Important Hurricane Irma Information

We still don’t know where exactly Irma is going to land, but that’s exactly why you should be preparing now.  The 5 a.m. update from the National Weather Service spelled out what we all should know by now - the threat of impacts to Florida continue to increase.

Just last year, Hurricane Matthew was an intense and deadly storm, killing more than 500 people and causing more than $15 billion in damage. At its most intense, Matthew was a Category 5 with winds of 165 m.p.h. The storm made landfall in Haiti and Cuba as a Category 4, and then weakened as it curled along the Florida coast.. When Matthew made landfall in South Carolina, it was as a Category 1, but the storm was still one of the most costly disasters of 2016.

Hurricane Irma is projected to be a much more powerful storm whenever and wherever it impacts Florida. It is already one of the strongest hurricanes ever recorded in the Atlantic, with winds over 180 m.p.h.

Please take the safety of yourself and your family seriously. If your job is one that requires you to work during the storm we thank you for your service. If you do work during the storm or the recovery, we want to ensure you are supported by your AFSCME family as much as possible. Please email AFSCME.Florida@gmail.com where you are working and what you are doing.

Hurricane prep/supply lists:

• Ready.Gov: what to do before, during, after hurricane: https://www.ready.gov/hurricanes
• https://www.ready.gov/build-a-kit
• (PDF): http://floridadisaster.org/EMTOOLS/Severe/documents/Supply%20Kit.pdf

How to protect your papers and possessions:

• http://www.aarp.org/money/investing/info-08-2012/protect-important-documents-and-valuables.html

Disaster Preparedness maps, including evacuation route maps

• http://www.floridadisaster.org/publicmapping/index.htm 

The Florida Emergency Information Line (FEIL): 1-800-342-3557

• Toll-free hotline activated at the time of an emergency to provide an additional resource for those in Florida to receive accurate and up-to-date information regarding an emergency or disaster situation impacting the state

Find an Open Shelter

• http://www.redcross.org/get-help/disaster-relief-and-recovery-services/find-an-open-shelter

How to stay updated:

• http://www.floridadisaster.org
• Follow @iflyMIA on Twitter for the latest airport closures, flight delays, and more Irma changes.  
• Report price gouging to the state hotline: 1-866-9-NO-SCAM

Closures:

• The Miami Herald has an ongoing list of closures for schools, child care programs, government offices and more: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/weather/hurricane/article171326777.html
• Gov. Rick Scott directed state offices to be closed in all 67 Florida counties this Friday in preparation for Hurricane Irma, his office announced Tuesday night
• AFSCME Florida’s office in Miami Springs is closed

Please, take care and be safe. If you do work during the storm or the recovery, we want to ensure you are supported by your AFSCME family as much as possible. Please email AFSCME.Florida@gmail.com where you are working and what you are doing.