FLAGLER COUNTY, Fla. — With only a couple of days until the start of the hurricane season, emergency operation centers around the state are finishing up details to be prepared to respond.

Every year around this time, Flagler County Emergency Management Director Jonathan Lord spends time getting ready for hurricane season, which begins on June 1.

“We’ve done a lot of community events where we reach out and talk to condo associations and community groups," he said. "We’ve done a ton of that in the last couple of weeks, as is expected, as hurricane season is approaching."

Lord said something residents in Flagler County should keep in mind is the county's new evacuation zones. He said about two years ago, county officials received new information from the National Hurricane Center, which indicated where the water would go from storm surges.

“We’ve been dealing with an issue here in Flagler County where historically we’ve called hurricane evacuation zones, A, B, C, D, and so on and so forth," Lord said. "But we also have neighborhoods called the ‘C Section’ and ‘B section’ and different lettered sections. So that caused a lot of conflict and confusion in our community, between the evacuation zones and their lettered neighborhoods."

To avoid that confusion, county emergency officials have adopted two evacuation zones: the Potential Hurricane Evacuation Zone on the eastern side of the county and the Potential Lake Flood Zone on the western side of the county.

“Everybody here just needs to know that they live in a potential hurricane evacuation zone,” Lord said.

Residents who want to find out if their home is located in one of the two zones can enter their address online at the Flagler County website.

“So, for a day like today, when you’re planning, when you’re making your emergency plan, say, ‘Hey, am I going to have to evacuate because of a hurricane?’ You can actually go on to our website and look up whether your house is in this potential hurricane evacuation zone,” Lord said.

He said the emergency operation center is set up and ready to respond during hurricane season.

“In a big disaster, we can expand to almost 100 people in here representing almost every county department, representing all five of the municipalities or cities in our county,” Lord said.

Residents can also stay informed by signing up for ALERTFlagler, which is a free service that sends emergency notifications and severe weather alerts.

“And that’s all automated with in a partnership with the Weather Service," Lord said. "And that system costs you nothing to sign up for. If you’re not very comfortable with the Internet or don’t have access to the Internet, you can actually just give us a call at (386)-313-4200 and our staff or volunteers will actually sign you up over the phone.”

Lord encouraged members of the community to be prepared now and make a plan that includes building an emergency kit with supplies to last for at least a week, and partner with a family or friend who lives on the western side of the county. 

“If you don’t have the means or an ability to partner with a friend or a family member that’s on the western side of the county, we’ll always open up shelters,” Lord said.

Typically, in a hurricane, the county shelters will be located in public schools, and which schools open may vary depending on the year. They will open general population shelters, as well as special needs shelters, and they will open at least one pet-friendly shelter.

The county will not close bridges during a storm, but they plan to send a message to the community when it is not safe to be on the road.

This year, Flagler County also launched a new Emergency Preparedness Guide with resources and information on what to do before, during and after an emergency. Hard copies are available in public libraries and community centers, while the online version can be found on the county website.