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Evacuation Checklist
- Make sure to have plenty of gas: Gas up early to avoid empty pumps and long lines. If possible, bring gas with you in a gas-safe container meant for this purpose.
- Bring water and non-perishable foods. Get them early and be ready to put your plastic kit in the car and go.
- Bring copies of prescription medications and any medical supplies you might need.
- Bring copies of vital documents: wills, deeds, homeowners insurance, proofs of residence, birth certificates, etc. Pack them in a watertight plastic bag.
- Pack a first-aid kit, flashlight, battery-operated radio and batteries.
- Get cash. ATMs may not be up and running during a power outage.
- Have a communications plan. During a storm, contacting out-of-state family members may be easiest, so designate a distant family member as your main point of contact when family members are checking in.
Where to find official Hilton Head/Bluffton information
- For announcements during a storm threat and evacuation, call the Island Packet-sponsored number at 843-706-8223 or 1-800-706-8223. (This hotline is in both English and Spanish.)
- The Beaufort County-hosted re-entry hotline is 1-800-963-5023.
- Announcements will also be posted on www.co.beaufort.sc.us. If that website goes down, the county will have a back-up website at www.bcgov.wordpress.com. The state emergency management division will also post announcements at www.scemd.org.
- The town has launched a special Twitter account — to be used only in the event of an emergency — at twitter.com/HHIemergency.
Bonus insurance hint
- Insurance companies won’t write new policies if there’s a named storm anywhere in the Atlantic, so review yours now. Understanding your policy is an important step that many take for granted, and it’s one of the most important things you can do to protect what’s yours.
