​by Commissioner Hal Valeche

Since our hurricane season is a full six months of the year, I think it is worthwhile to share some additional information about how you can plan and be prepared for these unwelcome weather events.

As I have mentioned before, the Division of Emergency Management remains at the ready for any potential disaster events be they weather or otherwise.  During activation for a hurricane, the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) is your local clearinghouse for the latest, up-to-the-minute information on storm watches and warnings, and the dissemination of official media advisories.  Keep this number handy for all questions and concerns before, during and after a storm:  561-712-6400.

Residents should report problems to the Emergency Information Center by calling the above number.  Representatives from police, fire, utilities and social service agencies all work out of the EOC during activation and will investigate and resolve issues reported.

The County's Public Affairs Department is one of the many departments who ride out the emergency activations at the EOC, where they serve as the official Public Information Unit (PIU), a designation required by the National Incident Management System, a consistent nationwide framework within the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. 

In addition to working directly with the media on information they receive from the County's Executive Policy Group, operations teams and municipal representatives at the EOC, the PIU also constantly monitors county social media sites including Twitter @PBCGOV and @PBCDEM, and Facebook at pbcgov and pbcdem.  Additionally, the PIU monitors emails at public@pbcgov.org. 

Once you are comfortable that you have a good personal plan in place, you've stocked up on all the essentials and have hurricane hardened your home or have made arrangements to stay elsewhere including your pets, make sure you have taken into account your relatives or friends who are vulnerable, elderly, or alone.  Do they have a safe place to stay during a storm?  If a loved one resides in an assisted living facility or nursing home, does that facility have an emergency plan?  Is that facility hurricane hardened? 

Sadly, in the aftermath of our brush with Hurricane Irma last fall, county officials heard reports that frail, elderly residents were being dropped off at emergency shelters immediately prior to or during the storm by either a nursing home facility, a home health care worker, or even a family member.  As if that was not bad enough, these elderly persons arrived at the shelter without so much as a blanket.  That, in my view, is a very sad commentary.  Remember, as Emergency Management Director Bill Johnson has said, the emergency shelters activated during hurricane events should be considered a life raft, not a cruise ship.  Shelters – quickly assembled in designated public schools - are equipped with limited supplies, and evacuees are required to bring all of their own bedding, snacks, extra water, toiletries, clothing and medication, and keep all of that contained in the assigned 20 square feet of space.  If you do not live in substandard housing or are not located in an evacuation area, you may be far better off sheltering at home.

The following links will take you to information on hurricane preparedness and shelters:

http://discover.pbcgov.org/PDF/Publications/ch20sc.pdf

http://discover.pbcgov.org/publicsafety/dem/Pages/Shelters.aspx

http://discover.pbcgov.org/publicsafety/dem/Pages/Special-Needs.aspx

http://discover.pbcgov.org/publicsafety/animalcare/Pages/Hurricane.aspx

If you do live along the coast or are located in one of the more high-risk evacuation areas, talk to your friends or relatives who live outside of that area about staying with them during a storm event.  You can pool resources and supplies and provide some comradery to one another while you weather the storm. 

I encourage you to talk to people within your property owners associations or neighborhood groups to identify neighbors who are elderly, alone or infirm and who may need assistance. 

As always, please contact me if I can be of assistance at 561-355-2201 or by email at hvaleche@pbcgov.org.  If you do not have access to the internet and would like some printed information, please do not hesitate to call me and we will provide that to you.