With hurricane season around the corner, it is important that we remain mindful of preparation.  After the past year of stocking up on toilet paper, paper towels, cleaning products and hand sanitizer, we cannot not neglect our hurricane supply kits.

I can already hear the collective groan, made worse by recent news reports from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration about moving up the season start date by a few weeks.  The storm season of 2020 was the sixth in a row in which named tropical storms developed before the official start on June 1.

Palm Beach County has the resources you need to prepare and respond.  Our Division of Emergency Management is your go-to for the latest information on matters you should consider, such as your flood zone, evacuation zone, emergency shopping list, FEMA tips for storage of food and water, shelters, gas stations and grocery stores with generators, and the list goes on.

From the county's webpage at https://discover.pbcgov.org/publicsafety/dem/Pages/Preparedness.aspx, you can explore links to find out how you can best prepare, based on your personal situation.  The basic steps include:

• Make a Plan – devise your own disaster plan including where you will wait out a storm, what you will do with your pets and whether a loved one requires the care of a special needs shelter.
• Build a Kit – in additional to non-perishable food, health and first aid supplies, paper goods and a full prescription of your required medications, keeping important documents secured in a waterproof container can save you time and aggravation later.  Cleaning supplies, tools, and of course, candles and/or flashlights and batteries are essential.
• Be Informed – along with monitoring local radio, television and social media, you can sign up for ALERTPBC, the County's emergency notification system, that will quickly  provide you with critical information in severe weather, unexpected road closures, missing persons and evacuation of buildings or neighborhoods.  You can specify where you want the message sent.  By downloading the free PBC DART app on your smartphone, you will have immediate access to up-to-the-minute emergency information, and you can report damage following a storm event.
• Get Involved – Our emergency managers like to say that preparedness is a responsibility we all share, and this is so true.  You can volunteer with organizations that activate during disasters such as American Red Cross, The Salvation Army, United Way, Medical Reserve Corps, and Community Emergency Response Team (CERT).  CERT is a community-based organization of residents who learn how to take emergency response actions in safe ways until the professional emergency responders can respond.   The Division of Emergency Management has trained over 3200 CERT's throughout Palm Beach County in disaster preparedness, response, and communications. 

Things I've learned along the way: 

Although you may have insured your valuables, take pictures of them and if you can, move them to a safe place.  Make sure to remove your ice from the icemaker and turn it off.  If you lose power, this will prevent melting.  Put that ice in a plastic tub and keep it in the freezer.  Take all of those recyclable water bottles you have around the house and fill with tap water and any other container you can seal.  This saves you from having to buy an overabundance of plastic water bottles.  Your dishwasher, washer and dryer make great storage places for items you want to keep dry if you experience water intrusion.  I remember once filling my dishwasher with my heirloom china.  If you are a diabetic or have any medications that need to be kept cold, please make sure to have enough ice in a cooler to keep your medicines cold should you lose power.  Have a phone charger you can use in your car, especially if you do not have a landline phone.  Lastly, be a “check-in buddy" with your friends and family so that everyone will know who is safe.

Remember to complete all major cutting of vegetation, including tree removal long before June, which means that you should focus on this type of property maintenance between December and April.  If your trimmings exceed the allowable six cubic yards at the curb for unincorporated areas or beyond what your municipality allows, Solid Waste Authority can arrange for removal of vegetation at a rate of $8 per cubic yard.  For more information about debris removal, visit https://www.swa.org/153/Before-During-and-After-the-Storm.

If you have specific questions or concerns about the accessibility of the Official Palm Beach County Hurricane Planning Guide, we have trained individuals available to assist you. Please contact Public Affairs directly at 561-355-2754, or via e-mail at pbcaccessibility@pbcgov.org.  As always, if I can be of assistance to you, please call me at 561-355-2201 or send an email to mmarino@pbcgov.org.