SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. – Seminole County emergency leaders are making sure residents, including the most vulnerable, are prepared for the 2022 hurricane season.
Inside the county’s emergency management warehouse, the county has everything it needs to run an emergency shelter. Victoria Colon, the county’s recovery coordinator, said they’re encouraging everyone to be ready.
[TRENDING: Timing of rain in Central Florida is different today. Here’s why | 10-year-old girl shoots, kills woman fighting mother in Orlando, police say | Become a News 6 Insider (it’s free!)]
“Just make sure you have a plan, know what to do if a storm comes, make sure you have a kit with everything you need,” Colon said.
Colon runs the county’s special needs registry, which is a running list of residents who are medically vulnerable. It includes people of all ages who rely on electricity for their medical equipment or refrigeration for their medication.
“This equipment is life-saving and they depend on it, so we want to make sure that they are at a place that has electricity so that their equipment doesn’t fail on them,” Colon said.
Colon said so far 1,900 people have signed up for the special needs registry. There isn’t a deadline to get your name on the list.
“You can register all year round. The storm could be coming tomorrow, you want to register today, great,” she said.
Colon is encouraging people to register or sign their family members up if they meet the criteria. Everyone on the special needs registry will receive an alert from the county before a storm informing them on special needs shelters that are opening, which will be staff with medical professionals. They’ll also be told what to bring and can get transportation to the shelter, if needed.
Colon adds this is getting results before a hurricane comes our way so the most vulnerable can stay safe.
“We’re offering this service with our special needs registry to ensure people have all the resources they need to keep safe and stay well during a storm if needed,” she said.
Click here for more information on the special needs registry or you can call Seminole County Emergency Management at (407) 665-5102.