It's About Choice!

Evacuation Assistance

Contact:
Angel Watson
727-577-0065

     Here at Caring & Sharing we know that when the summer comes in Florida, hurricane season comes with it. While many people think about buying the necessities such as water or batteries before a hurricane ever hits, few people take advantage of the Pinellas County Evacuation Assistance Program. In 2004, many disabled residents of Pinellas found themselves in search of an evacuation plan as Hurricane Charley was projected to land on the Pinellas coastline. Many disabled residents called for a costly ambulance ride out of harm’s way. Others flooded the special needs shelters which are often unable to meet the needs of many people with disabilities.

     We are urging all organizations in Pinellas County that serve people with disabilities to distribute the Hurricane Evacuation Assistance Form. In order for someone to receive transportation to evacuate because of a hurricane, they need to register for the Pinellas County Evacuation Assistance Program no matter what program they may normally use for transportation. There are several different ways to register:

• www.pinellascounty.org/emergency/Local.htm and scroll down to Special Needs Citizens and click on the Special Needs Form link. Fill out and mail to 400 S. Fort Harrison Ave. Room #111 Clearwater, FL 33765
  
• Go to the PDF File. Print and fill out the application, and send it to the above address
  
• Call Pinellas County Emergency Management at (727) 464-3800
  
• Call or go to the Administration Office of any Main Fire Department and ask about registering in the Evacuation Assistance Program
  

       After a person fills out and returns the required forms, they will be notified as to whether or not they have been accepted into the Evacuation Assistance Program. After notification, the Health/Fire department will assess their needs. Then they will be assigned a shelter or hospital that will meet their specific needs in the case of an evacuation. If there is a hurricane in the area, the Department of Transportation will manage all of the local means of transportation and use these vehicles to transport to safety those who have registered in the Evacuation Assistance Program.
       In order to better serve the disability community of Pinellas County, please distribute this information to as many people with disabilities as possible. With several hurricanes predicted to make landfall in Florida during this summer it is important that people with disabilities are well informed and prepared in case of a storm. Please contact Caring & Sharing at cascil@cascil.org or 727-577-0065 if you have any questions.

Thank you

Word Document Format of this Press Release is available here