North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper has declared a State of Emergency for all 100 counties as the state prepares for almost certain impacts from Hurricane Irma early next week.
“There is a lot we still don’t know about this storm, but we do know that North Carolina can expect to feel some sort of effects as soon as early next week, and now is the time to get prepared,” Gov. Cooper said. “Wherever you live in North Carolina – from the mountains to the piedmont to the coast – you need to take this storm seriously, and you need to start preparing for some type of impact.”
Gov. Cooper said the State of Emergency will go into effect at 8 a.m. on Thursday, September 7 in order to facilitate the movement of any resources that may be needed to respond to the storm. It also waives truck weight, size and hours of service restrictions so that vehicles carrying essential supplies such as food, medicine, fuel or transporting livestock or crops can get their jobs done quickly.
While much uncertainty still exists about Hurricane Irma’s storm track, meteorologists are predicting that portions of the state could experience wind and rain from the tropical system as early as Monday.
“Our emergency response teams are seasoned and ready. They have been tested repeatedly over the past year and our colleagues are ready to respond as called,” Public Safety Secretary Erik Hooks said. “But we cannot weather this storm alone. This is a tremendous storm. We need residents and visitors to ensure they are ready: check your emergency plans, restock your emergency kits, and pay close attention in the coming days to the weather forecast.”
The state’s Emergency Management team began coordinating storm preparations over the Labor Day weekend with county partners, state agencies and South Carolina, Virginia and officials from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. They have requested a FEMA incident management team to expedite any federal assets that may be needed to respond to the storm.
State transportation officials also have placed crews on standby, been preparing their equipment and checking culverts to remove debris that may clog drainage pipes.
Follow N.C. Emergency Management on Twitter and Facebook for the latest on Hurricane Irma. You can also get real-time traffic and weather on the ReadyNC mobile app.
Read Executive Order No. 20 and Executive Order No. 21 to learn more about the State of Emergency declaration.