Clay County Emergency Management

"Our Mission, through the delivery of programs and services, is to protect the lives and property of our citizens and visitors from the adverse effects of fire, medical, environmental, and other emergencies, both natural and man made, while providing a safe and healthy work place."

Latest News And Updates

Hurricane Season 2008

It’s that time of year again…Hurricane Season officially starts June 1st and will run through November 30th. The State of Florida, let alone Clay County has been blessed with uneventful seasons during the pass two years, but Emergency Management Officials worry as to when our luck will run out.

Federal, State and local Emergency Management agencies have made great strides in learning from past mistakes and improving strategies for dealing with future hurricane preparedness, response and recovery issues. However, the greatest piece of the puzzle, individual preparedness, is still missing. As shown in a recent National American Red Cross Study, a mere seven percent of Americans prepare themselves and their families with a disaster plan.

The reality is that a direct hurricane strike to Clay County would be a bad situation, causing distress, hardship, even injury and loss of life. These adversities could be lessened if individuals would take the time out to prepare themselves, their families and their homes from a strike by doing the following things:

1. Prepare a disaster supply kit which should include items such as nonperishable food and water, manual can openers, blankets, clothing, toiletries, cleansing wipes, flashlights, batteries, a NOAA weather radio, first aid kit, weeks supply of medications, cash, spare keys, and important documents kept in a water-proof container.
2. Prepare a family disaster plan outlining how your family will communicate during a disaster, where you will meet, where you will go, what out of state contact you will utilize to keep track of your whereabouts, what you will do with elderly relatives in nursing homes and assisted living facilities, etc.,
3. If you know someone with special medical needs and recognize that he or she may have to evacuate their home or would require assistance during a hurricane, have them fill out or assist them in filling out an application to use the County’s Special Needs Shelter. You can obtain this application by calling (904) 284-7703 or toll free at 1-877-252-9362.
4. Check your home’s insurance policy. If you feel that you may not have adequate insurance to repair or replace your home in the event of a hurricane, you may want to look into purchasing more insurance. Keep in mind that most policies do not cover flood damage. Even if you are not required, look into obtaining a flood policy through the National Flood Insurance Program.
5. Become familiar with your evacuation zone. It is important to understand that if you live next to a large body of water such as the St. Johns River, Doctors Inlet or Black Creek, or if you live in a mobile home, you are considered in an evacuation zone. Should an evacuation be ordered as a result of a threatening storm, residents residing in such zones should flee to a safer area or if open, to an evacuation shelter.

Should you have any questions about how to prepare for hurricane season, please contact the Clay County Division of Emergency Management at (904) 284-7703 or toll free at 1-877-252-9362.

Keep in mind that prior to Hurricane Katrina in 2005, the Louisiana and Mississippi Gulf Coast area had not been struck by a major hurricane since Camile in 1969. The Florida First Coast has not been struck by a major hurricane since Dora in 1964. We are overdue. Are you ready?

Purchasing Flood Insurance
Emergency Management Officials strongly urge all Clay County residents to look in to purchasing flood insurance, whether or not their homes are located in a designated flood plain. For more information about how to obtain a flood insurance policy, please contact the National Flood Insurance Program by calling 1-888-379-9531 or visit their website at www.floodsmart.gov.

If you experienced flooding or noticed water creep uncomfortably close to your home, think now about potential mitigation activities that would lessen the impact of future floods. Such activities could include things like elevating your home, elevating appliances such as air conditioners and hot water heaters or elevating your home’s wiring systems. For more information on these and other flood mitigation activities, please contact the Federal Alliance for Safe Homes (FLASH) AT 1-877-221-SAFE, or visit their website at www.flash.org.

NOAA to Provide More Specific Warning Information for Severe Weather
NOAA’s National Weather Service will begin issuing more geographically specific warnings for tornadoes, severe thunderstorms, floods, and marine hazards starting October 1. The new “storm-based warnings” will allow forecasters to pinpoint the specific area where the threats are highest, reducing the area warned by as much as 70 percent when compared to today’s county-by-county system.

“These are potentially deadly, short duration events that can develop very rapidly,” said Vickie Nadolski, acting deputy director of NOAA’s National Weather Service. “Our technology has evolved to support better warnings, and we are adapting to meet public expectation to receive weather information on demand.”

“By focusing the threat, we can reduce the warned area by as much as 70 percent, which equates to more than $100 million in savings to the public,” said Vice Admiral Conrad C. Lautenbacher Jr., under secretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere and NOAA administrator. “The real bottom line is that this will potentially save more lives. Eliminating areas needlessly warned builds confidence that you do indeed need to take action when a warning is issued.”

Storm-based warnings are displayed graphically and are extremely adaptable to cell phones, PDAs, and the Web. The emergency Alert System is geared toward counties and NOAA Weather Radio All Hazards will still alarm if there is a warning anywhere in the county. However, text and audio messages will provide more specific information about where in the county the storm is, and the direction the storm is moving. Storm-based warnings will reference landmarks such as highways, shopping centers, and parks, and will use directional delimiters to indicate county location.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, an agency of the U.S. Commerce Department, is celebrating 200 years of science and service to the nation. From the establishment of the Survey of the Coast in 1807 by Thomas Jefferson to the formation of the Weather Bureau and the Commission of Fish and Fisheries in the 1870s, much of America's scientific heritage is rooted in NOAA.

NOAA is dedicated to enhancing economic security and national safety through the prediction and research of weather and climate-related events and information service delivery for transportation, and by providing environmental stewardship of our nation's coastal and marine resources. Through the emerging Global Earth Observation System of Systs (GEOSS), NOAA is working with its federal partners, more than 70 countries and the European Commission to develop a global monitoring network that is as integrated as the planet it observes, predicts and protects.

Small Business Administration Loans Available to Clay County Businesses
If you are a Clay County Small Business Owner who has incurred losses as a result of the 2007 drought or 2007 wildfires, please be advised that you may be eligible for Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDLs). EIDLs are working capital loans made available by the Small Business Administration (SBA) to meet necessary financial obligations which cannot be met because of a disaster.

Eligible small businesses may qualify for loans up to $1.5 million. Interest rates are available at 4 percent with loan terms up to 30 years. The SBA determines eligibility for loans based on the size and type of the business and its financial resources. Loan amounts and terms are set by SBA and based upon each applicant’s financial condition.

Applications and program information are available by calling the SBA’s Customer Service Center at 1-800-659-2955 (1-800-877-8339 for the hearing impaired), Monday-Friday from 8 a.m. until 9 p.m.; Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. EDT. Business loan applications can also be downloaded from the SBA website at www.sba.gov/services/disasterassistance. Completed applications should be mailed to: U.S. Small Business Administration, Processing and Disbursement Center, 14925 Kingsport Road, Forth Worth, TX 76155.

Completed loan applications for the 2007 drought must be returned to the SBA no later than May 16, 2008. Completed loan applications for the 2007 wildfires must be returned to the SBA no later than March 25, 2008.

Important Contact Information

Clay County Emergency Management Phone Numbers:

Phone: (904)284-7703
Toll Free: 1-877-252-9362
Fax: (904)284-1487