Residents should prepare for the upcoming hurricane season, which is predicted to be more active this year than in years past.
“What they’re telling us right now is that we have a sixty percent chance of a more active than normal hurricane season this year,” stated Emergency Management Director Eddie Ivy. “The waters in the gulf are warmer than they have been since 1993 going in to hurricane season.”
Hurricane season officially starts June 1, but there has already been a named storm that moved up the East Coast.
“Something of concern to us is that the current forecasts show a higher than normal chance of development in the Gulf of Mexico, which for us means less preparation time because they form closer to us and make landfall quicker than if they are further out in the Atlantic,” explained Eddie. “Some of the challenges we have this year with hurricane season include COVID-19. That’s affecting our sheltering and shelter plans. We don’t do a lot of sheltering in Clarke County, but those efforts are going to be affected this year because of increased shelter space requirements. We have to try to spread out more in the shelters, which means we won’t be able to get as many people into a shelter. More shelters will be needed, and one of the concerns is that a lot of volunteers who typically man the shelters are now the ones in the high risk area. We will still meet the needs of the citizens; we just have to come up with different approaches on how to do things.”
The Clarke County Emergency Management team is working with different state agencies to make sure that it is able to develop a plan and meet the needs of the citizens of Clarke County in the event that there is an emergency.
Hurricanes are something that people in Mississippi are accustomed to preparing for, but it is important to remember to start preparing before the hurricane season can start up, and it is easier to do that little by little instead of causing a stock issue in stores from hoarding.
“We urge every citizen of the county to have a plan, have a disaster supply kit and a weather radio, and have a flashlight with batteries,” suggested Eddie. “With everyone’s dependence on cell phones, they need to make sure to have a way to charge without electricity. That may be a car charger or a recharger power bank. There needs to be enough water to last at least three days for each member of the family. There would need to be nonperishable food that can be eaten without having to cook. There should also be first aid supplies.”
Families need to make sure when collecting nonperishable foods that they collect food that they will actually eat at any time. Also, families need to make a plan for what they will do in order to keep food in the refrigerator and freezers cool in the event of power failure. Some people may have medication that has to remain cold, and it is important to think ahead in order to make sure there are no problems if the power were to go out for a few days.
Some families may have a generator to use in case of power failure, and those families may want to have extra gas on hand. It is also suggested for families with generators to test the generator ahead of time to make sure that it runs efficiently.
For families who do not have a generator, making sure there is little air space in freezers can help keep the food inside stay cool and frozen longer.
“If you keep freezers full, they will last longer as long as you don’t open them,” stated Eddie. “We’ve seen where people in the days prior to the hurricane making landfall have taken gallon milk jugs and put them in the freezer so they would have a solid block of ice that helps keep the things in the freezer cold longer. They’ve also filled the freezer air space with blankets, pillows quilts, and anything to keep it from being just open air space, and that helps to keep it frozen. Keeping the freezers closed helps. Those are just some things to do that can help. The frozen water bottles help keep things cold, and once they’re thawed, you can drink them.”
Clarke County has already seen multiple emergencies and disasters already this year, so it is important to be prepared for any emergency that may happen during hurricane season.
