Pender County issues a State of Emergency
Pender County issued a State of Emergency for Hurricane Irene at 4:30 p.m. Thursday. Emergency Management is making preparations for a major hurricane, which is expected to be a Category 3. Citizens are encouraged to begin preparations for Hurricane Irene. Weather forecasts indicate Pender County will begin to experience hurricane-related weather as early as late Friday evening and it is expected that Hurricane Irene will make landfall north of Pender County early Saturday. Weather advisories state the strongest weather can be expected early Saturday, which may extend into Saturday evening. Pender County may experience high winds between 40-60 miles per hour at the beaches and less inland with approximately two to five inches of rain and two- to three-foot storm surges at the beach. The Town of Topsail Beach issued a voluntary evacuation at 10:00 a.m. this morning and the Town of Surf City issued a voluntary evacuation at 2:00 p.m. No mandatory evacuations have been ordered at this time. Pender County is prepared to open three emergency shelters Friday afternoon and the times of shelter openings will be announced when that determination is made. Shelter locations include: · Burgaw Middle School located at 500 S. Wright Street, Burgaw · Malpass Corner Elementary School located at 4992 Malpass Corner Rd, Burgaw · Topsail Elementary School located at 17385 U.S. Hwy. 17, Hampstead SPECIAL NEEDS Persons with special needs for evacuation and sheltering can receive assistance through the Pender County Health Department by contacting Shirley Steele at HYPERLINK “tel:910-259-1207″910-259-1207. Caregivers must remain with the individuals during the entire transportation and sheltering process. PET-FRIENDLY SHELTER Pets will be accepted at the Burgaw Middle School emergency shelter. This shelter accepts cats and dogs only, no exotic pets. Pet owners must bring food for their pets and evidence of current rabies vaccinations and remain at the shelter with their pet. No other emergency shelters will allow pets. CLOSURES Pender County Schools will release students at noon on Friday, August 26. The following Pender County offices will be closed on Saturday, August 27: · Pender County Library branches in Burgaw and Hampstead · All Solid Waste Convenience Sites and Transfer Station · Animal Shelter INFORMATION IN SPANISH Citizens who need information in Spanish can contact the Emergency Management’s Latino Outreach line at 910-259-0618. The Emergency Operations Center was partially activated Thursday morning and a full activation is expected to take place at 1:00 PM on Friday. Emergency Management moved into its new facility located at 805 Ridgewood Avenue in Burgaw on Thursday, August 24. For information, contact Pender County Emergency Management at 910-259-1210 or visit the website at www.pendercountync.gov.
