have lived through many hurricanes and ice storms, etc.
I've learned:
1) The weather channel are a bunch of geeks
2) The govt will urge folks to be prepared and evac so the govt doesn't have to actually be held responsible when they are unable to get water/fuel, etc into an area within a week and the helpless are crying about it to the media who are somehow able to get helicopters, trucks full of cameras and studio gear, etc into that same location.
3) People in general don't prepare and will panic buy at the last minute.
4) Stores do not stock beyond normal expectations so panic buying depletes their inventory and post storm restoration can take much longer.
5) Banking, ATM, electronic retail , can not be depended to work post storm..have cash..better yet, have what you need in advance so you don't need to shop at all.
6) Hurricanes can shut down pipeline distribution of fuel - leaving stations out of gas for as much as a week post storm..even if the area is not the impacted storm area, the distribution can effect cities hours away.
7) Local authorities will urge folks not to "top off" gas tanks, etc..and as a result, folks will rush out to top-off and this will extend the week to 3 weeks of fuel shortages.
8) Local authorities will exaggerate or under play situations to help control their constituents. You must assess situations for yourself and determine your own course of action. You will be mislead by the govt as badly as the weather channel.
9) never ever let the media put your child on TV for a sound bite.
10) expect storm effects long after the storm - these are not a 1 day thing. It can impact your ability to go to work , earn a paycheck, etc.