Polk County opens new facility to support special needs shelters

WINTER HAVEN, Fla. — As the peak of hurricane season nears, Polk County is taking steps to ensure its shelters are fully prepared. 

The county recently opened a new special needs warehouse.

The 8,000-square-foot facility stores supplies and equipment used to support the county’s three special needs shelters during severe weather.

Emergency Management Director Paul Womble said the new facility has been in the works for the past few years. Over his 20-year career with the county, he has watched the area grow significantly — increasing the number of people who rely on special needs shelters.

“We just needed more space, you know? We had temporary storage, and we didn’t have a good inventory system,” he said.

Previously, supplies were kept in two separate school board warehouses. Now, everything is stored under one roof just behind Polk County’s Emergency Operations Center in Winter Haven.

“It’s sitting here ready to go. You know, we can load it up on trucks and move it out and get those shelters ready when we need it,” he said.

Womble said the $1.5 million facility, funded by the state Legislature, is stocked with key necessities: cots, wheelchairs, walkers, oxygen tubing and administrative supplies.

“All the things it takes to turn a high school into a special needs shelter,” Womble said.

He said a lot happens behind the scenes to ensure emergency shelters are prepared ahead of storms. But when it comes to special needs shelters, the benefit of having a dedicated warehouse goes beyond just the supplies.

“There are a lot of folk in Polk County that have some type of electrical medical equipment, they need some extra care especially in a hurricane,” he said. “They live alone, they live in a mobile home. Their only family may be that home health nurse that comes every couple of weeks and that’s it and that’s what this program is all about.”

Polk County’s special needs shelters are located in Lakeland, Haines City and Bartow.

To register for a special needs shelter or transportation, visit the Florida Special Needs Registry. You can call your home health care provider or durable medical equipment provider, or call the Polk County Emergency Management Special Needs Program at (863) 298-7027.