How To Prepare for Natural Disasters in an RV

How do you prepare for natural disasters while in an RV?

Start with Ready.gov. An RV plan is the same checklist plus wheels: water plan (stored tap, not a creek).

RV life is flexible. It is also a thin shell in high wind. That is why you leave early.

Think Ahead

Tornado, hurricane, fire — the RV loses to a house. Weather radio or app. Change the route. Don’t drive into a watch to “see.”

Stay Alert

Wildfire maps, tornado season, hurricane cones. Skip the state if the cone is on your campground.

Stay Stocked

Food you already eat. First aid, lights, batteries. Full fuel before you park if a storm is on the forecast.

Water: fill the fresh tank from a city or park tap while hookups work. A Berkey on the counter filters that tank water and hookup tap water — chlorine taste, metals, other leftovers. It does not make floodwater or a ditch into drinking water. Disaster effects on utilities: disasters and drinking water. Official elements: Phoenix.

RV Concerns in a Storm

• Glass and fixtures
• Trees and poles
• Propane leaks
• Wind and flood moving the coach

Bathhouse with few windows if you can walk there. Inside: cover, stow glass, get low, phones charged, propane off unless you need heat in a blizzard. Anchors help in wind; they are not a hurricane bunker.

Best Avoidance

Leave. That is the RV advantage. More reading: RV during a natural disaster.

Write the plan this week: route, tank fill from a municipal tap, food, fuel.