Make a hurricane plan before season starts

Boaters should develop a well-thought-out hurricane plan before hurricane season begins on June 1.

Plan before the storm

Know where you will keep your boat during a hurricane and whether it can be hauled before a storm.

Bring home trailer boats early, as heavy evacuation traffic could prevent you from reaching your marina.

Find out what your marina’s hurricane plan is before the season starts. Does your dock contract call for you to take certain steps?

Make sure you have extra rope, chafe guards, anchors and fenders. Once a storm is forecast, the local marine store will sell out of these items quickly.

Stay ahead of the storm

Part of your hurricane plan should be to act during a hurricane watch. Don’t wait until a warning is issued. If you do so, you may not have time to move your boat. In addition, evacuation congestion and the storm’s outer bands of wind and rain will hinder your preparation.

Once a hurricane warning has been issued, remove anything that could catch the wind, and tie your boat with extra lines.

Haul your boat

Remove your boat from the water if at all possible. Waves, spray and rain will almost always overcome smaller, open boats and high-performance powerboats with low freeboard. Move all trailerable boats inland.

If your boat isn’t trailerable, haul it and secure it on shore. A Massachusetts Institute of Technology study completed after Hurricane Gloria found that boats stored ashore had a better chance of being saved than boats stored in the water.

Prepare your boat to weather the storm

If you can’t haul out, take precautions to give your boat the best chance of weathering the storm.

Charge batteries and disconnect the electricity. Charging batteries ensures your bilge pumps will work. Next, disconnect the electric, water and other dock connections; shut off fuel lines; close through-hull fittings; and cap or plug unvalved through-hull fittings, such as sink drains.

Protect your engines. Water finds a way into every opening, so cover engine room vents, and plug the exhaust pipes at the stern.

Remove loose deck items. Remove Bimini tops, plastic, canvas and plexiglass from the boat entirely. Take down antennas and remove outriggers. Remove as many items as you can from the boat, and lash down anything remaining on deck.

Prepare the boat’s interior. If your boat has a cabin, remove all loose items. Clean out the refrigerator, cabinets and drawers, which may open with the boat’s violent motion. If possible, remove drapes, cushions, mattresses and other cloth items that could become soaked from leaks.

Remove electronics and cover instrument gauges. Remove electronics from the boat, and cover both the holes and instrument gauges with plastic and duct tape.

Seal windows, hatches and doorways. Because wind-driven rain will enter the boat through any crack or crevice, use duct tape to make all openings and seams as watertight as possible.

Secure the boat in its moorings. Any boat in the water should be secured in a snug harbor. (Don’t even think about riding out the storm at sea unless you’re the skipper of an aircraft carrier.) The trick is deciding which harbors will be snug and which will be vulnerable in a hurricane.

Consider storm surge when mooring a boat. Hurricanes commonly cause surges of 10 feet or more, so a seawall or sandy spit that normally protects a harbor may not offer any protection in a hurricane. A boat moored facing into the wind will best weather the storm. If possible, turn the boat with its bow to the wind.

Secure your boat in a mooring

Follow these steps to secure the boat in the mooring.

Use mooring lines a quarter-inch larger to double the diameter of your current lines. Double all the mooring lines on your boat, including spring lines.
Distribute the load evenly using several cleats. Your boat should look like it’s inside a spider web.
Allow as much line as possible for the tide and storm surge. Rig by crossing spring lines fore and aft and attach them high on pilings to allow for the tidal surge. Spring lines should be at least as long as the boat. If possible, attach longer lines to pilings outside your normal berthing area.
Protect your line by using chafing gear at each point where the line meets the boat. Use several feet of garden hose or leather, and consider that your lines will be angled downward as the water rises.

–Al Ponzio