The official start of hurricane season means it's time to review emergency plans. And for South Florida residents with medical needs, that can involve extra work to ensure a spot on county lists for emergency evacuation assistance.
Florida counties maintain special needs registries for emergency situations. During hurricanes, people who have pre-registered on these lists are eligible for priority evacuation help and medical shelters — depending on their level of need.
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In 2017, Hurricane Irma exposed vulnerabilities in the evacuation and shelter procedures for people with special needs. ¸Û°ÄÌìϲÊfound that while 2,200 people were pre-registered for emergency support, an additional 2,225 called for assistance at the last minute and the county was unable to help many of them.
If you or a loved one has special medical needs, here are the county resources to pre-register for evacuation and shelter assistance:
Broward County
Residents with medical needs can apply for evacuation transportation and space in a special needs shelter by calling (954) 831-3902 (or TTY 954-831-3940). Broward County also , along with more information about qualifying for special needs emergency services in Creole, English, Portuguese and Spanish
Miami-Dade County
Medical shelter and transportation assistance applications can be submitted through or by calling (305) 513-7700.
Note: Residents with advanced medical needs are required to get part of the .
Monroe County
Monroe County Emergency Management to sign up for its special needs registry. You can also call (305) 292-4591, Monday-Friday, 8:00 am to 4:00 pm.
Palm Beach County
Residents with certain medical needs — dependence on electric medical devices, dependence on external oxygen, chronic but stable illnesses that require a caregiver, dementia — can for space in a medical shelter or and mail it back in. You can also call (561) 712-6400 for assistance.
Residents with other disabilities can register for transportation to general shelters by calling (561) 649-9839 to apply for the Special Transportation Assistance Program through .