Hall County’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC) was activated at 8 a.m. Wednesday to provide a central location for essential County personnel to prepare and respond to any weather-related threats across the area. The EOC is located inside the Hall County Emergency Services Complex on Crescent Drive. Officials will operate out of that facility until the threat of severe weather subsides.
“Officials with the National Weather Service remain confident that this will be a substantial storm system,” said Hall County Emergency Management Agency Director David Kimbrell. “Residents are urged to monitor the weather and to seek shelter in the case of a tornado, severe thunderstorm and/or hail storm should any of those situations develop.”
Kimbrell said anyone needing to contact the EOC to report non-emergency issues is asked to call 770-718-3300. In the case of an actual emergency, citizens are still encouraged to dial 9-1-1.
“Our 9-1-1 Center has additional personnel on hand in order to handle a larger-than-normal call volume should they be needed,” said Assistant Hall County Administrator Marty Nix.
As officials keep an eye on the impending weather situation, citizens are also reminded to sign up for the Hall County Citizen's Alert System. The Citizen's Alert System notifies residents about severe weather, as well as fires, floods, toxic environmental issues and other important topics within minutes. Messages can be sent to individuals using a variety of contact mechanisms - cell phone, landline, email, text messaging and more - ensuring that Hall County residents receive life-saving emergency information and important public service announcements in minutes. Citizens listed in the County's 9-1-1 database have been automatically subscribed to alerts by landline, though any individual may self-register, provide additional contact information or opt out. To sign up or learn more, log onto alerts.hallcounty.org.