LEMA urges public to prepare for severe weather during National Preparedness Month

MERIDIAN, Miss. (WTOK) - With all this storm coverage and the month of September being National Preparedness Month, News 11 wants to remind our viewers to always be ready for severe weather.

Hurricane season is not over until November so that is a lot of time for storms to development and threaten our area.

Odie Barrett, the Director of Lauderdale County Emergency Management, wants to let the public know of some items to have on hand if the weather takes a turn.

“You definitely need water. You need some food that is going to last you, your family, and pets for at least three days. You want to make sure your medications are with you. You want to make sure you got all your important papers, your insurance, your health records, your health insurance records, and always have a little bit of cash with you,” said Barrett.

Barrett says it is also good to have a weather radio, fully charged batteries, flashlights, and candles to light your home in case of power outages.

He also encourages everyone to sign-up to receive weather alerts from the Lauderdale Emergency Management Agency to stay up-to-date on current conditions in the area.

LEMA currently uses the Nixle Alert System that sends alerts via Twitter, Facebook, text messages and email.

To receive the emergency alerts, please sign-up online on the LEMA website.

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