Don’t wait until a hurricane is almost hitting Bermuda to get all the equipment and supplies you need. That’s the message from Gorham’s who will be putting together a special “hurricane centre” which will open today June 1 the opening day of the hurricane season.Director of Gorham’s, Rod Farrington, said: “On June 1 we will have set up our hurricane centre and any item will be 20 percent off. This will enable people to have the chance to prepare properly ahead of time and save some money as well.“The other thing we are doing this month is partnering with Argus. They have come up with all these top tips (preparing for a hurricane) and what we are doing is sticking those tips on the floor of the store to give you directions on where the appliances and products are. Anyone who wants to find something will get a tip about it and a floor guide to find it. We will be starting that in a week and that will go on for most of June.”Gorham’s has a wide range of products a person may want ahead of a hurricane striking the Island. “It is better to be prepared now instead of waiting until the storm has almost hit us,” added Mr Farrington.Among those products are generators (big and small ones from Generac) as well as gas barbecues and the old fashioned Smoking Joe ones with charcoal bricks.There are big trash cans, tarps in case part of your roof comes off, a wide variety of flashlights and battery clocks.Mr Farrington said of the batteries for flashlights and clocks: “Many people make the mistake of leaving their batteries in when the flashlight is not in use for a long time. You should really take the batteries out, especially in Bermuda’s climate. In fact I put my batteries in the freezer.”Other products in the hurricane centre are heavy duty, construction grade rain suits, gas for portable cookers and regular propane for the bigger cookers and lanterns. There are reading lanterns, chainsaws and of course the rope and bucket for that “hurricane bath” from your tank.Gorham’s now also stocks the Life+Gear’s GLOW flashlight which is the ultimate water resistant flashlight for everyday use.“This is a new product and is a LED flashlight. Instead of using those big batteries which many flashlights take, this one uses just small double A batteries. And the lifespan is unbelievable. This flashlight is very light and it also floats so it is good for a boat as well. It is new to the market. And the handle is great in that you can store your keys and money there,” said Mr Farrington.Gorham’s also has Clorox to help clean your water tank after the hurricane has passed by. Other items include fire extinguishers, coolers and spray for ants which seem to come out in the millions following a storm as well as a wide assortment of tape.Gorham’s prides itself of being prepared for hurricanes. General manager Andrew Mackay said the store has been able to respond when a hurricane approaches and people start to buy their supplies and also after a hurricane has hit and home owners are in need of various equipment.And he said Gorham’s has the ability to get in more supplies very quickly on account of being with True Value.“True Value are great during a crisis. For instance when Hurricane Igor hit we were on the phone to them immediately to get their guys at their warehouse organised. We were the first company to have emergency supplies come in. True Value are always great during a disaster time they know what is needed they have been there before. That is a forte that Gorham’s has. We will call True Value at four in the morning if need be and they will respond.“We have a great relationship with True Value especially when it comes to natural disasters. In the previous few hurricanes Team Gorham’s has always been prepared.”Before Igor arrived in Bermuda Mr Mackay said they began “filling containers with the basic necessities” when the storm was five days out.“True Value established a team from the regional distribution centre to work later than normal to prepare our containers in order for them to make delivery to the port on time and at last possible moment. This gave us the ability to then have the containers off the boat literally as soon as it arrived. We had our trucker on stand by to deliver that Sunday evening and the staff ready to unload immediately Monday morning.”