Charlotte County plans to staff EOC as precaution for storm

Charlotte County will have its emergency operations center staffed Saturday as a precaution for Tropical Storm Laura.

The shifting cone of uncertainty won’t impact anything at Charlotte County’s EOC. Activation plans are up in the air, but the EOC is still staffed this weekend, just in case.

“We’ve notified vendors to be sure that they could deliver on time,” said Patrick Fuller, the director of Charlotte County emergency management, of some of Charlotte County’s evacuation shelters. “We ensure that we have staff on standby ready to go. We have minimal equipment in place.”

Shoppers filled the aisles at Home Depot in Punta Gorda to end the week. The good news is generators and plywood are in stock.

Bob Teichert told us he knows better than to wait for the last minute to prepare. Getting hit by Hurricane Charley will do that to you.

“That’s me, ‘Mr. Prepared,’ seriously,” Teichert said. “I got all my water ready. I got all my canned goods ready.”

Evacuation shelters will look a bit different with the pandemic. Families should be ready for temperature checks and health screenings at the door and reduced occupancy inside.

County staff continues to communicate with other Southwest Florida counties, in the event Charlotte needs to declare a local state of emergency, and they’re updating social media to make sure everyone stays informed.

“If they haven’t already developed their plan, now is the time to do so, Fuller said.

Charlotte County Board of County Commissioners plans to also meet 9 a.m. Saturday to discuss declaring a local state of emergency.