Prepping in Miami
Miami gets days of warning before a hurricane. The households that do well decide early whether they're leaving, and stock up before the shelves empty.
- Hurricanes
- Storm surge
- Flooding
Sign up today
The official Miami alert and lookup tools. Each takes a few minutes and works even if you do nothing else on this page.
- Miami-Dade AlertsSign up for Miami-Dade Alerts
Log in to your free Miami-Dade account and turn on emergency alerts.
- Know Your ZoneFind your storm surge zone
Miami-Dade's storm surge planning zones run from A to E. Zone A is at risk from Category 1 storms; Zone E only from Category 5.
Links checked October 2026. Wireless Emergency Alerts reach most phones automatically; these add local detail.
What can go wrong in Miami
- Storm surge
- Much of the county sits only a few feet above sea level. Surge, not wind, causes most hurricane deaths.
- Long outages
- Hurricane Irma in 2017 left millions of Floridians without power, some for over a week.
- Flooding
- Heavy rain and seasonal king tides flood streets, sometimes on sunny days.
- Heat after the storm
- Days without AC in late-summer heat are a medical risk, especially for older adults.
What that means for your plan
Find your zone before June 1. If you're in Zone A or B, decide now where you'd go: friends or family inland, a hotel, or a county shelter. Evacuating tens of miles is usually enough, not hundreds.
In a high-rise, plan for days without elevators, water pressure or AC. Buildings in an ordered zone are evacuated even if the upper floors stay dry.
Hurricane season runs June 1 to November 30. Fill your tank once a storm is in the forecast, and run any generator outdoors, far from windows and vents.
Do these first, in this order
- Know your zone and your destination
Your zone decides whether you leave. Pick where you'd go now.
- Waterproof document kit
IDs, insurance, photos of every room for claims.
Go-bags and evacuation guide - Two weeks of water
Plus a bathtub bladder filled before landfall.
Water storage and filters guide - Power for fans and phones
A power station for indoors; a generator only outdoors.
Power stations and generators guide - NOAA weather radio
Tracks the storm when cell service drops.
Radios and communication guide - Sanitation kit
Flooding can compromise sewage systems.
Sanitation and hygiene guide
Questions
How do I find my evacuation zone in Miami-Dade?
Use the Know Your Zone map on Miami-Dade's storm surge planning zones page. Zones run A through E. Zone A is at risk from Category 1 storms, so it's usually evacuated first.
When is hurricane season in Miami?
June 1 to November 30, with the most activity from mid-August through October.
How ready is your Miami home?
The quiz weights every item for hurricane coast risks and shows your top gaps. About 3 minutes, no sign-up.