MEMORANDUM
City of Pensacola Beach
Police Department

To:        The Mayor
From:      Sam Sterling, Police Chief
Regarding: Evacuating the island.

Hi, Mayor. Congratulations again on winning the election. I just want to let you know what we're up against if this storm comes our way.

I recommend forcing everyone to leave. During the storm, I won't be able to save people who get in trouble. After the storm, there won't be enough police officers to protect against looters.

Here's what I mean. If the storm hits here, I will have to pull all my officers inside just as the storm gets bad, it will become too dangerous outside.

• The high winds will throw things around... and if one of the officers is hit, it could hurt or kill them.
• The sea will rise up, flooding the roads. This storm surge is the big killer in a hurricane. It is like going from being on land to being IN the sea! If an officer gets stuck, they could easily drown.
• Hurricanes often create tornadoes. Since these tornadoes are surrounded by the storm's rain, it is almost impossible to see them. An officer could be killed by one of these twisters.

I think you can see why we won't be able to help people stuck in the storm.

After the storm, my officers won't be able to get around very well. The roads will be damaged and the town will be a mess.

That means thieves could go into evacuated houses and steal things. It's called looting, and unfortunately it is something we have to worry about.

The best thing to do is to clear out the town. People can move to the mainland where the Red Cross is setting up shelters in safe locations away from the coast.

My police officers and I will stay here, inside our hurricane bunker in the police station. We will do all we can to protect the town.

We can only hope the storm doesn't hit us. But in case it does, I recommend we start a madatory evacuation immediately.

Decide! Stay here or head out?