New Emergency Operations Center opens in Horry County as peak hurricane season approaches

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WMBF) — After two years, Horry County Emergency Management and 911 dispatch have a new facility to call their home away from home.

The Randall S. Webster Emergency Operations and Communications Center is open and first responders said it will be the main command center when severe weather hits.

All top emergency officials will be working out of the new building to gather information and respond to any emergency all from one location.

Built to withstand winds up to 160 miles per hour, which is category five hurricane strength, and flooding, this new facility will keep first responders safe while they keep the rest of Horry County safe.

This center is specifically dedicated to Assistant County Administrator for Public Safety and Director of Emergency Management, Randall Webster, who has 35 years of experience working in emergency management.

County leaders said the center was designed with resiliency and the future needs of the county in mind and it also addresses all the issues their previous facility had.

“We’ve worked with so many folks, through so many things,” said Webster. “The support this community during all of this, and the folks that came to the EOC and endured all the problems that we’ve had with smiles on their face, just pushing forward to get the mission done,”

They also said the new facility addresses all the issues the previous center had. It also won’t flood as their previous facility did during hurricane Florence.

County officials also say that one thing that won’t change within their departments is their team effort in serving the community.

“When you work here, you get out what you put into it, and this is the greatest example of that,” said Webster.

Copyright 2022 WMBF. All rights reserved.