NEW HANOVER COUNTY, NC (WWAY) — New Hanover County officials are sharing their advice for residents ahead of Hurricane Dorian – prepare, don’t panic.
Even though it’s still a few days away, New Hanover County is making sure they’re prepared for Hurricane Dorian.
At a press conference Monday, they shared some of their plans of action for the coming week.
County Manager Chris Coudriet says the Emergency Operations Center has been partially active since Monday at 12 p.m.
Coudriet says they will likely declare a state of emergency Tuesday 5 p.m.
With some people still fighting to recover from Hurricane Florence, he says those people are one of the county’s top concerns.
As Dorian approaches our coast, Coudriet says the major impacts the county expects come in the form of rain and storm surges.
“We don’t have a lot of saturated soil, so we can take on more rain than what, perhaps, we otherwise have been able to do,” Coudriet said. “But nonetheless, we’re concerned about that. We’re concerned about storm surge, which is always the priority threat for us. I believe this event could have more storm surge impact.”
Coudriet says the beach towns in the county are discussing evacuation options.
In preparation, the county will be activating its Emergency Operations Center starting Tuesday at 7 a.m.
Also starting Tuesday, all county offices will be closed until further notice.