Volusia County Council declares state of emergency, voluntary evacuation for low lying areas

The Volusia County Council issued a local state of emergency for Hurricane Irma while continuing to monitor the storm.

By Jarleene Almenas
| 3:30 p.m. September 7, 2017

Hurricane Irma could reach South Florida as early as Sunday morning. Graph courtesy of the National Hurricane Center.

Ormond Beach Observer
News

As Volusia County emergency officials continue to monitor Hurricane Irma, the County Council has declared a local state of emergency and approved other storm preparations.

According to a press release by Volusia County, the area will begin to experience tropical storm force winds around midnight Saturday. Officials said the county could experience these winds for about 18 hours, ending sometime Monday afternoon. They are also anticipating Category 3 hurricane winds to last about six hours on Sunday. Officials are predicting 8-10 inches of rainfall and possibly 1-2 inches more in low-lying areas, which are under voluntary evacuation — this includes beachside communities, mobile homes and RV parks.

Also, vehicle access to the beach will end at 5 p.m. Thursday. Volusia County reported that beach and coastal officials are removing items from the beach, and is encouraging people to stay away from the beach until after the hurricane.

Volusia County Government offices will close starting Friday, Sept. 8, through Monday, Sept. 11. This includes county facilities like the public library. All county parks will be closed as well as of 5 p.m. Thursday.