Hurricane Idalia power outages: What's still safe to eat and what should be thrown out?
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Two days after Hurricane Idalia swept through the northern part of the state, over 91,000 customers remain without power in Florida as of 10 a.m. Friday morning. Much of Madison, Jefferson, Taylor, Hamilton, Suwannee and Lafayette counties remain dark.
Residents are scrambling to deal with flooded homes and vehicles, contact insurance companies and start pulling their lives back together. But they've also got to deal with food safety, an important issue in a hot and humid state without power.
Refrigerated and frozen foods may not be safe after the power goes out, according to the Centers for Disease Control. But there are things you can do to keep food safe longer.
Here's what you need to know.
How long does food last in a refrigerator or freezer after the power goes out?
A refrigerator will keep food cold for four hours after the power goes out, according to the CDC, and a full freezer will hold its temperature for about 48 hours. A half-full freezer will keep food cold for about 24 hours. Avoid opening the doors as much as possible to keep the cool air in.
"If you are in doubt, monitor temperatures with a thermometer and throw out food if the temperature is 40 degrees or higher," FEMA said on its site. The freezer should be at zero degrees Fahrenheit or below.
You can extend the time if you can buy bags of ice to shove into open spaces in the freezer you can extend the time. Dry ice can keep things in your freezer frozen much longer but handle it with care. This depends on there being locations near you with power and ice for sale, of course.
What do I do with food in the freezer or fridge while the power is out?
Eat the perishable foods first. One trick, if you have a charged phone, is to take a quick picture of the inside of your fridge and freezer. Then you can take your time to plan what you need before grabbing what you need without keeping the doors open any longer than you have to.
If it's been more than four hours and you can get a cooler and ice, put the perishable refrigerated foods in the cooler. Keep monitoring to make sure they're under 40 degrees.
If the power outage stretches on and you're concerned about your frozen foods, fire up the grill. Most of the items in your freezer can probably be cooked on a grill, with careful thawing in some cases.
Power's out: Hurricane Idalia sure to bring power outages. Here's how to prepare, what to do
What do I do with the food in my refrigerator or freezer when the power comes back on?
If it's been four hours or more, throw out all the perishable food in your refrigerator such as meat, fish, cut fruits and vegetables, eggs, milk, and leftovers.
Throw out any food with an unusual odor, color or texture. DO NOT TASTE IT to try to see if it's still OK. Unsafe food can make you sick even if it looks and smells normal.
Food in your fridge or coolers with temps of under 40 degrees should be OK to keep.
You can safely refreeze or cook thawed frozen food that still contains ice crystals or is at 40 degrees or below.
What refrigerated food will last without power?
According to the U.S. FoodSafety site, some foods you might have had in the fridge that were over 40 degrees for two hours or more might still be OK to keep.
Cheese: Keep hard or processed cheeses, throw out soft cheeses, shredded cheeses and low-fat cheeses.
Dairy: Butter and margarine can be left out. All other dairy products should be tossed, along with any opened baby formula.
Eggs: If you have freshly laid eggs from your own or locally sourced hens, they can be left at room temperature. Any store-bought eggs or any egg products, toss 'em.
Fruit: Uncut fresh fruit and fruit juices, opened can fruits and dried fruits can be kept. Throw out cut fresh fruit and sliced or shredded coconut.
Sauces, spreads, jams: Keep peanut butter, jelly, relish, mustard, ketchup, olives, pickles, Worcestershire, soy, barbecue, hoisin sauces and opened vinegar-based dressings. Discard opened mayonnaise, tartar sauce and horseradish, fish sauces or oyster sauce, and opened creamy-based dressings or spaghetti sauce.
Baked goods, pasta: Keep the bread, rolls, cakes, muffins, tortillas and breakfast foods such as waffles, pancakes and bagels. Throw out refrigerator biscuits, rolls, cookie dough, cooked pasta, rice or potatoes, pasta salads with mayo or vinaigrette, fresh pasta and cheesecake.
Pies and pastry: Keep fruit pies, throw out anything cream-filled or pies with fillings containing eggs or milk.
Vegetables: Keep fresh, uncut vegetables and fresh mushrooms, herbs and spices. Toss cut or cooked vegetables, greens, cooked tofu, opened vegetable juice, baked potatoes, potato salad, casseroles, soups and stews, and commercial garlic in oil.
Again, if you see or sell anything unusual, assume the worst. When in doubt, throw it out.
What frozen food can be refrozen after power comes back?
Any of your frozen food that still has ice crystals or is at 40 degrees or below can be left in the freezer, according to FoodSafety.gov. If your frozen food was thawed and above 40 degrees for more than two hours it will need to be discarded, with a few exceptions:
Hard cheeses
Fruit juices or packaged fruits (discard if mold, yeasty smell, or sliminess develops)
Vegetable juices, packaged or blanched vegetables (discard if held above 40°F for 6 hours)
Breads, rolls, muffins, cakes without custard fillings
Pie crusts, bread dough (you'll lose a lot of the quality, though)
Flour, cornmeal, nuts
Breakfast items: waffles, pancakes, bagels
What do I do with food that got wet during Hurricane Idalia?
Throw away any food that has come in direct contact with floodwater or stormwater. Floodwater may have rushed past dirt, human, animal and livestock waste, hazardous waste, germs and contaminants and more.
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Power outage food safety tips for refrigerators, freezers after storm
