Skip the gridlock and soaring prices: This company wants to reinvent hurricane evacuations in Florida
The newly launched company, PriorityEvac, is selling an evacuation membership program that guarantees members a seat on a contracted airbus out of Florida when a major hurricane threatens their area.
Tropical Storm Bertha brews in the Gulf of America, threatening many coastal communities
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Atlantic hurricane season is underway, and one company is offering Florida residents an alternative way to evacuate before a hurricane makes landfall.
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The newly launched company, PriorityEvac, is selling an evacuation membership program that guarantees members a seat on a contracted airbus out of Florida when a major hurricane threatens their area.
"Every hurricane season, families face the same difficult reality: roads become gridlocked, commercial flights sell out, and private aviation options become limited just as demand peaks," Jason Murgio, founder of PriorityEvac, said. "I just really thought there had to be a better way to do this."
PriorityEvac, is selling an evacuation membership program that guarantees members a seat on a contracted airbus out of Florida when a major hurricane threatens their area.
(Pedro Portal/Miami Herald/Tribune News Service via Getty Images / Getty Images)
Murgio, who spent 27 years working in the insurance industry, said he came up with the idea after a friend struggled to evacuate Florida ahead of a hurricane and was shocked by the soaring cost of airfare during the storm.
The experience inspired him to create a more affordable and accessible evacuation option.
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The company is designed to provide Florida residents and seasonal homeowners with access to prearranged air evacuation services before major hurricanes make landfall.
By combining aviation resources, emergency management expertise and disaster-response partnerships, PriorityEvac aims to provide members with a structured evacuation plan during hurricane season.
The program is designed to give Floridians a simpler, less stressful way to evacuate ahead of a hurricane, avoiding skyrocketing airfare and hours spent sitting in traffic.
(oe Raedle/Getty Images)
"The benefits are obviously for our members because they want to get out and be prepared, but it's also about helping relieve stress on the system," Murgio said. "It frees up resources, whether that's a tank of fuel, a bed in a shelter or a hotel room. It takes stress off a system that is very fragile during those times."
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Membership costs $1,250 per person and covers the entire Atlantic hurricane season, which runs from June 1 through Nov. 30.
PriorityEvac also offers family and couple memberships, catering to a wide range of customers, including seniors, snowbirds, families and pet owners.
An evacuation sign during a major Hurricane impacting Florida.
(Tristan Wheelock/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)
Members receive access to the company's evacuation network with no activation fees or storm-related surge pricing. The membership also includes up to two hurricane evacuations per season, guaranteeing a seat on the aircraft whenever an evacuation is activated.
"We did try to be very mindful when we priced this to be something that was not out of the range for people," Murgio said.
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PriorityEvac currently serves 12 counties across Florida's East and West coasts, spanning Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties in South Florida, as well as the Tampa Bay, Sarasota and Southwest Florida regions.
Flights depart from six designated airports across Florida.
(EVA MARIE UZCATEGUI/AFP via Getty Images / Getty Images)
Flights, operated by Global Crossing Airlines, depart from six designated airports: Miami International Airport, Palm Beach International Airport, Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, Tampa International Airport, Sarasota Bradenton International Airport and Southwest Florida International Airport.
Members are flown to Atlanta, a short flight from Florida and one of the nation's largest airline hubs, allowing them access to easily continue to their final destination.
The service does not include a return flight home. Instead, members receive a guidebook with information on ground transportation, connecting flights, lodging options and other resources to help them after arriving in Atlanta.
"We are an evacuation service. It's not a travel concierge service," Murgio said.
A sign shows all flights cancelled at the closed Tampa International Airport in Tampa, Florida, as the city prepares for a Hurricane.
(Miguel J. Rodriguez Carrillo / AFP / Getty Images)
When a hurricane threatens Florida, Murgio and his team follow a detailed plan designed to safely evacuate members before conditions deteriorate.
According to Tim Houston, the company's chief operating officer and a retired U.S. Air Force colonel who previously served as chief of operations at NORAD, PriorityEvac closely follows guidance from the National Hurricane Center (NHC).
Also, one of the company's advisors was a former lead forecaster from the NHC who helps keep the team informed of the latest forecasts and models.
Traffic is heavy in Florida as thousands evacuate ahead of Hurricane.
(Spencer Platt/Getty Images / Getty Images)
"So the second we see a tropical depression start to form, we're already taking action behind the scenes and keeping all of our members informed," Houston said. "Once there's a 40% or greater probability of hurricane-force winds arriving at one of our affected airports, that's what triggers our response."
"That's when we are calling our members and saying, 'Look, we're going to have somewhere, depending upon how rapidly that storm is intensifying, between 30 and 72 hours to successfully run an evacuation by air,'" Murgio said.
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From there, case managers begin contacting members through text messages, email and direct phone calls to coordinate flight times.
A plane takes off from Florida ahead of a hurricane.
(EVA MARIE UZCATEGUI/AFP via Getty Images / Getty Images)
According to Murgio, PriorityEvac is designed to operate at a large scale during an evacuation. Multiple aircraft will continuously shuttle between Florida and Atlanta, transporting passengers to safety before returning to pick up additional members.
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The program is designed to give Floridians a simpler, less stressful way to evacuate ahead of a hurricane, avoiding skyrocketing airfare and hours spent sitting in traffic trying to leave the state.
"We'd love to help people change what can be a very scary and chaotic moment into something that is more planned and controlled," Murgio said.