OCSO, JPD: We're ready for Earl

Despite predictions that Hurricane Earl will remain offshore as it passes North Carolina, local law enforcement agencies are preparing for the worst.

Onslow County Sheriff Ed Brown and Jacksonville Police Department spokeswoman Beth Purcell said their respective agencies are testing equipment and charging up generators to keep operations running smoothly in the event of power outages and flooding.

“The Sheriff’s Office is going to make every effort it can to provide the services our citizens need in case of a storm,” Brown said. “If it comes, we’re ready.”

He said his office owns several military surplus vehicles equipped to handle disaster situations, including a high-water rescue truck and a diesel 4x4. Generators will restore power to the Sheriff’s Office in the event of an outage, and deputies are equipped with walkie-talkies in case cell phone towers are down.

“I think the most important thing that we have is officers who are willing to risk their own lives to save another person’s life,” Brown said.

Purcell said JPD is prepared to manage emergencies within the city as well as maintain day-to-day operations.

“We have several portable units that allow us to set up a 911 center anywhere we have Internet service,” she said. “If traffic lights go out, we have portable generators that can be set up so traffic lights can be operational.”

Both agencies have attended meetings this week with Onslow County Emergency Services and other city and county government officials to discuss disaster plans and coordinate preparation efforts.

“(JPD) has established emergency protocol for basically every scenario one could imagine,” Purcell said. 

In the event of flooded roadways, she said, JPD will work with the city’s streets department and the N.C. Department of Transportation to block off or divert traffic from those streets.

If the city loses power, the Emergency Operations Center’s radio tower will run off of a generator that engages automatically, keeping police department telephones and computers — as well as the 911 call center — online, she said.

Brown said while the Sheriff’s Office does not have a written disaster plan, his officers are well-trained for any incident.

“We let the storm do the writing and we take care of what it brings,” he said. “We know that’s part of our life, part of living in coastal Carolina.”