Check out your hurricane evacuation zone

With the start of hurricane season less than a month away, Manatee County rolled out new storm surge evacuation level maps last week.

As part of a new campaign called “Learn Your Level,” the county’s public safety department has updated its interactive hurricane storm surge evacuation level maps.

Based on a computerized model called Sea, Lake and Overland Surges from Hurricanes, or SLOSH, the new maps were the result of improved technology, which more accurately shows local elevations.

The National Weather Service regularly updates the SLOSH models.

The five evacuation levels are defined as A through E — labeled on the map as red, orange, yellow, green and purple, respectively — with A being closest to shores and purple being more inland. For example, the county would require residents in level A areas to evacuate first in an event of potential high storm surge; depending on the severity of the surge, evacuations would continue level by level.

“Knowing your evacuation level is crucial to understanding when you need to leave your home due to a tropical storm or a hurricane,” Manatee County Emergency Management Chief Sherilyn Burris said in a news release. “Remember that mobile homes, manufactured homes and recreational vehicles are never safe places to stay during high wind events. These types of housing will evacuate with Level A, regardless of where in the county the home is located.”

To see which hurricane evacuation zone your house is in, visit the interactive GIS evacuation level map page on the county’s website at mymanatee.org; from the county website homepage, click on “Government,” then “Departments,” then “Public Safety,” then “Emergency Management” and finally “Evacuation Levels and Route Maps.” For more information, call Manatee County Emergency Management at 941-749-3500.

This story was originally published May 6, 2017 at 5:27 PM with the headline "Check out your hurricane evacuation zone."