Red Cross societies across the Americas are ready to help communities withstand the 2009 hurricane season through careful disaster preparedness planning including the pre-positioning of relief stocks in vulnerable areas.

The 2009 season officially got underway on 1 June and is expected to last until the end of November. Experts have forecast a 70 per cent chance of as many as 14 tropical storms during this period, half of which may develop into hurricanes. Three of these hurricanes may reach category 3, 4 or 5.

Disaster preparedness saves lives and is much more cost-effective than expensive recovery efforts. Red Cross experts across the Americas have developed early warning and evacuation plans, while supplies of fresh water, food and blankets have been pre-positioned in areas that may be affected by the coming storms.