Cameron County Judge Carlos Cascos is shown during an emergency management meeting held at the San Benito Municipal Building Monday morning. (Staff photo by Francisco E. Jimenez)
By FRANCISCO E. JIMENEZ
Staff Writer
reporter@sbnewspaper.com
What is Cameron County doing to prepare for hurricane season right now?
That question was asked by Cameron County Judge Carlos Cascos to a room full of officials from multiple departments as well as state authorities at the San Benito Municipal Building on Monday.
The occasion was an Emergency Management Meeting, held in conjunction with the start of the 2011 hurricane season, which began on June 1 and ends on November 30.
Fire Marshal Henry Lopez hosted the event on Monday, which included various speakers including Cascos, Warning Coordination Meteorologist Barry Goldsmith of the National Weather Service in Brownsville, and Jorge Jalomo of the Texas Department of Public Safety Division of Emergency Management.
“We’re hoping to have a very uneventful hurricane season, but that’s not always the case,” said Lopez.
“I’ll bet you that 80 percent of the people here do not have personal evacuation plan for their families,” said Cascos. “The reason you don’t have it is because you spend too much time trying to take care of everybody else. You have to take care of yourself first.”
Cascos encouraged anyone in need of help evacuating during a disaster to call 2-11. “It is not just for home-bound people. It’s for anyone who can’t leave on their own,” said Cascos. “(The number) 2-11 means anyone who needs any type of assistance.”
Cascos also reminded people not to forget about their pets when evacuating. His overall message was for the general public to be prepared for any type of disaster that may present itself.
“What I’m really telling folks right now is to start buying whatever you need to buy today,” Cascos said. “Start saving about three to five dollars per person per week. The reason for that is that most of us are living paycheck to paycheck. If you start allocating your money little by little, when the time comes, it’s not going to hit you as hard.”
Barry Goldsmith of the National Weather Service in Brownsville gave a presentation which showed a 70 percent likelihood of an “above average season.”
According to Goldsmith, multiple organizations are predicting 12 to 16 storms, seven to nine hurricanes and three to five major hurricanes this season.
Goldsmith stated that the most dangerous time of a hurricane is after the actual storm. “Do not return to damaged areas until you are allowed to by local officials,” said Goldsmith.
He encouraged people to visit www.hurricanes.gov and www.weather.gov/rgv for any information to help the public prepare for a hurricane and stay informed during a hurricane. He also stressed that the public visit the U.S. National Weather Service Brownsville Texas Facebook page for up to date information on anything storm related.
To see this story in print, pick up a copy of the June 8 edition of the San Benito News. Or view our E-Edition by clicking here.
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