ORLANDO, Fla. – Hurricane season is already here and Central Florida leaders want to make sure all residents are prepared.
On Thursday, Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis held a hurricane preparedness event at Orlando’s Emergency Operations Center.
Central Florida’s Urban Search and Rescue Team, Task Force 4, was also in attendance. Officials said the team prepares year-round to respond immediately to any type of natural disaster, such as hurricanes.
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Last year they were deployed to Lake Charles, Louisiana, and the Florida Panhandle for Hurricane Sally.
“They’ll go from home-to-home knocking on doors and if the door is not there, they’ll make their way through there safely to see if there’s anybody that decided not to evacuate. They have one of the toughest jobs that happen immediately after the storm but they have the most important jobs cause they are literally the difference between life and death,” Patronis said.
Orlando Fire Chief Benjamin Barksdale also stressed the importance of hurricane preparedness. He said this year’s hurricane season is projected to be pretty active and it’s important for people to prepare an evacuation plan before the storm if they are in an evacuation zone.
Officials recommend residents prepare an emergency supplies kit with water and copies of important documents.