Monroe County, as well as all the municipalities in the Florida Keys such as Key West, Marathon, Layton, Islamorada Village of Islands and Key Colony Beach, have developed their own Disaster Preparedness Plan especially to deal with tropical cyclone emergencies. The multi-purpose plan aims to:
• Reduce vulnerability of people to damage, injury and loss of life and property.
• Prepare for prompt and efficient response and recovery.
• Prepare for prompt and efficient rescue, care and treatment of victims.
• Provide a setting of rapid and orderly restoration of services and rehabilitation of affected property.
• Provide for interagency coordination to facilitate immediate delivery of assistance.
Once the county officials declare a local State of Emergency, the Preparedness Plan is put into action. Depending upon the level of the threat of the approaching storm, the various agencies will take action in coordination with Monroe County’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC).
At timed intervals before landfall, different parts of the plan will be implemented. These include early visitor, boater and special-needs evacuations; coordination of response and recovery teams; any necessary mandatory evacuations and all necessary interagency coordination.
As county and city officials have a Disaster Preparedness Plan for residents and visitors, so should each resident have their own plan. Use the resources in this guide to formulate your own plan, and then make sure you follow the plan when needed.
A government-authored preparedness guide is available online from FEMA.
For all immediate emergencies, dial 911.
MUNICIPALITY
• Marathon
www.ci.marathon.fl.us
305.743.0033
Facebook: @MarathonCityFL
MCSO law enforcement: 305.289.2430
Marathon Fire: 305.743.5266
Grassy Key Fire: 305.743.7599
EMERGENCY HOTLINES
• Monroe County
Emergency Information Hotline: 1.800.955.5504
www.monroecountyem.com
• State of Florida Emergency Information:
1.800.342.3557
WEATHER INFORMATION
• National Weather Service, Key West
www.weather.gov/key
305.295.1316
Facebook: @NWSkeywest
• National Hurricane Center
www.nhc.noaa.gov
Facebook: @NWSNHC
COUNTY/OTHER MUNICIPALITIES
• Monroe County
www.monroecounty-fl.gov
305.294.4641
Facebook: @MonroeCountyBOCC
Monroe Fire Rescue 305.289.6004
• Monroe County
Sheriff’s Office
www.keysso.net
305.292.7000
Facebook: @FloridaKeysSheriff
• Layton
Cityoflayton.com
305.664.4667
• Key Colony Beach
Keycolonybeach.net
305.289.1212
OTHER
• Monroe County School District 305.293.1400
• College of the Florida Keys 305.296.9081
SPECIAL NEEDS
Special Needs Evacuation Assistance 305.292.4591
UTILITIES
• Florida Keys Electric Coop 305.852.2431
• Florida Keys Aqueduct Authority 305.296.2454
• Keys Energy Services 305.295.1000
• Key Largo Wastewater Treatment District 305-451-4019
GET THE APPS
The Monroe County Sheriff’s Office’s smartphone app keeps residents informed of emergency situations ranging from traffic accidents to hurricane evacuation. The app is available for both iPhone and Android users. Download it for free. Monroe County also has a free app called Alert! Monroe, available for Android and IOS devices. It provides alerts regarding severe weather, emergency road closures, boil water notices, water service interruption, missing persons and evacuations of neighborhoods. Monroe County Emergency Management uses the app Everbridge for the Special Needs Registry for shelter and evacuation assistance.
