There is a simple phrase Haywood County leaders want residents to remember: “Hi-Lo, time to go!”
Those simple words can save lives, Haywood County Recovery and Resiliency Manager Cody Grasty told county commissioners during their Aug. 3 meeting. Grasty came before the board to discuss the county’s 18 now-operational emergency flood sirens that were approved following Tropical Storm Fred in August 2021.
Six lives were lost in that storm, which caused extensive flooding in the southeastern part of the county. Five more people died during Hurricane Helene in September 2024, only reinforcing the need for a local emergency alert system, especially as cellular networks went down during that storm.
