks to hold supplies

— Flashlights

— Batteries

— First aid kits

— Moist towelettes

— Manual can openers

— Battery operated radio or weather radio

— Toilet paper

— Garbage bags

— Light blankets

— Work gloves

— Multi-purpose tools

— Tarps

— Duct Tape

— Rope

— Hand sanitizer 

— Bug spray

— Sunscreen

— Compression bandages

— Solar-powered cell phone chargers

— Street maps