Board of County Commissioners - Special Meeting - Oct 08 2026

Walton County Board of County Commissioners special meeting on October 8, 2026, focused on preparations for an approaching hurricane. Emergency Management described forecast risks, public alerts, shelter operations, evacuation planning, sandbag and tarp supplies, and coordination with county departments, schools, law enforcement, fire services, and state agencies. The board unanimously approved a mandatory evacuation for zones A, B, and C and separately voted unanimously to close county government offices at noon that day, keep them closed Friday, and close offices otherwise open Saturday. Officials also discussed possible post-storm flooding and damage assessments, and the county administrator noted that a local state-of-emergency declaration had been signed the previous day.

Procurement-related discussion included the county’s existing emergency services contract with DRC Emergency Services, which covers removal, cleaning, and restaging of sand on roadways and beaches; no new contract award or purchasing vote was identified. Emergency Management said the county had checked in with vendors and resources, had about 20 pallets of tarps and portable generators available, and was submitting requests to the state for additional deployable resources. Officials also noted grant requests for generators at county facilities. These were operational updates rather than approvals of new spending or contracts.