St. Clair County Emergency Operation Center is still partially activated. Local Emergency Management officials are monitoring the flooding situation and are advising residents that the time to prepare is quickly passing. In the coming weeks, the southern portions of St. Clair County will continue to see flood waters rise quickly to potentially record heights. This is an increasingly serious and potentially life threating situation! This situation may also change quickly with the amount of projected rainfall, wind direction and waves depending on where you are located within flood zone. It is highly recommended that you pay particular attention to all National Weather Service watches and warnings regarding information in your local area. If you have not signed up yet for WINS (Warning Information Network System). Please immediately join our alerting system by visiting WINS at www.bereadystclaircounty.org. The Homeland Security and Emergency Management Division strongly advises that you rush to completion all
property protection and hardening activities in the next two weeks or less. The water may begin to significantly rise by the beginning of June or sooner. If you are in need of sandbags, please contact your Local Township or City Office.
The following are providing sandbags to their residents:
– Clay Township Water Department on Muskrat Run between the hours of 7am and 3:30pm.
– Ira Township Office 7085 Meldrum Rd. Monday – Thursday 7am – 5pm
– Algonac DPW at DPW@cityofalgonac.org (810) 794-9361
– East China Twp — west of the waste water treatment plant 1244 Recor Rd, East China Twp
It is also important that you make the Emergency Operation Center or local government offices aware of any flood damage to occupied dwellings. If your home is impacted it is very important that you contact the Emergency Operation Center at (810) 989-6392 or via email at damage@stclaircounty.org. Please include your address, phone number, foundation type, amount of water in your home, and damage pictures in the email. If you live on an island will you be able to get off the island when the water gets higher? If you are on the mainland, where would you go if the waters get higher than the second floor of your house? There are two types of evacuations, voluntary and mandatory. Voluntary evacuation is where residents choose to move from a perceived area of danger to a safe area on their own. This is when you decide to stay with family or friends, or at a hotel until local emergency official declare the area is safe to return to. A mandatory evacuation is declared when a hazard directly threatens the community. If a mandatory evacuation notice is issued, you must leave without delay and will not be able to return until local emergency officials render it safe to return to the community. If you have to
evacuate, where will you go? Do you have family or friends inland that you can stay with? If you wait too long to evacuate, will your road be too flooded for your vehicle to travel on? You need to think about this now and not when it is too late. NOW is the time to prepare. Get ready by listening to the National Weather Service, WINS alerts, local radio stations and television stations and social media now for any evacuations. Have your emergency kits packed and ready to go for ALL members of your family (including seniors, infants and pets). Make sure to
include water, non-perishable food, clothing, medicine, medical devices, insurance information and visit BeReadyStClairCounty.org for additional emergency kit information.
Here are some safety measures to take for flooding:
What to do if my house starts to flood:
– Stop the flow of water (sandbag) and minimize damage.
– Move essential items to an upper floor
– Disconnect electrical appliances. Do not touch electrical equipment if you are wet or standing in water
– Shut off water, gas and electricity, if the water has reached any electrical outlets.
If you need to leave your house, you should do the following:
– Secure your home.
– Take your disaster kit (remember medicine, vital documents, food for your unique situation)
– Take your pets and supplies need to care for your pets.
– Shelter locations will be opened in the event you are to leave your home and are in need of sheltering.
Contact your city or township office.
– If you cannot physically leave or have difficulty call your local dispatch at (810) 794-9381 for Clay/Ira Township all others call: (810) 985-8115 or dial 911 in an emergency.
– Notify your insurance company
Emergency workers will be assisting many and may not be able to get to you right away.
What is 2-1-1? St Clair County has partnered with United Way 2-1-1 to help our communities respond to and recover from flooding events. 2-1-1 has a collection of local community based resources that will help individuals and families during emergencies. Call 2-1-1 from any landline or cell phone to talk to a specialist regarding non-life threatening assistance related to the flood. You can also call your local dispatch at (810) 794-9381 for Clay/Ira Township and all others calls use (810) 985-8115.
IF THIS IS A LIFE THREATENING EMERGENCY, PLEASE DIAL 9-1-1.
PLEASE NOTE THAT THE ST. CLAIR COUNTY WINS SYSTEM will be used to contact you in an emergency situation. If you have caller ID, you may not recognize the number, however please answer and receive the information.
