The Humane Society of Vero Beach and Indian River County is giving priority to sheltering pets of people with special medical needs. The county has a public transportation list that even fully able people can get on. It is for residents who can t or don t want to drive to the county s public hurricane shelters. Those who sign up ahead of time will get rides first. Public transportation ceases when sustained winds are 40 mph or higher.
Hurricanes usually come in off the ocean and hit coastal areas the hardest.
Another risky place to be is in a mobile or manufactured home, said Laurie Hagberg, with the American Red Cross, which operates public hurricane shelters in Indian River County. It is in oceanfront and mobile-home areas that emergency officials are most likely to impose mandatory evacuation orders. What the order means is that emergency officials won t go back into those areas and retrieve people if they choose to stay there and ride out the storm. Those who leave can move in with friends in safer houses on the mainland or go to the county s shelters. There are 11 primary shelters in schools, as well as secondary shelters, such as church buildings, that altogether can house up to 22,000 people, Hagberg said.