Florida families know the routine of a hurricane watch: water, batteries, gas, shutters. For a family with an autistic child, the checklist is longer. A change in routine, a noisy shelter, a power outage or a long car ride can be much harder for your child than for anyone else in the house. Planning early, while things are calm, makes the stressful days easier. This guide is a Florida-specific checklist you can work through in spring and review each time a storm is forecast.
When should we start preparing?
The National Hurricane Center states that "the Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30." The easiest time to prepare is before June, when supplies are easy to find and your child has time to practice new routines. Each step below is labeled by when to do it.
Florida's Division of Emergency Management (FDEM) recommends that people with disabilities and special needs build plans in six steps: form a personal support network of at least three people, complete a personal assessment of daily needs, get informed about local hazards and warning systems, write down important phone numbers, build an emergency kit, and check your readiness with its preparedness checklist. The rest of this guide applies those steps to an autistic child.
Should we register with the special needs registry?
Florida law requires FDEM, working with each county emergency management agency, to keep a registry of "persons with special needs" who "would need assistance during evacuations and sheltering because of physical, mental, cognitive impairment, or sensory disabilities" (s. 252.355(1), Florida Statutes). The statewide online form is the Florida Special Needs Registry at snr.flhealthresponse.com, where you choose your county.
Key points for autism families:
- "Cognitive" impairment is named in the law, so a child who would need help evacuating or in a shelter may qualify to register. Your county decides what help it can offer.
- The registry site says completing it "does not automatically qualify the individual for a special needs shelter," and that registering "is not a guarantee that emergency officials will be able to assist you."
- Records are confidential (s. 252.355(5)).
- A caregiver and everyone they care for may shelter together in a special needs shelter if the person is eligible (s. 252.355(4)).
Our step-by-step guide on how to register for your county's special needs shelter explains the form and what to write about your child. If you live in Hillsborough County, see special needs shelter registration in Hillsborough.
When: before June 1, and update it every year.
Where would we go if we had to evacuate?
Decide this in advance, because the choice affects everything else you pack. Look up your evacuation zone on your county emergency management website (FDEM lists every county office at floridadisaster.org/counties). Then rank your options:
- Stay home if you are outside an evacuation zone, in a sound structure, and officials have not told you to leave.
- Stay with family or friends outside the zone. Familiar people and places are often easier for an autistic child.
- A hotel outside the zone. Book early and ask for a quiet room away from elevators and ice machines.
- A public shelter. Counties describe shelters as a last resort. Hillsborough County, for example, advises residents to "evacuate tens of miles instead of hundreds of miles" and notes that general shelters do not have cots or blankets and give each person about 20 square feet.
- A special needs shelter, if your county finds your child eligible. These are mainly for people with medical needs; many do not provide one-to-one care, so a caregiver should come too.
FDEM warns that shelters "can be crowded, noisy, boring, short-staffed and have very little privacy." If a shelter is your only option, plan for sound, light and waiting. Our guide to evacuating with an autistic child compares shelters, hotels and long car rides.
When: before the season; confirm your zone every year, because maps can change.
How do we handle medications during a storm?
- Keep at least two weeks on hand. FDEM recommends "a minimum two-week supply of all your prescription medications" and a written list with doses. For a shelter, FDEM suggests bringing a 30-day supply.
- Use Florida's early refill law. Under s. 252.358, insurers licensed by the Office of Insurance Regulation must waive "refill too soon" limits and pay for at least a 30-day supply if you have refills remaining and your county is under a National Weather Service hurricane warning, a governor's state of emergency, or has activated its emergency operations center and emergency management plan. Self-funded employer plans may follow different rules, so call your plan if a pharmacy refuses.
- Plan for heat. The CDC notes that many medicines can make people dehydrated or overheated, that some must be kept out of hot places, and that you should not stop or change a medicine without talking to the doctor.
When: refill as soon as a warning or state of emergency is announced.
How do we keep devices and comfort items powered?
For many autistic children, a tablet with a communication app, a favorite show, noise-cancelling headphones or a white-noise machine is not a luxury. Losing power can mean losing communication and calm at the same time.
- Charge power banks and keep car chargers in the go-kit.
- Download shows, music and communication app vocabularies so they work offline.
- Print a low-tech backup: a picture board or core word board for children who use a device to talk.
- Pack battery-powered fans and lights, and plan for heat. The CDC says fans should be used only when indoor temperatures are below 90°F; above that, a fan can raise body temperature. See heat intolerance and autism and power outages and autism.
What goes in a sensory go-kit?
Pack a separate bag for your child, alongside the family's water, food, first aid and documents. Ideas families use:
- headphones or ear defenders, sunglasses or a cap for bright shelter lights;
- a weighted item, blanket or favorite clothing;
- preferred, non-perishable foods (especially for selective eaters) and a familiar cup;
- fidgets, a few favorite toys and a visual schedule with removable pictures;
- a printed "about me" page: communication, triggers, calming tips, medications and your phone number;
- a portable door alarm for hotel or shelter doors, a current photo and an ID card or bracelet.
Our sensory hurricane go-kit guide has a printable list.
How do we prepare our child for the storm itself?
Uncertainty is often the hardest part. A short visual story explaining what a hurricane is, why the windows are covered, why the lights may go out and where the family will sleep can help. Read it in calm weeks, not only when a storm is coming. Practice parts of the plan: sitting in the car for longer drives, wearing headphones, sleeping in a sleeping bag or an interior room. Our free "When a Hurricane Comes" social story can be a starting point.
Wandering risk rises in unfamiliar places. Review your wandering and elopement safety plan before you leave, and keep your child's missing-person card in the go-kit.
What about ABA therapy before and after a storm?
Storms interrupt routines, and some children have more difficulty for a while afterward. Ask your therapy team before the season:
- How will sessions be canceled or rescheduled, and how will you be told?
- Can parent training continue by phone or video if you evacuate, and does your plan cover it?
- What should you work on at home if sessions pause for a week or two?
- Who do you contact if behavior changes after the storm?
Our guide to restarting ABA after a hurricane covers the weeks after.
The Florida hurricane checklist at a glance
| When | What to do |
|---|---|
| Before June 1 | Register or update on the special needs registry; confirm your evacuation zone; choose where you would go; form a support network of 3 or more people; build the family kit and the sensory go-kit; start the storm story |
| Every year | Update registry details, medication list, photo and "about me" page; recheck devices and power banks; ask your therapy team about storm plans |
| When a storm is forecast | Refill medicines early under s. 252.358 if your county qualifies; charge everything; download media; review the storm story and the wandering plan; sign up for your county's emergency alerts |
| If you evacuate | Bring the go-kit, medicines, documents and portable door alarm; leave early to avoid long traffic; tell shelter staff about your child's needs |
| After the storm | Watch for heat illness during outages; rebuild routines with a visual schedule; contact your therapy team about restarting sessions |
Where can I find my county's information?
Every county emergency management office has its own registration process, shelter list and alert system, and FDEM lists them all at floridadisaster.org/counties. Hope Center has locations in West Palm Beach, Temple Terrace (Tampa), Port Charlotte, Jacksonville and Sebring, and also serves families in Fort Lauderdale and Broward (including Pembroke Pines and Miramar), St. Lucie, Martin County, Orlando, Lakeland, Winter Haven, Plant City and Apollo Beach. Wherever you live, check your county's page every spring.
At Hope Center, our BCBAs can help turn hurricane preparation into teachable steps, such as tolerating headphones, following a visual schedule in a new place or waiting in line, and our weekly parent training keeps you practicing between sessions. If one of our offices closes for a storm, families can choose home sessions with their RBT; closures go out by mass message, with calls or texts from BCBAs and the front desk when a closure is known ahead. Contact us or call 561-337-8865 for a free consultation and a free benefits check.