Time’s Running Out to Prepare for the 2020 Hurricane Season

July 27, 2020

While all eyes are on the Coronavirus pandemic raging through the United States with record-breaking numbers, another record-breaking hurricane season is also looming just offshore. This week, South Texas is recovering from a drenching hit by Hurricane Hanna, Hawaii is holding its breath as Hurricane Douglas sweeps past, and what could be Tropical Storm Isaias is already churning in the Atlantic. This is all after tropical storm Gonzalo set a record for being the earliest-named “G” storm of the Atlantic hurricane season – one of a few records already set this year.

While Hanna was only a Category 1 storm when it impacted the mainland United States, the trend we’re seeing so far in 2020 is bigger storms forming earlier than normal in the season. Peak hurricane season is traditionally mid-August to mid-October, which means time is running out to get your organization or community prepared and ready to respond.

Lessons from Hurricane Florence

The Town of Belhaven is a small Southern town located in the Inner Banks region in Beaufort County, N.C. In September 2018, Hurricane Florence caused catastrophic flooding in the Carolinas, and Belhaven saw floods of three to five feet throughout the entire town of 1,600 residents. Belhaven’s town manager had only been on the job for three weeks, and she called the situation chaotic.

“It was during the chaos of that situation that I learned we had no way of communicating with our residents about potential threats, evacuations, or anything else. Immediately following Florence, knowing we still had several months of hurricane season, I sought to find an easy way to communicate with our residents… Regroup offered exactly what I was looking for.” — Lynn Davis, Town Manager

Download the full Town of Belhaven Case Study to learn more about how community leaders implemented Regroup’s solution within a matter of a couple weeks to ensure more effective communication ahead of their next storm. Critical notifications like those sent through the Regroup platform can facilitate evacuations, help people prepare properly, and enable all-clear notices so life can resume as soon as conditions are safe.

Download Case Study