FEMA evacuation notices are one thing, but if you really want to know how serious an approaching hurricane is, visit your local Waffle House. At least according to what has become known as “The Waffle House index.”
The 24-hour American greasy spoon chain is apparently very good at predicting impending disaster: if its doors are shut, hungry customers really ought to take cover.
Waffle House tweeted on Thursday afternoon that it was closing several locations in Florida in reaction to Hurricane Matthew’s approach.
Hurricane Matthew battered the coast of Florida on Thursday, and although it remained offshore Thursday evening, tracking north, it was still causing strong winds and power outages – though nothing like the damage it did in Haiti, where it killed 283 people.
READ MORE: Hurricane Matthew hammers Florida coast as death toll rises in Haiti
Millions of people in Florida, Georgia and South Carolina were told to evacuate their homes, and Waffle House announced more closures in those states Friday morning.
Customers were worried.
The diners have been informally used in the past by emergency authorities as a quick way to measure the severity of a natural disaster.
The administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, W. Craig Fugate, has joked that looking at Waffle Houses is a good way to see how quickly a community might be able to get back up and running after being hit with a hurricane or other problem.
According to a FEMA blog post from 2011, if Waffle House is open and serving a full menu, then that means its supply chain remains largely unaffected by the disaster and its workers are available to show up and cook bacon and waffles.
If it’s offering a limited menu, that indicates that there is a problem somewhere, perhaps with utilities like power or water. And if it’s closed, that means that there could be serious problems with supply, transportation and staffing – bad enough to shut down the open-365-days-a-year restaurant.
Obviously this isn’t the only indicator, even among businesses – places like Walmart are looked at too.
According to an article in EHS Today, a trade publication for the emergency management sector, major corporations like Walmart, Home Depot and Waffle House have extensive risk management plans in place. Waffle House knows which locations may be affected by a disaster, has many warehouses stocking supplies for a limited menu, and can quickly contact its employees to see who can show up for work.
Waffle House is prepared for disaster, according to the article, so it’s rare for the restaurants to close.