After Hurricane Ike we had guys coming around from all over the US, bring mostly rented equipment, sleeping in a rented travel trailer and making PILES of cash. Enough cash to buy their own equipment in a short period of time. Hurricane chasing is a lucrative business.
I know a lot of residents frown upon the chasers, but the truth is, in time of need, they're a sight for sore eyes. Very Welcome. Not all chasers gouge customers either. Yeah, I did have some stop by offering to move a large oak tree off of my house for a measly grand. Yep - a thousand dollars for a few minutes of work. And no, that did not include cutting it up and hauling it off - that was to pick it up from leaning on the house to sitting it down in the yard. Unscrupulous for sure, especially knowing the dire straights the residents were in for a thousand other emergency problems. Those kind of guy I strongly dislike, and quickly told them to move on - I wasn't going to be their 'huckleberry'.
So, I say pack up and go. Take your own supplies with you, and lots of them. You'll be on your own pretty much, but you can sock away a very nice nest egg in a short period of time.