SARASOTA- Hurricane season begins on June 1st.

As North Port continues to recover from Hurricane Ian, the city wants to make sure residents are prepared for future storms.

A North Port hurricane expo took place here at the George Mullen Activity Center.

The event allowed attendees to ask questions and receive important information about hurricane preparedness and storm readiness.

“Ian was a historic event and it did a lot of damage to a lot of areas that were not anticipating some of the flooding that they got. Whether they’re in a flood zone, whether they’re not in a flood zone, it really didn't matter. We had a speaker from County Emergency Management, we had a speaker from the national weather service. So, a lot of different organizations because when it comes to preparedness, it takes an entire community,” said Emergency Manager for the City of North Port, Michael Ryan.

This was the second annual North Port hurricane expo.

Vendors offered tips, services, and giveaways to use during the next storm, and presentations were given by local and regional emergency management officials.

“I think people realize after hurricane Ian that it’s serious. Hurricanes are to be taken seriously. No two storms are the same,” said Emergency Management Chief for Sarasota County, Ed McCrane.

Attendees received information on flood zones, evacuation routes, emergency kits, storm protection and more.

Emergency management officials strongly advise getting ready for future storms now and not waiting until the last minute.

“This is the time now to be prepared. Put your disaster kit together, go out to the stores, get the things you need. Put your plan together, share your plan with other people so people know what it is you’re going to do in case they’re not able to contact you during the event itself,” said Ryan.

“Have a plan, know your level, understand what goes in that supply kit, watch the local media. You can’t wait until the storm is already threatening us to go to the store and try to get the supplies,” said McCrane.

The City of North Port says it’s more important than ever to be prepared this hurricane season and they hope the expo does just that.

The event was completely free and open to the public.