On the first day of the 2009 hurricane season, Slidell and parish officials informed Slidell residents at the Municipal Auditorium on the plans of the city and parish in the event a hurricane hits the Northshore.

The eight experts gathered on the stage all gave the same two pieces of advice to the audience: Have a plan already in place, and if ordered to evacuate, leave.

“Please, please prepare now,” Slidell Police Chief Freddy Drennan, who organized the meeting, told the residents. “And please be ready to leave when asked.”

St. Tammany Homeland Security and Emergency Operations Executive Dexter Accardo, standing, outlines the parish'€™s hurricane preparation plans to Slidell residents Monday night during a public meeting on getting ready for hurricanes. From left are Scott Biggers from CLECO, Lewis Taylor of Acadian Ambulance Services, meteorologist Ken Graham of the National Weather Service, Chief Teddy Macke of Fire District One, Lt. Randy Smith of the St. Tammany Sheriff'€™s Office, Accardo, Slidell Police Chief Freddy Drennan and Slidell Mayor Ben Morris. (Staff Photo by Erik Sanzenbach)

Drennan said that everybody’s hurricane kit should be able to sustain people for 10 days.

“Remember the number 10. Have 10 days worth of food, water and necessary medicines,” he said.

With memories of Katrina still fresh in everybody’s mind, Drennan said that in the past three years, a lot of lessons have been learned and the city and parish are better prepared for a big storm like Katrina.

He said that the loss of communications was a big problem four years ago, and the parish and city have upgraded their communications equipment, installed generators in case of loss of power, and all first-responders across the parish are now able to communicate with each other.

“We have unilateral communication with no problem,” Drennan said.

Another piece of advice given by meteorologist Ken Graham of the National Weather Service was not to be complacent. Even though hurricane experts have predicted a mild season due to the El Nino effect in the Pacific Ocean, Graham said that is no reason to not be prepared and have a plan. He cited the El Nino years of 1965, 1969 and 1992 as examples. In 1965 Hurricane Betsy ravaged New Orleans, and Camille destroyed the Mississippi Gulf Coast in 1969, and in 1992 Andrew wiped out southern Florida and was the only hurricane to make landfall that year.

“It only takes one storm to ruin your day,” Graham warned.

He said the NWS is now in constant contact with all television and radio stations and parish leaders with continuous updates.

“We’re all on the same page,” Graham said.

He also said for people to not depend on the category of the storm but on the size. Research has found that the bigger the storm, even with minimal winds can cause huge storm surges that cause the most damage.

Slidell Mayor Ben Morris emphasized that if an evacuation order is given, people should heed the order and leave. This gives Slidell police and other first responders time to secure property and homes instead of spending time rescuing people who did not leave.

Drennan suggested people leave early before the evacuation order and to use the back roads instead of the main evacuation routes of the interstates to avoid traffic.

The contra flow plan has changed slightly for 2010, and people on Interstate 59 will not be allowed to get off until much farther north than last year. St. Tammany Homeland Security Executive Director Dexter Accardo said motorists would not be allowed to go east beyond Slidell or west between Slidell and the Causeway on I-10. The only way is north on I-59 or I-55.

Coming back seemed to be a concern of several residents at the meetings. They remembered last year during Hurricane Gustav when people were not allowed to return for several days.

Slidell Mayor Ben Morris said that the first thing is make the city safe before they let people return.

“If it is not safe here, the door will be closed,” Morris said. “We want everybody back, but only if it is safe.”

In order for evacuees to find out when it is safe return, Morris said they could listen to WWL radio, which broadcasts all over the country. If people have access to the Internet they can go to the city’s Web site www.slidell.la.us for updates. Residents can also sign up with Twitter at www.twitter.com/cityofslidell, and get updates on their cell phones. Morris said the city also has a Facebook page at www.tinyurl.com/slidellfb.

Morris and Accardo said there are no shelters in Slidell. All the parish shelters will be north of Interstate 12. Some of these shelters are designed for the disabled, and some are pet-friendly. For more information on these shelters, people can call 898-3074, or 1-800-809-2300. These numbers will also provide information on what is happening to the parish during a storm.