Pinellas County conducts hurricane emergency exercise

Pinellas County and representatives from multiple agencies and jurisdictions simulated preparation and response to a Category 3 hurricane this week to help ensure the county is prepared for hurricane season.

The five-day exercise – hosted by Pinellas County’s Emergency Management department from July 5 to 9 – ran through a countywide response to an approaching storm. In the scenario, “Hurricane Bailey” made landfall on July 8 with winds over 120 mph and storm surge of 10 to 15 feet.

Participants worked together to tackle complex disaster scenarios, practicing with emergency communications equipment and testing key emergency response procedures.

About 400 representatives from agencies across Pinellas County, along with state and federal partners, participated both virtually and in person at the Pinellas County Emergency Operations Center in Largo.

“The response to a hurricane or other real-world emergency requires coordination of dozens of local government and partner agencies across Pinellas County and beyond,” said Cathie Perkins, Pinellas County’s Emergency Management Director. “Exercises like this allow us to strengthen that coordination and fine-tune our emergency procedures so we can be prepared.”

Hurricane season started June 1 and will run through Nov. 30, with the peak season running from mid-August to mid-October. Pinellas County encourages residents to prepare now. For more information about how to prepare, visit disaster.pinellas.gov and download the Ready Pinellas app.