Isaac is out the door and now your interest is piqued. You want to experience a Hurricane first hand. As a storm chaser, it’s entirely reasonable that you’d do just that. Besides, Hurricanes are kind of cool to us in a weird sort of way.

So, you’re ready to tackle your first hurricane intercept. The model track is set, you’ve got your target city, and your equipment and team is ready to roll. Before you head out that door, though, I’m going to cover in greater detail what you should be taking with you and what dangers you are going to face for the next 72+ hours.

The Gear List: 

• A Paper Map. You never know when the power grid will fail and the cell towers will go down. Also, during hurricane conditions, GPS navigators can be less than reliable. So make sure you keep up with your current location with a physical map.
• Water. I suggest taking at least a case, if not two cases, of bottled water. You may be stuck in your intercept area for a few days if your escape routes are blocked. Also, it helps to have extra in case you come across anyone in need of assistance.
• Food, enough for at least three days per person. Again, you may get stuck in your target area for days at a time. Make sure you have enough food and snacks to keep you and your team satisfied until the way out is unblocked or help arrives.
• A basic first aid kit. Just in case you, one of your team members, or someone stuck in the landfall area needs basic first aid.
• Cell phones, laptops, cameras, chargers, spare cash, etc. Make sure you understand that there is a very high probability that anything you bring with you can and will get wet. Protect it with plastic baggies or any protective coverings you have.
• Spare changes of clothes, including rain gear. Sure, the rain gear might help. But face it, you’re going to be wet and cold for awhile.
• Drivers license, medications, IDs, etc. Bring along anything else you think might help you or be of assistance, including your ID and any medications you take.
• EXTRA FUEL. I cannot stress this enough. If the power grid goes down, gas stations will not be able to sell you fuel and the power outages could stretch for quite a good distance. Make sure you have spare gas tanks in your trunk or in the back of your vehicle to get you back to power and readily available gas.

So there you have it, a pretty basic list of what to bring gear wise when the going gets tough. What other gear do you guys find useful to take along?