From Feb. 7 through 11, the state of Georgia is observing Severe Weather Preparedness Week, encouraging Georgians to learn about and understand the threats of severe weather and how to prepare for various severe weather events.
According to a press release by Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency (GEMA/HS), the organization is partnering with the National Weather Service (NWS) to teach citizens how to handle any of several severe weather events.
“Georgia has seen severe weather happen at any time of the year,” GEMA/HS Director Chris Stallings said in the release. “We always want our citizens to be well prepared before any type of weather event strikes, so they have ample time to review or change their plan of action if needed.”
The GEMA/HS and the NWS have designated each day of the week as a different theme, addressing safety protocols for several different types of severe weather scenarios.
Monday Feb. 7 is designated as Family Preparedness and NOAA Weather Radio Day, Tuesday Feb. 8 is Thunderstorm Safety, Wednesday Feb 9 is Tornado Safety with a statewide tornado drill at 9 a.m., Thursday Feb 10 is Lightning Safety, and Friday Feb. 11 is Flood Safety.
The NWS website includes a page for Severe Weather Preparedness Week, complete with a list of important information on how to prepare for each type of potential weather disaster. The full list can be viewed at https://www.weather.gov/ffc/swpw_2022.
The release added that Severe Weather Preparedness Week isn’t just for individuals or families, but that GEMA/HS encourages schools, businesses and other organizations to use the week as an opportunity to evaluate their preparedness for severe weather events.
“Local emergency management agencies are also a great resource for information or tips to help families, schools and organizations stay prepared,” the release said.
In Dawson County, Dawson County Fire and Emergency Services posts updates and information regularly on social media. The county also has options to sign up for emergency notifications through Smart911, which is a system designed to make phone calls to people in specific areas in the event of a severe weather system like a tornado, fire or flood.
To learn more or to sign up for the Dawson County Emergency Services emergency notification, go to https://www.dawsoncounty.org/emergency/page/emergency-notification.
To get social media updates from Dawson County Fire and Emergency Services, follow the organization on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/dawsoncountyes.