Officials from the Camden County Board of Commissioners and the Cities of Kingsland, St. Marys, and Woodbine, along with Camden County Schools, jointly agreed to extend the closure all local government offices and schools Thursday, August 31, 2023. This is following the previously announced closure of Wednesday, August 30, 2023. The safety of our youth, staff, and citizens are our first priority.
Camden County has issued a local State of Emergency and called for an evacuation of Zone A, Camden County’s barrier islands. Camden County residents, regardless of zone, should strongly consider voluntary evacuation in low lying areas. Locations that have flooded in the past are likely to flood during this tropical event. Residents in manufactured housing should consider relocating to a stronger structure. A shelter of LAST RESORT has opened at the Camden County PSA Recreation Center at 1050 Wildcat Drive in Kingsland, Georgia.
Based on storm speed and track, Idalia is forecast to impact our community beginning some time early, Wednesday, August 30, 2023. Impacts will include strong wind, which may cause downed trees and loss of power. This is in addition to rain and a threat of tornadoes.
Idalia continues to strengthen and is predicted to be a major hurricane at landfall in Florida’s Big Bend area. Sustained tropical storm-force winds, with hurricane strength gusts, are possible for Camden County.
Local residents are also encouraged to visit the National Hurricane Center, www.nhc.noaa.gov, and the National Weather Service Office in Jacksonville, www.weather.gov/jax, as trusted sites for weather related information. In addition, Camden County residents are urged to sign-up for the CodeRED Emergency Notification System by visiting www.camdencountyga.gov/CodeRED. CodeRED is critical during situations like this as a direct method of communication from Camden County EMA to your landline, cell phone, or email. TDD/TTY service is also available. Participants will be notified in the event of emergency situations or critical community alerts.
Camden County Emergency Management Agency (EMA), the Camden County Sheriff’s Office, and in partnership with the cities of Kingsland, St. Marys, and Woodbine, along with Camden County Schools, and the National Weather Service (NWS) will coordinate incident response and public communications. Local residents should continue to monitor Camden County Website, Public Information Hub, and Camden County EMA Facebook for updates.