Batten the hatches.

Now.

A greater number of more powerful hurricanes are expected along the Eastern seaboard this year, and tornadoes are blowing in earlier than normal.

Meteorologists anticipate above-average storm activity for the season and predict that nearly a dozen tropical storms - most of which may become major hurricanes - will form over the Atlantic in 2000.

Several of the hurricanes are expected to cause major wind and flooding damage.

"Hurricane seasons seem like they're much more intense. We will see (from) what the scientists tell us, some extremely devastating events in the 21st century," James Lee Witt, director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency director, recently told the Associated Press.

"Tornado activity normally starts in the spring of the year, we see it now starting in January," Witt also said.

Homeowners in states along the Atlantic coast are particularly at risk during the hurricane season, which runs from June through November. The New York-based Insurance Information Institute, says 60 million people live in hurricane-prone coastal areas.

Hurricane and tornado winds can rip off roofs, splinter doors, shatter windows and once inside, blow out your walls. They can also hurl projectiles at speeds fast enough to pierce anything in their path.

Homeowners who want to strengthen their home against the onslaught of storm force winds must create a continuous connection path from the roof rafters or trusses all the way down to the foundation. That means connecting or securing the roof to the walls and the walls and floor to the foundation.

Each individual component of your home's structure may also need strengthening.

Experienced do-it-yourselfers may be able to tackle some of the work, but much of it requires a professional specifically experienced in hurricane retrofitting.

Retrofit the roof

Hurricane winds that slam against the broad, flat surface of the home below gable-end roofing can be both a roof- and hair-raising event.

If the rafters or trusses aren't braced, the wind can blow off the roof and then rip down the walls.

A professional roof or structural inspector can determine if your roof needs bracing. If the roof needs work, that could mean installing 2-by-4s between the roof rafters or trusses at each end of the house and anchoring roof rafters and trusses to the wall system.

Bulk up walls

If your interior walls need strengthening, you may have to remove surface covering to get at the framing to install metal connectors that bolt the walls to the floor and foundation.

Seal windows and doors

Unprotected windows can splinter and become dangerous projectiles in a hurricane.

Consider installing permanent storm shutters, not the cosmetic variety. Energy efficient double-paned windows also provide better protection than older single-pane windows.

Covering your windows with plywood is a less expensive, but temporary solution. Don't copy televised broadcasts of frantic, wind-whipped homeowners nailing plywood over their windows. Fasten down plywood with screws or lag bolts long enough to penetrate the wall studs around the window, not just the siding or wall covering.

Replace old or damaged doors with stronger ones that fit snugly in their frames. Replace hinge screws with longer ones that extend further into the doors and frame.

For double-entry doors, add a heavy-duty deadbolt, or replace the existing deadbolt with a stronger one. Add sturdy slide bolts at the top and bottom of the door that you don't use.

Gird your garage

Single-car garage doors with smaller surface areas resist winds better than two-car garage doors. Windowless garage doors are better than those with windows, because high winds and flying debris can shatter garage door windows and allow swirling winds inside to destroy contents, build up pressure and rip down walls.

Replace an old or damaged garage door with a stronger model and strengthen by adding girts across the back of the garage door. Also strengthen the glider wheel tracks.

Ground potential missiles

Trees should be far enough away from your house so they can't topple on it. Anchor storage sheds and other outbuildings to a permanent foundation or use straps and ground anchors.

Financing the work

Disaster mitigation loan programs, to help finance the work, are available to some communities from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's special Federal Housing Administration-insured loans, provided you follow FEMA guidelines to do the work.

Published: June 16, 2000

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Broderick Perkins parlayed a career in old-school journalism into a contemporary digital news service that really hits home. The award-winning consumer journalist, originally from Wilmington, DE, is founder, publisher and executive editor of the bootstrap DeadlineNews Group, a Silicon Valley-based editorial content and consulting service specializing in residential real estate, consumer news and related editorial consulting services. The DeadlineNews Group includes the website, DeadlineNews.com, offering real estate editorial content and consulting services, and its back shop, the Deadline Newsroom, an open house on news that really hits home. Perkins obtained his formal journalism education from University of Delaware and a journalism boot camp, the Institute of Journalism Education at the University of California-Berkeley. He went on to 20 years of service as a daily newspaper journalist at the Wilmington, DE News Journal and San Jose, CA Mercury News. Perkins covered housing on the San Jose Mercury News reporting team which earned a General News Reporting Pulitzer Prize in 1989 for coverage of the Loma Prieta earthquake. He has also produced real estate, consumer and small business content for the Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, RealtyTimes.com, Nolo.com, Better Homes and Gardens, the National Association of Realtors, Homestore/Move and Intuit/Quicken among more than three dozen publications. In addition to managing the DeadlineNews Group, Perkins most recently served as chief editorial consultant for Nolo's Essential Guide To Buying Your First Home, Nolo, and writes real estate television scripts for RealtyTimes.com.