State leaders meet to discuss hurricane preparedness, adjusted evacuation zones
COLUMBIA, SC (WOLO) — Leaders from across the state met at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center Thursday afternoon for a hurricane preparedness round table.
According to the Director of SC Emergency Management Division Kim Stenson, current evacuation zones have been adjusted to better define risk and allow for greater flexibility in the event of a low-impact storm.
“We want to evacuate those that are truly at risk and not over evacuate which can certainly lead to noncompliance in future evacuations. As a result most coastal counties now have smaller zones closer to the coast to allow for evacuating fewer residents,” he says.
Leaders say if you live in an evacuation zone you should have a plan to prepare your home, know where you’re going to go, and how you’re going to get there.
Governor McMaster reiterated they hope for the best, but prepare for the worst.
“We know that another hurricane is coming sometime. We don’t know when or how strong it will be, but today we were preparing for a Category 4 which is the same as Hugo. We have a lot of new people in this state who’ve never seen a hurricane, we have a lot of people vacationing that have never seen one, so we have to prepare and inform our people for what might happen so they can be ready,” says McMaster.
SC National Guard’s Adjutant General, Major Van McCarty and other officials encourage everyone to go to the SCEMD website to find out which evacuation zone they live in. They also say you can download their mobile app, or pick up a physical copy of SC’s Hurricane Guide at your local Walgreens or Welcome Centers along the coast.
“We took the first step in preparation for this organization to be ready and I’m thankful we’ve had this opportunity. Just hope we don’t’ have to put it in to play, but as they say, hope is not a plan, so we are planned and ready to go if necessary,” says McCarty.
