Gordon County Local Emergency Planning Committee

LOCAL NON-PROFITS TO OFFER WARMING STATIONS/SHELTERS: With extreme cold taking hold of a major portion of the United States this week, Gordon County is not exempt from these cold temperatures. Currently, Gordon County is under a Winter Weather Watch that is expected to be upgraded to an Advisory or Warning as we move forward. With that in mind, two separate locations have stepped up to offer a place for the unsheltered to go and stay warm through this event.
MALES - Providence Men’s Rescue Mission located at 437 South Wall Street in Calhoun will offer their building as a warming station/temporary shelter to males who may need somewhere to go to get out of the cold beginning at 3:30 p.m. today (Thursday) and continuing through Monday morning, January 13.
FEMALES AND CHILDREN - The Voluntary Action Center located at 343 South Wall Street in Calhoun will offer their community room as a warming station/temporary shelter to females and children who may need a warm place to stay. This outreach will begin Friday, January 10 at 8:30 a.m. and continue through Sunday, January 12 at noon. Those seeking shelter are encouraged to bring blankets and pillows if available.
These locations will supply a heated space along with somewhere to sit down, relax and stay warm overnight. Light food, snacks and drinks will also be made available. All those that seek shelter at these locations will be expected to respect the location, the volunteers and others that seek shelter there. Anyone who cannot act accordingly or who damages the property will be asked to leave.
This is a community outreach by Providence Men’s Rescue Mission and the Voluntary Action Center to help some of our most vulnerable populations. If anyone would like to make a monetary donation to help offset costs of additional utilities, items and food for this outreach please consider reaching out to either of these community partners.

WEATHER UPDATE FROM GORDON COUNTY EMA: On Tuesday, Jan. 18 at 2 p.m. Gordon County and Calhoun public safety, public works, school and other government officials participated in a weather briefing conducted by the National Weather Service (NWS) in reference to the winter weather potential for this Thursday and Friday and into the weekend.

According to the NWS, multiple rounds of wintry weather could affect north and central Georgia late week and into the weekend. According to the NWS forecast, an arctic boundary/cold front will be diving south and moisture will ride over the top of cold air near the ground. This front will move in a southeast direction slowly across the area beginning Thursday and moisture from the Gulf of Mexico will come over the top continuing through Saturday.

If these predictions and forecasts hold, Gordon County could see light snow mixed with freezing rain or sleet at times. It is early to lock in these predictions as the final setup of this system is yet to be determined. We will participate in another NWS briefing at 2 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 19 and will pass along further information at the conclusion of the briefing.

We will continue to monitor this situation throughout its duration. We would like to remind our citizens to utilize 9-1-1 at all times for emergencies only. Please gather numbers now for your electric provider, phone provider, cable provider, etc... and make those calls from the home if the need arises. This will help us to take care of those emergencies that come in much more efficiently. Currently, call volumes are very high at our 9-1-1 center. However, never hesitate to call if a true emergency exists.