Hurricane Prep 101: Be plugged in to local media for accurate information that matters in Baldwin County

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Editor's note: This article and all of Gulf Coast Media's hurricane coverage is free as a public service. We believe having access to reliable, accurate and up-to-date local information before, during and after inclement weather is critical to the vitality and safety of the communities we serve and that money should not be a barrier to that access. We do, however, rely on paying subscribers to to support our independently, family owned business. If you value the local news you're reading and are not a subscriber, please consider becoming one today at gulfcoastmedia.com/subscribe.

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Social media is probably filling your feed with maps, charts and lots of guesses of where the next storm will land.

You need accurate, local information.

“One point we strongly stress is having multiple forms of receiving information and accurate information,” said Jessica Waters of Baldwin County Emergency Management Agency.

During Hurricane Sally in 2020, local leaders noticed that many residents who had recently relocated to the area were watching their favorite meteorologists, but those meteorologists weren't located in Baldwin County and didn’t have the most accurate or up-to-date information.

“If you follow media, follow local media because they are putting out information from the National Weather Service office here,” Waters said.

EMA is also urging residents to plug in to Alert Baldwin, a local emergency notification system that will send residents a text when there are emergencies such as severe weather, hazardous materials releases, unexpected road hazards and more.

Time-sensitive notifications are sent to mobile phones or via email. Sign up at alertbaldwin.com.

To learn more about hurricane preparedness, read Gulf Coast Media's Stay Alert 2022 preparedness guide, or visit National Hurricane Preparedness | National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (noaa.gov).