Hurricane seminar Thursday at City Hall
The Cape Coral community can learn about hurricane preparedness at an event Thursday.
The Cape Coral Fire Department is hosting its annual Hurricane Seminar from 6:30 to 8 p.m. in the Council Chambers at City Hall. The event is free and open to the public; registration not required.
“It’s a great opportunity to showcase some of the things they can expect during hurricane season, as well as year round,” Jesse Spearo, planning chief and emergency management coordinator, said.
“We’re trying to get people prepared for this hurricane season,” he added.
In addition to Fire Chief Donald Cochran, the seminar will feature a number of speakers on a wide range of topics. Spearo will share emergency preparedness tips with attendees, and police Capt. Mike Torregrossa will talk about evacuations, re-entry into the city following a tropical event and more.
Individual, family and home preparation will also be covered at the event.
“Kind of some of the things to be aware of,” Spearo said.
Paul Dickson, chief building official with the city, will discuss permitting following a disaster like expedited permits, as well as what to be aware of with predatory contractors.
WINK meteorologist Jim Farrell will cover the upcoming season and how hurricanes form.
The Coast Guard Auxiliary will be on hand with information on how to prepare vessels for the season.
“We’re going to have some All Hazards Guides to hand out, and there’ll be some other material available to them,” he said.
Spearo explained that it is up to citizens and businesses to prepare themselves.
“This provides the community’s residents and business owners with a snapshot of what to be prepared for, but what it really comes down to is responsibility on the individual to be prepared,” he said.
Spearo noted that the more prepared a community is, the most disaster-resilient it is.
“All it takes is one, and they can happen at any time,” he said.
More than 200 people attended last year’s seminar.
“It was fairly similar the year before,” Spearo said.
Officials are considering putting together a half-day expo for next year’s event.
“More tools, more resources,” he said.
Those unable to attend Thursday can watch the seminar live via the city’s website at: www.capecoral.net. The video should be available on the site within the week.
“So they can go back and review information,” Spearo said.
Cape Coral City Hall is at 1015 Cultural Park Blvd.