For years, Flagler County, Fla. has used local schools as shelter space during hurricanes.
On Sept. 23, though, Flagler County officials opened a $10 million Expo Hall in Bunnell at the Flagler Fairgrounds, where about 500 evacuees could be housed the next time a hurricane strikes.
Here's what to know
As reported by The Daytona Beach News-Journal, the new facility is intended to provide a more reliable place for residents during hurricanes and other natural disasters. In past evacuations, the Bunnell and Rymfire elementary schools have been used as backup shelters. Now, County leaders expect the Expo Hall to reduce the community's dependence on school campuses.
The 15,200-square-foot building has more than 10,000 square feet available for sheltering and community activities, along with a 524-square-foot kitchen, storage space, and restrooms with showers, per the News-Journal.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, Emergency Management Director Jonathan Lord said the county wanted the building to improve emergency readiness while also serving the community's needs more broadly, The Daytona Beach News-Journal reported. He explained, "We envisioned a facility that would fundamentally rewrite the playbook on how our county handles emergency resilience while expanding community opportunities."
More background
Lord said in an interview with the News-Journal, "Let's say a Category 1 hurricane is coming. We'll determine a couple of days in advance what areas are going to evacuate. We'll determine a time that the evacuation will start, [and] that would be the same time the shelter opens… A day or so in advance, we'll turn this facility into a shelter."
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To prepare the site, volunteers and county employees would set up cots, staff the kitchen and help operate the shelter. Backup power is part of the facility as well, with a generator that has enough fuel to run for three days.
Where can I learn more?
These stories look at how nearby communities and organizations are preparing shelter and housing options for hurricanes.
• At Jungle Friends in Florida, hurricane-proof shelter facilities protected primates when major storms threatened.
• In southwest Florida, completely powered by solar, Babcock Ranch rode out Hurricane Ian.
• On Florida's coast, the state of one 'hurricane-proof' home stood out after repeated storms.
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