The Cop Column
May, 2002
Cpl. Rick Hord
Public Information Officer
Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office
Here Comes Hurricane Season
A major hurricane is like World War II: a continental divide in the lives of those who survived it. Life events fall into two categories: "before the war" and "after the war," or, "before Opal" and "after Opal."
"Opal" is one of 31 retired hurricane names. Her place on the six-year rotation list has been filled by "Olga." "Erin," our other direct strike in that incredible 1995 hurricane season, remains an active name; it was on last year's list and will be available for re-use again in 2007.
Some lessons from Opal worth repeating:
*Not everybody should evacuate. Mobile homes, and areas vulnerable to flooding or storm surge should be evacuated. Otherwise, people in sturdy homes who aren't likely to be flooded or stranded are often better off to stay put. One mile inland may be safer than 100 or even 500 miles inland. Opal killed half a dozen people in the Atlanta area, and only one in Florida.
*Technology can actually be a hindrance. We've become dependant on gizmos and gadgets. When a storm disrupts power and computers, we suffer the consequences. The plethora of cable-TV channels dilutes hurricane preparedness. In the days of strictly local TV and radio, almost everybody received the same information as a storm approached. Now, many people watch lots of TV and know nothing of developing tropical peril. Lesson: your best source is local radio... you need specific local information, and won't get much of that from the Weather Channel and other national channels.
*The Internet is a new player that should have a positive impact. In October 1995, it was many days before evacuated citizens could return home to many areas. But, many of those evacuated citizens were scattered across the country. The media in Atlanta and Birmingham weren't reporting on what streets on Okaloosa Island were passable, or when the water system would be working on Holiday Isle. For those and many other questions, the only source of answers was long-distance telephone into an area where phone lines and the humans answering them were near the breaking point. For displaced folks, Internet web sites are a wonderful link home.
*There is no magic way to temporarily increase the traffic capacity of existing roads. Florida and Alabama authorities have been working together in hopes of making any future evacuations less agonizing that the one seven years ago... but the fact remains that the roads can only handle so much traffic. That's one important reason why everybody should not try to leave... especially not all at once. Strange as it may seem, converting one southbound lane of Highway 85 to a temporary northbound lane would NOT help. In fact, it would create more problems than it would solve.
Hurricane season begins June 1, and runs exactly half the year, through the end of November. This year, our first named storm will be "Arthur," followed by "Bertha,": "Cristobal," "Dolly," "Edouard," and "Fay."
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