The informal 'Waffle House Index' states that if a Waffle House closes, the impact of a storm in that area has been severe. So you can imagine how people are reacting to the news that 21 Waffle House locations in Florida closed ahead of Hurricane Ian.
Hurricane Ian made landfall in Florida on Wednesday as a Category 4 storm, leaving about 2 million people without power and causing catastrophic flooding across the state. Both Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and President Joe Biden declared a state of emergency ahead of the storm, and residents in Ian’s path were urged to evacuate as more than 1 million homes were estimated to be at risk of damage from the hurricane-force winds, storm surge and heavy rainfall.
“We continue to monitor weather conditions, work closely with local government officials, emergency management teams and our local leadership in the field to make appropriate decisions based on the circumstances in each location,” Boss added. That’s because the restaurant chain is renowned for dishing diner-style breakfast fare 24/7, 365 days a year — and is generally considered well-equipped for natural disasters. In fact, former Federal Emergency Management Agency director Craig Fugate, who once ran Florida’s Division of Emergency Management, famously coined the term “Waffle House Index” to determine the severity of storms. And this is due to the fact that Waffle House rarely closes.
Boss also told MarketWatch that the Waffle House Index “doesn’t really belong to us,” adding that it was created by FEMA’s former director “as a simple to way to help FEMA workers to assess the damage to a community AFTER a hurricane hits and it is safe to return to the area.”
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