FEATURE
CHUYN/ROYALTY-FREE/GETTY IAMGES
QC
DISASTER RESPONSE
When a Hurricane Hits
Florida’s Emergency Management Director gives guidance
T
he Florida City and County Managers Association recently provided a podcast on the upcoming hurricane season and how to prepare. Local government managers heard from Kevin Guthrie, the Director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management. The interview was facilitated by Steve Vancore, President of VancoreJones Communications. Here is a selection from the discussion:
Vancore: What is some advice you can give to local government
when a storm is imminent?
Guthrie: So I want to talk about that imminent landfall, and then I want to actually talk about the time that the storm’s impacting because there are some things you can do. So the storm is imminent, so we are now at that point where you’ve got those last-minute evacuation orders. You’ve got those last-minute things that you need to go out and check and ensure people’s welfare. But you’ve also got to remember … I had to make a very unpopular decision in Pasco County at the local level about ceasing emergency services. Nothing weighs on my mind more than when the time comes for me to have to cease those emergency services. So think about when that happens for you, it should be in policy. 54 QUALITY CITIES | THIRD QUARTER 2021
Vancore: So what do you mean by “cease emergency services”? Guthrie: So, for instance, in the counties that I came from before, when the winds reach 45 miles an hour sustained, which means one minute or longer, we do not send out emergency services because fire engines can blow over. Rescue units can blow over. Law enforcement officers have no business standing out on the side of the road or trying to handle a traffic crash with 45-miles-an-hour sustained winds. The last thing we ever want to have happen is a branch falls off a tree and gets carried and hits a police officer in the head and, unfortunately, kills a police officer. Vancore: You hear this: “Well, why not declare a state of emergency? Why not do this when … ?” Because there’s a tradeoff here, which is we’re considering this a state of emergency,
