Prince William County advises residents to be prepared for severe weather

The US National Weather Service Baltimore/Washington is forecasting severe weather, including strong winds, for our area this afternoon. Be sure to prepare now! Bring in or secure any lawn furniture or other items that could fly way, charge your mobile devices and other needed electronics, and be sure to have multiple ways to receive weather alerts including signing up for PWC Alerts at pwcva.gov/alerts!

PWC Alerts is the county’s emergency alert notification system that allows you to sign up to receive notifications via phone calls, text messaging, email and more. You will receive a message on the devices you registered via the text or voice communication methods that you have chosen. The system offers a ‘Quiet Time’ feature that allows subscribers to designate hours during which they do not want to receive notifications for each contact path (such as mobile phone text, email, etc.). PWC Alerts will only be used to send alerts for events that occur within Prince William County. If you live in the county, but work elsewhere in the National Capital Region, visit http://www.capitalert.gov/ to sign up for alerts sent by other localities.

Please note the following in the case of severe weather:

Take shelter indoors and wait 30 minutes for the storm to pass before going outside.

If you hear thunder, go inside.

Please stay away from downed power lines; contact your power company to report any power outages and downed power lines.
Dominion Energy - https://www.dominionenergy.com/virginia/report-outage-or-emergency
NOVEC - https://www.novec.com/Contact_Us/

Intersections with dark traffic signals should be treated as a 4-way stop.

If your power is out for an extended time, review the important food safety information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): https://www.cdc.gov/foodsafety/food-safety-during-a-power-outage.html Remem.ber: When in doubt, throw it out!

If there is debris on your property as a result of the storm, please visit http://www.pwcva.gov/news/storm-debris-notice Prope.rty owners are responsible to remove the debris from their property, either themselves or through a contractor, and property damage should be reported to your insurance company.

Do not attempt to drive or walk through flooded areas. As little as six inches of water can cause you to lose control of your vehicle. Turn around, don’t drown!

Be prepared! Visit pwcva.gov/ready for more preparedness tips and information.