WEST PALM BEACH, FL — Emergency leaders from across Florida gathered at the Palm Beach County Convention Center for the Governor's Hurricane Conference, where Hurricane Milton's historic tornado outbreak and a potential federal overhaul of disaster response led conversations.
Palm Beach County Public Safety Director Mary Blakeney was among those who came to prepare for the next storm.
"People need to be prepared," Blakeney said.
Less than two years ago, Hurricane Milton unleashed a barrage of tornadoes — a reminder that preparing for hurricanes means preparing for everything.
"It's not just about hurricane force winds," Blakeney said.
National Weather Service meteorologist Robert Molleda echoed that warning.
"We also have to consider tornadoes in the far outer rain bands," Molleda said.
Molleda said one of the key lessons from Hurricane Milton was the need for redundant warning systems. A WPTV investigation after the storm found dozens of people never received emergency alerts — or got them too late.
"We also want to make sure people have more than one way of getting warnings — don't just rely on one system," Molleda said.
Since then, Molleda said Doppler radar has undergone multiple upgrades and equipment replacements to speed up storm detection.
WPTV's recent reporting also uncovered what forecasters call a gap in low-level radar coverage — critical for detecting tornadoes and flash flooding, two of a hurricane's deadliest threats — and Palm Beach County sits right inside it.
Blakeney said the county is already working to address it.
"There's conversations happening currently within the county and some of the stakeholders and partners. So I think we're going to see some level of additional technology coming out, coming in the very near future," Blakeney said.
Molleda said coverage remains adequate in the meantime.
"Weather Service meteorologists are confident that we have the radar coverage that we need, between the Doppler radars located in Miami and Melbourne, which provide good coverage for Palm Beach County and the Treasure Coast, as well as the FAA terminal Doppler radars, which use similar technology," Molleda said.
The conference also turned to a major shift in federal disaster funding.
A new federal report released May 7 calls for "closing the chapter on FEMA," labeling the agency's brand "irreparably damaged" and recommending a complete overhaul of federal disaster response.
The report was a major talking point during a panel with emergency response experts from across the state, who said if the changes come to pass, state and local leaders could pay a much bigger share of recovery costs.
When asked whether Palm Beach County is prepared to take on that additional financial responsibility, Blakeney said the county is still working through the implications.
"We're in the initial stages, dissecting that report. It's still unknown the future of FEMA and those FEMA programs — but we're having those conversations," Blakeney said.
The report also proposes raising the threshold for federal disaster declarations. Blakeney said in the coming months, county leaders will continue to have many more conversations about what that looks like locally.
"Yeah, it's so important for our residents to be prepared now," Blakeney said.
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