Columbia, SC (WLTX) -- The week of May 5-11 marks Hurricane Preparedness Week for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
Thursday, at the South Carolina State Farmers Market, leaders from across the state met to discuss how South Carolina is preparing for the upcoming hurricane season in the governor's annual 'Hurricane Tabletop Exercise'.
The new season begins June 1.
"We're ready. We're getting more ready," said South Carolina Governor, Henry McMaster, in a press conference after the meeting.
"We were considering something we haven't seen in a while," he said. "That is, a hurricane to come up, go up the Savannah valley and end up in the upstate around the mountains in Spartanburg and Greenville and what would we do."
Officials also touched on the state's evacuation routes, reworking our flood response plan, and released a new set of operational conditions.
Kim Stenson, Director of the South Carolina Emergency Management Division (SCEMD) explained the changes.
"OPCON 3 is today, and we're in normal operations. OPCON 2 is increased awareness, and it may involve EOC activations. It may not, but it would be increased awareness. Then OPCON 1 will be full alert for emergency operations in the state posture," said Stenson.
Stenson said most other states use a 3-tier OPCON system, so South Carolina jumped on board. Last year, our OPCON system was distributed into five tiers.
As for the outlook for the 2019 hurricane season, experts say right now the signals are mixed.
"We're looking for, if you put it all together, probably an average hurricane season across the Atlantic. So you're talking about maybe 12 to 13 storms. Half become hurricanes and maybe a quarter become major hurricanes," said Frank Alsheimer, Science and Operations Officer for NOAA and the National Weather Service.
Each day this week, the National Weather Service Facebook page is sending out tips on what you can do before a storm hits. One example is getting flood insurance, even if you live inland.
"One of the biggest things we want people to remember is you don't have to live on the coast to have significant impacts from the hurricane," said Alsheimer. "Hurricanes Florence and Michael caused a lot of devastation well inland."
One of the best things you can do is equip yourself with a hurricane kit. A hurricane kit includes water, non-perishable food, and battery-powered flashlights and weather radio.
Alsheimer also recommends installing more than one weather app on your phone.
"Four out of the last seven years, there's been a storm even before June 1, in April or May." he said. "So if something popped up tomorrow, we want to be ready for that...All it takes is that one major hurricane to head in our direction to make it a very busy season."
At the governor's Tabletop Exercise, officials unveiled the 2019 South Carolina Hurricane Guide.
It will be available beginning May 26. SCEMD officials say to look for the guide in local newspapers, any Walgreens store, South Carolina Parks and Recreation Welcome Centers and coastal DMV offices.
You can also download the guide by visiting http://scemd.org.