Hilton Head Monthly Magazine

Don’t wait until the sirens sound to prepare your house, family and Fido for hurricane season. Local officials are urging residents to act now.

William Winn has given the same speech at the Hurricane Forum & Expo for 30 years. But this year, it was more passionate than ever. He was even referred to as the “hurricane evangelist.”

Winn, director of Beaufort County’s Emergency Management, was on fire as he broke out of his mild-mannered, Clark Kent-persona and proclaimed the hurricane preparedness gospel. Winn’s message was personal: Prepare or prepare to be a loser. Hurricane season runs June 1 through Nov. 30. Historically, the Lowcountry’s danger zone lasts from the last two weeks of August through September.

“We are all hit by economic realities this year but this is not the time to skimp on your insurance,” Winn said during the Expo, which was held in early May and is sponsored by the Hilton Head-Regional Chamber of Commerce.

Hurricane Katrina was a wake-up call. People don’t fully recover from natural disasters unless they take personal responsibility now, he said.

“We can do a lot to help you; but we can’t make you do anything,” Winn said. “You are the only person who can help you fully recover, but you have to do it yourself. The state and the federal government will be there to help, but they are not there for getting you back to where you want to be.”

As any good preacher would do, Winn pointed out the positives of preparing for the season. He said to assess your property now and to plan for the worst if you are hit. “Hurricanes can be an opportunity, if you let them be,” Winn said.

This is the time when property owners can renovate, rebuild and reconstruct parts of their house the way they want them to be. Sit down with your insurance agent to ensure that your property has what it needs to fully rebound.

“Skimping now may be your quality of life later,” Winn said. Most importantly, in the event of an evacuation, know where you want to go, what you are taking and how you are going to get there. “If I say it’s a great time to visit your grandkids or relatives, know that is my secret message to get out now, before you are stuck in traffic,” Winn said.

Much like the Scriptures, the tenets of hurricane preparedness don’t really change and neither does Winn’s message. But it’s a message that he hopes people never forget.

“We can do a lot to help you; but we can’t make you do anything.
You are the only person who can help you fully recover,
but you have to do it yourself.

— William Winn, director of Beaufort
County’s Emergency Management