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(CBS4) – You know that hurricanes are officially classified from category 1 to category 5, depending on the severity of the storm. But did you know that they are also ranked according to the Waffle House Index?
It's a real thing – and the Federal Emergency Management Agency uses it.
Gourmet restaurants are known to stay open 24 hours a day, even in the most difficult weather conditions. So when one or more are forced to close, it's a sign that things are getting serious.
The FEMA website describes how the Waffle House index works: "If a Waffle House store is open and offers a full menu, the index is green. If it is open but serves from a limited menu, it is yellow. When the location has been forced to close, the index is red. Because Waffle House is well prepared for disasters … it is rare that the index reaches red.
According to FEMA, "Big businesses like Home Depot, Walmart and Waffle House are role models in disaster preparedness … These companies have good risk management plans to ensure their stores continue to operate in the event of a disaster. . supplies to people in their community. "
Waffle House has its own "Storm Center", which it activated Tuesday to monitor Hurricane Florence.
According to NPR, the restaurant chain even has "jump teams" that it can send to disaster areas to help the restaurants operate. During Hurricane Harvey, Waffle House sent officials from Ohio, Tennessee and Georgia to help Houston – "in some cases, local teams blocked by storms".
The Waffle House Index, also known as the Waffle House Test, can help officials determine how quickly a community can be operational after a disaster.
"The Waffle House test does not just tell us how quickly a business could bounce back. It also tells us how the community as a whole is doing. The sooner restaurants, grocery stores and convenience stores, or banks can reopen, the more local economies will start generating revenue again, "says the FEMA website.
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