Barrow County Emergency Services is implementing a countywide plan to deal with the volume of calls expected over the next 24 hours during the winter storm.
Its Emergency Operation Center will be activated at 10 p.m. tonight, according to a press release.
The center will be staffed by three BCES officers who will manage public information releases, dispatching of non-emergency calls, availability of emergency vehicles and other essential details.
“In cases like this we have to hope for the best and plan for the worst,” said Chief John Skinner. “If we wait too long to start bringing in additional personnel and apparatuses, we may get too far behind too quickly. We have to make plans for the predicted storm.”
The department is bringing in additional personnel to man two extra apparatuses to handle non-emergency calls. And throughout the storm, the operations center officers will monitor call volume and bring in additional personnel if needed.
A second BCES Battalion Chief will report for duty at 5 a.m. Monday to oversee one-half of the county. The regularly scheduled Battalion Chief will oversee the other half.
Each family should make sure it has enough food and other provisions for at least three days of limited travel and possible power outages. Each family also should have an emergency disaster plan.
Once the snow begins falling, BCES requests that all residents stay off the roads and off emergency 911 lines. Anyone seeking information about road conditions or the progress of the storm should check regular news and weather sources.
