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Hurricane Dean in Gulf of Mexico
State agencies, including the Texas Education Agency, are mobilizing to respond, if necessary, to Hurricane Dean. Agency staff will monitor developments throughout the weekend. The latest information about the status of the hurricane is available from the National Hurricane Center at: http://www.nhc.noaa.gov.

OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR
R i c k P e r r y

Gov. Perry Declares Hurricane Dean Imminent Threat to Texas
Activates State Resources as Dean Approaches the Gulf

AUSTIN – Gov. Rick Perry today declared Hurricane Dean an imminent threat to Texas, initiating full-scale state hurricane preparedness efforts. Perry activated state resources, including search and rescue teams, as National Weather Service projections show Hurricane Dean could impact the Texas coast by the middle of next week.

“With the potential of another major storm entering the Gulf of Mexico and threatening the Texas coast, now is the time to begin mobilizing our resources and implementing our plan to ensure an orderly response before landfall,” Perry said. “As we continue to monitor Hurricane Dean, the state is preparing to deploy ample resources, manpower and equipment to meet any potential need to ensure the safety of Texas residents.”

Gov. Perry ordered the following state resources activated and actions to be taken:

• 250 Texas Military Forces (TMF) command personnel to support the potential activation and deployment of up to 10,000 TMF soldiers, if necessary
• Texas Task Force 1 in Bryan/College Station - 300 personnel
• Texas Task Force 2 in Dallas - 160 personnel
  Texas Forest Service Lonestar Task Force - 80 personnel
• 250 Texas Parks and Wildlife Department crews with boats
• The Texas fuel industry has begun surging fuel loads to all coastal counties to ensure adequate fuel supply
• The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) will begin displaying public service announcements at noon today in costal counties advising residents to keep their gas tanks full
• TxDOT has also begun pre-positioning resources and sweeping evacuation corridors in preparation of extra evacuation lanes and contraflow
• The State Operations Center (SOC) will be fully activated at 7:30 a.m. tomorrow, and twice daily conference calls are being held with local elected officials, first responders, mass care providers, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and the National Weather Service to assess the latest weather projections and to coordinate state and local preparation and response.

If Dean continues to strengthen and threaten Texas, additional emergency forces could be activated and deployed in the coming days to appropriate staging areas near the Texas coast.

“As the state works with local leaders to activate emergency response plans, it is imperative that Texans living along the coast pay close attention to threatening weather conditions and heed the warnings of their local leaders,” Perry said.

[[ Media Note: If the threat to Texas from Hurricane Dean intensifies, a media center will be opened at the SOC in the Department of Public Safety’s cafeteria (similar to the set-up during Kartina/Rita) on Monday, August 20th. The Governor’s Press Office will issue a media advisory on Sunday, Aug. 19 with relevant details. ]]

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If you live in a hurricane EVACUATION ZONE, and you have special health care or transportation needs, you need to make extra efforts to get ready for hurricane season. To find out whether you are living in an evacuation zone, dial 2-1-1...