(A) An emergency is an occurrence or imminent threat of widespread or severe damage, injury, or loss of life or property resulting from any natural, man-made, accidental, military, paramilitary, terrorism, weather-related, public health, explosion-related, riot-related, or technical failure or accident, including, but not limited to, a cyber incident, an explosion, a transportation accident, a radiological accident, or a chemical or other hazardous material incident.
(B) A state of emergency shall be deemed to exist whenever during times of public crisis, disaster, rioting, catastrophe, or similar emergency, for any reason, public safety authorities are unable or are likely to be unable to maintain public order or afford adequate protection for lives, safety or property.
(C) In the event of an existing or threatened state of emergency endangering the lives, safety, health and welfare of the people within Surry County or any part thereof, or threatening damages to or destruction of property, the Chairman of the Board of Commissioners of Surry County (Chairman) is hereby authorized and empowered, pursuant to G.S. 166A-19.22, to issue a Declaration of State of Emergency declaring to all persons the existence of such a State of Emergency and, in order to more effectively protect the lives and property of people within the County, to place in effect any or all of the restrictions hereinafter authorized. The emergency area shall not exceed the area over which the County has jurisdiction to enact police-powered ordinances. The State of Emergency shall expire when it is terminated by the Chairman.
(D) The Chairman is authorized and empowered to enact ordinances designed to permit the imposition of prohibitions and restrictions within the emergency area during the state of emergency declared pursuant to G.S. 166A-19.22. Prohibitions and restrictions authorized herein, more fully discussed below, include, but are not limited to:
(1) Prohibition and restriction of movements of people in public places including any of the following:
(a) Imposing a curfew.
(b) Directing and compelling the voluntary or mandatory evacuation of all or any part of the population from any stricken or threatened area within the governing body's jurisdiction.
(c) Prescribing routes, modes of transportation and destinations in connection with evacuations.
(d) Controlling ingress and egress of an emergency area and the movement of persons within that area.
(e) Providing for the closure, within the emergency area, of streets, roads, highways, bridges, public vehicular areas, or other areas ordinarily used for vehicular travel, except to the movement of emergency responders and other persons necessary for recovering from the emergency. The Sheriff is authorized to assist in the implementation of the emergency plan.
(2) Prohibit or restrict the operation of offices, businesses, and other places to or from which people may travel or which they may congregate.
(3) Prohibit or restrict possession, transportation, sale, purchase and consumption of alcoholic beverages.
(4) Prohibit or restrict the possession, transportation, sale, purchase, storage, and use of gasoline, dangerous weapons and substances, except that this ordinance does not authorize prohibitions or restrictions or lawfully possessed firearms or ammunition.
(5) Restrict other activities or conditions the control of which may be reasonably necessary to maintain order and protect lives or property during the state of emergency.
(Ord. passed 11-3-1986; Ord. passed 12-7-2020)