The National Weather Service recently recognized Polk County as a StormReady Community for Polk County Local Government’s improvement of the timeliness and effectiveness of hazardous weather warnings through the establishment of community preparedness standards.

Polk County Emergency Management Coordinator Bobby Arldege led the County’s compliance process efforts.

To be officially StormReady, a community must:

• Establish a 24-hour warning point and emergency operations center;
• Have more than one way to receive severe weather warnings and forecasts and to alert the public;
• Create a system that monitors weather conditions locally;
• Promote the importance of public readiness through community seminars; and
• Develop a formal hazardous weather plan, which includes training severe weather spotters and holding emergency exercises.

In their certification letter to Polk County dated Jan. 21, 2020, NWS Greenville-Spartanburg SC Warning Coordination Meteorologist Trisha Palmer and Meteorologist-In-Charge Steve Wilkinson wrote that “(e)veryone who was involved in the compliance process has every reason to be proud of this accomplishment.”

Polk County’s earning of the StormReady recognition “indicates that Polk County has done everything possible to to improve emergency first responder and community preparedness in the event of a natural disaster,” Palmer and Wilkinson said in the letter. “With the communications infrastructure in place, along with the increased level of severe weather awareness, it is no doubt that the loss of life and/or property will be minimized in the future.”

Polk County’s StormReady designation is valid for six years from the date of the letter. At the interim third year, the NWS will conduct what it calls a “soft renewal” for updates and changes. At year six, forward in time, the NWS will conduct a full renewal.

For more about NWS’ StormReady program, visit weather.gov/stormready/.