Emergency Preparations – Hurricane Irma

Blog post header with background image of a hurricane storm cloud from a distance. Over the image is a text box with dark red words: Emergency Preparations Hurricane Irma

With Hurricane Irma making its way up the Eastern Coast, Georgia and South Carolina residents need to look ahead to ensure their safety before the storm gets to us. This is even more important for persons with disabilities who require additional support, resources or time to get to a safe location.

Walton Options will continue to offer support in the coming week. We plan to open our offices during our usual office hours provided there is a safe environment for our staff, volunteers and consumers. However, because our staff resources will be reduced with mandatory evacuations, our services will be limited to emergency situation assistance until such restrictions have been lifted and we return to regular operating schedule in all offices.

Emergency Services include-

Access and Charging stations for durable medical equipment (canes, walkers, AT chargers, wheelchairs, shower chairs, accessible cots, etc.) of items that were lost or damaged during the emergency.
Advocating for the rights of individuals with disabilities in emergency shelters and beyond.
Visit shelters to assess for needs of individuals with disabilities, arrange services and provide I&R.
Assisting with transitioning home from shelters via connection to sister CILS in areas persons are returning to.
Information and Referral—calls regarding emergency preparation and impact will take priority. Post storm, we will assist in completing any documentation or applications to agencies such as FEMA and American Red Cross.

We will keep you updated on service availability through our Twitter and Facebook accounts. We want to work to assure people are safe and have necessary resources, but please keep in mind the limitations that we may face depending on the level of impact in our areas.

In addition, we have compiled a list of online resources that can be used before, during and after Hurricane Irma strikes. Many of these resources are valuable for other disaster emergency situations. This page will be updated as new resources become available.

Closures

CSRA School & Organization Closings and Delays:
http://www.wrdw.com/weather/closings?c=n&r=0.049472802348762834

Low Country Closings and Delays:
http://www.live5news.com/story/36302286/look-here-closings-cancellations-prompted-by-hurricane-irma

511sc.org & 511ga.org
These websites offers real-time traffic updates for Georgia and South Carolina’s major roads. A good resource for assessing your travel plans against blocked or flooded roads.
http://www.511sc.org/
http://www.511ga.org/

Basics to prepare for Hurricane Irma

General Preparation Information – http://ready.ga.gov/be-informed/hurricanes/
Prepare an Emergency Prep Kit – http://ready.ga.gov/build-a-kit/
Make a communication Plan – http://ready.ga.gov/make-a-plan/

Individuals with Disabilities – Think about more than just food and water resources
https://www.ready.gov/individuals-access-functional-needs

Official Georgia Hurricane Guide
http://ready.ga.gov/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/GeorgiaGA-HUR-GDE-APRVDHR.pdf

Official South Carolina Hurricane Guide
http://www.scemd.org/files/Public%20Information/Publications/Hurricane_Guide/2017/Hurricane%20guide%20for%20website.pdf

Apps & Resources to keep you in the know & provide communication

National Hurricane Center
http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/#Irma

FEMA App
https://www.fema.gov/mobile-app

Ready Georgia App
Available through the Apple App Store and Google Play, this app is designed to offer you a variety of resources including alerts, traffic maps, “I’m safe notifications” and more.
http://ready.ga.gov/be-informed/alerts-and-warnings/mobileapp/

Show Me: A communication Tool for Emergency Shelters
A series of tools designed to enhance communication between individuals with communication challenges and public health/emergency personnel/volunteers during times of emergencies.
http://www.mass.gov/eohhs/gov/departments/dph/programs/emergency-prep/additional-access-needs/show-me.html

GasBuddy
A resource to check gas stations to see if they have fuel or not.
http://tracker.gasbuddy.com/Default.aspx

CodeRed Alerts from SCEMD
Get emergency notifications from SCEMD by phone, text and email.
http://scemd.org/component/content/article/2-uncategorised/177-codered-alerts-from-scemd

Local Resources

City of Aiken Safety & Emergency Preparedness Resources
https://www.cityofaikensc.gov/emergency-preparedness/

City of Augusta Emergency Management Resources
http://www.augustaga.gov/462/Emergency-Management

State of Emergency Contact numbers for GA Counties under State of Emergency
https://gov.georgia.gov/sites/gov.georgia.gov/files/related_files/press_release/Emergency%20County%20Contact%20List%20EMA%20-%20Irma.pdf

Shelter information
http://www.wrdw.com/content/news/Shelter-Hotel-and-Volunteer-Info-for-Irma-443299083.html

511sc.org & 511ga.org
These websites offers real-time traffic updates for Georgia and South Carolina’s major roads.
http://www.511sc.org/
http://www.511ga.org/