Hurricane Ian: Emergency contacts, resources all Beaufort Co. residents should know

Sarah Claire McDonald

Preparations are essential for keeping you and your family safe in the event of an evacuation or enduring dangerous weather from a tropical storm or hurricane expected to impact South Carolina.

In such an event, here is a compiled list of essential phone numbers, websites to check, Facebook pages to monitor and other emergency resources stay up-to-date on important, live information amid any emergency situation.

This GOES-East GeoColor satellite image taken at 12:01 a.m. EDT on Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2022, and provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), shows the eye of Hurricane Ian approaching the southwest coast of Florida. Hurricane Ian’s most damaging winds began hitting Florida’s southwest coast Wednesday, lashing the state with heavy rain and pushing a devastating storm surge after strengthening to the threshold of the most dangerous Category 5 status.

EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT CONTACTS

South Carolina Division of Emergency Management: www.scemd.org. 803-737-8500. Twitter: @SCEMD. Facebook: www.facebook.com/SCEMD/. Instagram: @scemd. Email: WebAlert@emd.sc.gov.

Federal Emergency Management Agency: www.fema.gov. South Carolina/ Region 4 general contact: 770-220-5200. FEMA helpline: 1-800-621-3362. Twitter: @fema. Facebook: www.facebook.com/FEMA/. Region 4 email: FEMA-R4-Info@fema.dhs.gov.

Gov. Henry McMaster’s Office: https://governor.sc.gov/. 803-734-2100. Twitter: @scgovernorpress. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HenryMcMaster/.

National Hurricane Center: www.nhc.noaa.gov. Twitter: @NWSNHC and @NHC_Atlantic. Facebook: www.facebook.com/NWSNHC.

National Aeronautics and Space Administration Hurricane Resource Page: www.nasa.gov/ mission_pages/hurricane s/main/index.html. Twitter: @NASAAtmosphere.

Federal Alliance for Safe Homes: https://www.flash.org/. 850-385-7233. Twitter: @FederalAlliance. Facebook: www.facebook.com/pg/federalalliance/. Email: info@flash.org.

South Carolina Department of Public Safety: https://scdps.sc.gov/. Real time traffic updates: http://realtimetraffic.scdps.gov/smartwebclient/. South Carolina Highway Patrol contact: 803-896-7920. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scdps.pio/. Twitter: https://twitter.com/SCDPS_PIO.

Palmetto Electric Cooperative: https://www.palmetto.coop/. If you have already checked your main breaker and are experiencing a power outage, call PowerTouch at 866-445-5551 or login to MyEnergy Online at https://epayment.palmetto.coop/onlineportal/. If you see a downed power line, call 9-1-1. Hilton Head Office: 843-681-5551. New River Office: 843-208-5551. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PalmettoElectricCoop?ref=sgm. Twitter: @PalmettoCoop.

Dominion Energy: https://www.dominionenergy.com/south-carolina/vanities: (Features South Carolina programs, safety tips, information on outages, emergency contacts for downed lines and detailed information and links for how to report a power outage in your area, as well as other preparation tips and helpful links.) South Carolina homepage: https://www.dominionenergy.com/south-carolina. Downed/Sparking Lines: 888-333-4465. Gas Leaks: 800-815-0083. Map of outages in the area: https://outagemap.dominionenergysc.com/. Twitter: @domenergysc. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dominionenergy.

South Carolina Office of Attorney General: https://www.scag.gov/. To report price gouging at gas stations: pricegouging@scag.gov, call 803-737-3953, Tweet @SCPriceGouging or more information at https://www.scag.gov/about-the-office/news/how-to-report-suspected-price-gouging/. Twitter: @SCAttyGenOffice. Facebook: www.facebook.com/SCAttyGen.

LOCAL AGENCIES

Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office: https://bcso.net/. For emergencies, call 9-1-1. For non-emergency dispatch, call 843-524-2777. For a routine law enforcement question, call 843-255-3200 for Northern Beaufort County and 843-255-3300 for Southern Beaufort County. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BeaufortCountySheriffsOfficeSC/. Twitter: @bcsopio.

Town of Hilton Head Island: Storm updates: https://www.hiltonheadislandsc.gov/hurricane/updates/. Flood hazard guide: https://www.hiltonheadislandsc.gov/flood/. Hilton Head Island Hurricane Resource Center: https://www.hiltonheadislandsc.gov/hurricane/. Have any additional questions or concerns after checking the provided sources? Contact Thomas Dunn, Hilton Head’s Emergency Manager, at ThomasD@hiltonheadislandsc.gov or 843-682-5156. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/townofhhi/. Twitter: @TownofHHI.

Town of Bluffton: www.town of bluffton.sc.gov and https://www.townofbluffton.sc.gov/656/Hurricane-Season. Information brochure: https://www.townofbluffton.sc.gov/DocumentCenter/View/2020/Town-of-Bluffton-Hurricane-Season-Information-Brochure-PDF. Town of Bluffton Evacuation routes: https://www.townofbluffton.sc.gov/DocumentCenter/View/1397/Town-of-Bluffton-Evacuation-Routes-PDF. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TownBlufftonSC. Twitter: @TownofBluffton.

City of Beaufort: https://www.cityofbeaufort.org/. Hurricane readiness information: https://www.cityofbeaufort.org/602/Hurricane-Readiness. 843-525-7070. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CityBeaufortSC. Twitter: @CityBeaufortSC.

Bluffton Police Department: https://www.townofbluffton.sc.gov/211/Police. For emergencies, call 9-1-9. For non-emergencies, call 843-524-2777. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/blufftonpolice/. Twitter: @BlufftonPolice.

Hilton Head Island/Beaufort County Reentry hotline: 833-254-6400 for more information. Residents must make sure to bring either a photo ID that contains their local address or a utility bill with their name and island address on it to reenter Hilton Head Island.

Bluffton Police Department: https://www.townofbluffton.sc.gov/211/Police. For emergencies, call 9-1-1. For non-emergencies, call 843-524-2777. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/blufftonpolice/. Twitter: @BlufftonPolice.

Town of Port Royal: https://www.portroyal.org/ and https://www.portroyal.org/259/Emergency-Preparedness. 843-986-2200. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PortRoyalSC/. Twitter: @TownofPortRoyal.

EMERGENCY NOTIFICATION SUBSCRIPTIONS

SCEMD CodeRED emergency alerts: https://www.scemd.org/stay-informed/emergency-alerts/codered-alerts/

BCSO nixle alerts: https://bcso.net/beaufort-county-sheriffs-office/advisories/

Town of Hilton Head Island emergency alerts: https://www.hiltonheadislandsc.gov/services/esubscribe.cfm

Town of Bluffton emergency alerts: https://www.townofbluffton.sc.gov/AlertCenter.aspx

City of Beaufort emergency alerts: https://www.cityofbeaufort.org/AlertCenter.aspx

Town of Port Royal emergency alerts: https://www.portroyal.org/AlertCenter.aspx

HURRICANE-RELATED RESOURCE APPS

SC Emergency Manager: This is the official app of SCEMD. It allows users to build emergency plans, keep track of supplies, stay connected to friends and family and have access to a tools section which contains a flashlight, emergency locator whistle and the ability to report any damage to emergency officials. Coastal residents can use the maps feature to locate the nearest emergency shelters, know when they are open and locate their zone. The app also has the ability to function without the need of a data connection, which can be helpful in case of emergency.

Apple App Store download: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/sc-emergency-manager/id1378105431

Google Play download: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.scemd.app

Clime: NOAA Weather Radar Live: This app allows users to view animated real-time weather radar images and hyperlocal storm patterns as well as see weather highlights from your lock screen.

Apple App Store download: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/noaa-weather-radar-weather-forecast-hd-radar/id749133753

Weather - The Weather Channel: The go-to source for anything weather-related. This app helps keep you up-to-date with radar, weather tracking, videos and more. It is offered for iPhone/iPad and Android.

Apple App Store download: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/the-weather-channel-forecast-radar-alerts/id295646461

American Red Cross: The American Red Cross has several helpful apps free to download that are helpful in case of emergency.

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