What Alachua County residents need to know to stay safe during hurricane season this year
Editor's note: This article has been updated as the first major hurricane of 2022, Hurricane Ian, is fast approaching Florida.
Hurricane Ian is the Sunshine State's first major test for those who have been preparing for an unusual number of storms predicted by the weather experts.
Colorado State University predicted that this season citizens can expect 19 named storms and nine hurricanes this season, which runs from June 1 to Nov. 30.
Gainesville is more insulated and has largely been spared from major damage compared to other cities during hurricanes in recent years. But with Payne's Prairie, lakes and a sprawling tree canopy, storms can wreak havoc on the region, causing flooding, downed trees and power lines.
Jen Grice, Alachua County's emergency management director, spoke with The Sun about ways local residents can navigate the nearing storm season. The question-answer interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.
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What's the difference between a tropical storm and a hurricane?
The difference is the wind speed. Tropical storms are weaker than hurricanes. A tropical storm is 39 to 73 mph, that's sustained winds, and a hurricane is above that.
How should an individual or family prepare if there's a hurricane expected to hit their region?
In Alachua County, when we have a storm that is potentially threatening our area, we'd like to put out as much information as possible to help our community prepare and react appropriately.
This season, we have developed a website that will have all this information. I really want our community to know that no matter what the incident is, they can go to AlachuaCountyReady.com for the latest information on what's happening.
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Everyone rushes to the grocery store to get water and canned food that probably doesn't taste great because they're only getting it for the storm. I really encourage people to see if there's anything they can do now or any steps they can take to get prepared so that they don't have to deal with the crowds at the grocery store.
Everyone goes to the grocery store. They're buying up all the bottled water, all the gallons of water, and meanwhile, at home, everyone has perfectly good running tap water. We forget that our tap exists because the storm isn't here yet. We just need to store empty bottles and fill those up. It's another way to avoid the craziness of the grocery stores when we have a hurricane headed our way.
How can someone protect their home from damage?
The first thing that's really important is to make sure that any trees or loose objects are taken care of. Make sure that you've trimmed back any problem trees or bushes. Secured any loose items, now is a good time.
Also, just knowing what condition your house was built. If someone lives in a mobile or manufactured home, they may be in a structure that's not going to withstand really strong winds. They need to know that and to make preparations if they have to go somewhere else if their house is not going to withstand those high winds.
Knowing ahead of time whether you live in a flood zone or a flood-prone area and making sure that you have flood insurance is extremely important. Flood insurance has a 30-day grace period. If someone were to see that we're in the cone of a storm, and then they're like, 'Well I better get flood insurance,' that's not going to help them because that policy won't take effect for 30 days. So I really encourage people to take the time now to get that flood insurance.
What should people include in their hurricane emergency kit?
The standard practice for water is a gallon per person per day. That's for both drinking and sanitation. I always tell people you need to always remember to include your pets in your planning. So while you're getting water, make sure you have enough water for your dog or your cat, whatever animal you have and include them in that.
Food obviously is a big one and then a weather radio, an NOAA Weather Radio, that way you can stay informed. Another big thing that I recommend is if someone's on medications, make sure that you have enough medications on hand to get you through any prolonged situations where you're stuck in your home without power or can't get to a pharmacy.
For folks who have little kids, make sure you have all of their special food, have baby food, make sure you have enough diapers, and then, of course, in our age of technology, having a cellphone charger and backup batteries and all that sort of stuff so that you can maintain communication.
What about the shelters in Alachua County?
We have 20 shelters that are available to us, that we're able to activate. It really depends on the situation for which shelters we open. If we have a storm that's coming in from the gulf coast, we may open slightly different shelters. There are just a lot of different factors at play.
We don't put out our list of shelters because we don't want people to plan, 'Oh hey, this school in my neighborhood is a shelter and I'm going to plan on going there.' And then we actually have the hurricane and that shelter doesn't open because it's not approved. We always steer people to AlachuaCountyReady.com where they can find the latest shelters that we've opened for a hurricane.
If someone needs to evacuate, what do they need to know to be prepared?
Evacuations are typically voluntary and limited to people who live in low-lying, flood-prone areas, or folks who live in unsafe housing, such as mobile homes. Alachua County is not a coastal county so we do not have a threat of storm surge, which is really one of the biggest reasons that evacuations are called for in hurricanes.
How does the county alert the public if a dangerous hurricane is on the way?
One of the things we also have implemented this year is we have created the ability to just text the word 'Alachua' to 888777, and you will receive updates and new information on county operations and response to any incidents that are happening within Alachua County.
We have what's called Alert Alachua, which also includes weather alerts that you would get from like the National Weather Service in Jacksonville. On AlertAlachua.com folks can sign up to receive notifications and actually choose how they would want to receive those notifications if they want to receive a text message, a phone call or an email.
What help is in place to help those who are homeless?
Our community support services do a great job in communicating with Grace Marketplace, which is our homeless service provider. My office is working on getting some of the buildings at Grace Marketplace retrofitted so that there are facilities on that campus that are safe against the winds. For our homeless folks who do have a cellphone, which many of those folks do have, we do have a lot of cellphone information in our Alert Alachua systems where we're able to notify them of an emergency situation.
What about people with disabilities and/or medical needs?
We have two types of shelters for those with special needs or disabilities in Alachua County. We have federal population shelters and then we have special needs shelters. Our special needs shelters, they're staffed by the Florida Department of Health in Alachua. My office, the Office of Emergency Management, maintains a special needs registry. They can register with us and we will contact them before we're opening special needs shelters to see if they would like to be in a shelter and if they need transportation to the shelter.
One of the biggest reasons for having these special needs shelters are our folks who are either dependent on oxygen or other life-saving medical equipment that requires electricity. If the power goes out and someone is on an O2 concentrator, they may not have access to oxygen for an extended period of time.
This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Live in Alachua County? What to know for hurricane season 2022
