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Drill Puts Republican Brass in Hurricane Path

May 21st, 2012 by flanews

Hurricane season is just 10 days away and the state is preparing for the worst. As Whitney Ray tells us, an emergency drill being held this week, lays out a nightmare scenario when some of the country’s most powerful people are in Florida.

A large Florida city, a convention of international importance and a category four hurricane, it’s the perfect storm and it’s playing out this week in the state’s Emergency Operations Center. The week long drill puts the Republican National Convention in the path of faux Hurricane Gispert.

Fifty thousand, delegates, journalists, and protestors, mostly from out of state, need to be evacuated. Governor Mitt Romney and other notable politicians will be in Tampa for the August convention. Division of Emergency Management Director Bryan Koon says the Secret Service has a plan.

“We’ll work very closely with the Secret Service and some of the other agencies responsible for their protection to make sure they are apprised of any potential consequences for server weather,” said Koon.

The National Guard will have 9-thousand soldiers on stand by.

“This is a hurricane so it’s basically search and rescue, humanitarian assistance, providing food, ice and water,” said Coronal Mike Canzoneri.

The missing piece in all this controlled chaos is Governor Rick Scott, who is in Spain this week on a trade mission. If this were a real emergency, Scott would oversee the response and use this podium at the Emergency Operation Center to update the public.

The state has been developing its emergency response plan with RNC organizers for more than a year.

“To the extent that there’s a threat, a hurricane, health, life, safety comes first. We evacuate people,” said RNC Host Committee President Ken Jones.

Hurricanes can scare major events away from Florida in summer months. By preparing for the worst, emergency workers hope to show the world, they’re ready for anything.

Several meteorologists are predicting a mild 2012 hurricane season with just 10 named storms. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will release its predictions Thursday. Hurricane season begins June 1st.

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