*This story was updated on May 30, 2025.
The official start of hurricane season means it's time to review emergency plans. And for South Florida residents with medical needs, that can involve extra work to ensure a spot on county lists for emergency evacuation assistance.
Florida counties maintain special needs registries for emergency situations. During hurricanes, people who have pre-registered on these lists are eligible for priority evacuation help and medical shelters — depending on their level of need.
READ MORE: Hurricanes aren’t just a coastal problem. How to gauge your risk level
In 2017, Hurricane Irma exposed vulnerabilities in the evacuation and shelter procedures for people with special needs. WLRN found that while 2,200 people were pre-registered for emergency support, an additional 2,225 called for assistance at the last minute and the county was unable to help many of them.
It's important to note that residents in assisted living facilities and nursing homes do not qualify for special needs shelters, because these business entities must have their own emergency evacuation plans in place for their clients.
If you or a loved one has special medical needs, here are the county resources to pre-register for evacuation and shelter assistance:
Broward County
Residents with medical needs can apply for evacuation transportation and space in a special needs shelter here or call (954) 831-3902 (or TTY 954-831-3940). Broward County also offers a pintable application form online, along with more information about qualifying for special needs emergency services in Creole, English, Portuguese and Spanish.
Miami-Dade County
Miami-Dade residents with special needs can apply to the county's Emergency & Evacuation Assistance Program (EEAP) to receive specialized transportation, safe shelter, nedical monitoring and wellness checks. You can apply for EEAP online or download a printable application in English, Spanish or Creole. Registrants can also call 305-513-7700
Note: Residents with advanced medical needs are required to get part of the application signed by their primary care physician or a home health care nurse.
Monroe County
Monroe County Emergency Management uses Everbridge for its Special Needs Registry for Shelter and Evacuation Assistance. The subscription-based alert system allows emergency management officials to contact a large number of people through automated phone calls, emails, text messages, and other wireless notifications. You can sign up by creating an account on the county's online portal or calling 305-289-6333. In order to be an active member on the registry, you must reapply through the online portal annually before April 30 of each year. Please note that Monroe County no longer accepts paper applications.
Palm Beach County
Residents with certain medical needs — dependence on electric medical devices, dependence on external oxygen, chronic but stable illnesses that require a caregiver, dementia or progressive Alzheimer's — can register online for space in a medical shelter or print out an application and mail it back in. You can also call (561) 712-6400 for assistance.
Residents with other disabilities can register for transportation to general shelters by calling (561) 649-9848 or 877-870-9849 (toll free) to apply for the Special Transportation Assistance Program through Palm Tran.
