Seminole County leaders warn of flooding ahead of Hurricane Dorian

County leaders discuss resources post-hurricane

SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. – Leaders in Seminole County held a news conference Monday ahead of Hurricane Dorian.

The National Weather Service activated a flood warning for the county in anticipation of the Category 4 storm. Emergency management officials stressed to exercise caution as Hurricane Dorian closes in on Florida's east coast. 

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"Localized flooding is possible and flooding along the St. Johns River is expected at the end of the week," Alan Harris, Seminole County's emergency manager said.

Harris said sandbags will be made available to the public after the storm to help deal with flooding issues.

Hurricane Dorian has prompted Seminole County school officials to cancel several sporting and extracurricular events over the holiday weekend. The district extended school closures through Wednesday.

Harris stressed with potential flooding, people living in low-lying flood-prone areas need to heed voluntary evacuation orders.

Sheriff Dennis Lemma chimed in, saying deputies will patrol those areas. 

"You can rest assured there is an increased law enforcement presence in those areas both with visible marked patrol cars from the sheriff's office as well as our partnership with municipalities in Seminole County," the sheriff said.

He said some deputies will patrol these areas in unmarked cars and civilian clothing.

The sheriff said that in the interest of public safety, major intersections are on battery backup. These backups will last eight hours before switching to generators.

"This is what we plan for year after year and we are absolutely prepared for this situation head on," Lemma said.

Weather forecasters say Hurricane Dorian's winds have decreased slightly, downgrading the system to a powerful Category 4 storm.

The storm is sitting over Grand Bahama Island and has maximum sustained winds of 155 mph with higher gusts. 

DORIAN'S IMPACT ON SEMINOLE | Officials with Seminole County give update on Hurricane Dorian

DORIAN'S IMPACT ON SEMINOLE | Officials with Seminole County give update on Hurricane Dorian. https://bit.ly/2kdNkde

Posted by News 6 WKMG / ClickOrlando on Monday, September 2, 2019

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