Riverside County braces for impending storm: residents urged to prepare

Riverside County officials are ramping up efforts to ensure the safety of residents as approaching tropical storm Hilary threatens the Coachella Valley this weekend. The county's emergency operation center in Indio is on standby, with crews closely monitoring the storm's progress and ready to dispatch resources if the situation demands.

"What we're looking at is potential for widespread heavy rain, and areas of very intense rain with potentially very intense winds," said Shane Reichardt from Riverside County's Department of Emergency Management.

The storm is predicted to target the Coachella Valley with potentially damaging weather conditions. In response, the East Valley Emergency Operations Center in Indio stands as a backup, ready to support the West Valley facility if needed.

"We're monitoring everything that's going on, we're monitoring the winds, we're monitoring the rain," said Ana Gutierrez with the county's Emergency Management Department. "We have shelters in place, if we need to activate them, we have cooling centers as well."

To mitigate potential infrastructure damage, county officials are coordinating key resources, including commercial generators that can be swiftly deployed. With high winds expected to whip through the valley, power outages are anticipated.

However, the officials aren't just focusing on their own preparations; they are also urging residents to be proactive. "Preparedness is key. What we want is people to be able to sustain themselves, so that if they are without power, if they're not able to get to the grocery store, if the roads are impassable, they've got things like they keep their gas tank at least half full," Reichardt said.

For those seeking timely updates and emergency alerts, Riverside County recommends subscribing to their alerts through its official website, rivcoready.org.