Town of Islip Hosts Hurricane Seminar

With Hurricane Earl approaching the shores of Long Island, The Town of Islip wants to ensure all residents have an emergency strategy intact for when dangerous weather occurs.  Extensive plans for flooding, thunderstorms, power outages and shelter refuge, were unveiled to the public on Tuesday evening at the Bay Shore- Brightwaters Public Library. 

Rick Gimbl, director of Emergency Management for the Town of Islip , led the hour-long hurricane preparedness seminar, which not only addressed evacuation plans, but updates on Hurricane Earl's path as well.

"Right now, the last advisory we got with the National Weather Service was we're looking at it blowing 150-200 miles off Montauk Point," Gimbl said.  "We expect the tides to be low because we're in between two moon cycles and we expect, maybe, 35-45 mph winds with this storm. 

"We should have rain starting Thursday night, all day Friday and ending Saturday morning which should leave us with a beautful weekend."

Gimbl said that the town expects some washover for Fire Island from the rip currents and the surf, but thinks the storm is going to move by the area quickly and  that the predicted north winds will blow the ocean out, instead of toward the shore.

RELATED: Hurricane Earl could reach West Islip by Friday

Here are some of the important news and notes made by Gimbl during the seminar:

• The importance of disaster kits.  Such kits should include a gallon of water per person, cash, important documents (insurance papers, deeds, etc.), canned food, medicine, first aid supplies, credit cards and a battery operated radio. 

• Gimbl also addressed the pet situation during emergency situations.  The Town of Islip offers shelters at Ducks Stadium, Brentwood Recreation Center, and Suffolk Community College Campus in Brentwood.  Owners are asked to provide leashes, food, cages and vaccination documents for their pets. 

• Suffolk County is working on a new system called Red Alert, which will reach out to residents with important warnings regarding emergency situations.  "We actually call your house and leave a message on your home phone, or your cell phone or computer," Gimbl said.
• Every family should have an emergency hotline within their extended family.  It is important for everyone to share the same number of an out-of-state family member to let them know your status and whereabouts in case of an emergency or evacuation. 
• Shutting off utilities is imperative.  That includes electricity, water and natural gas.
• The Community Response Team has over 200 trained volunteers and Suffolk County has 70 trained volunteers in shelter operations.  If you would like to join as a volunteer, contact the Suffolk County Red Cross. 

 "We're very proactive, that's my motto," Gimbl said.  "Let's get going and we can always scale down if we have to.  Once you have to scale up, it [preparing] gets a lot harder to do."

Be sure to check back with Patch for the latest Hurricane Earl updates.