1) WISH-kids and their families are still at GKTW.
2) There was no mass-evacuation.
3) Most activities are cancelled.
4) This is the Hurricane Matthew info by GKTW:
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PREPARING FOR HURRICANE MATTHEW
A hurricane warning is in effect for the east coast of Florida. Hurricane Matthew is predicted for landfall by late Thursday/early Friday morning, with potential for significant hurricane force winds and rainfall in our area. Based on this information, Give Kids The World Village management and staff will be taking steps to ensure the safety of our families, staff and volunteers.
FOOD
Thursday afternoon, we will deliver food to each villa. Each villa will receive:
o Water, soda, snacks
o 1 pizza and turkey or chicken dinner to be used for Thursday dinner in your villa
o Cereal, fruit, granola bars and milk to be used for Friday breakfast in your villa
o Bread with sandwich fixings to be used for Friday lunch in your villa
GKTW ACTIVITIES
All GKTW venues will be closed until further notice with the exception of Towne Hall, The Hoppening Place, Cafe Clayton and the Ice Cream Palace. These venues will be open as follows:
o Ice Cream Palace will be open until Noon.
o Lunch will be served in Café Clayton, or via delivery, until 2 p.m.
o Movie Marathon in Hoppening Place on Thursday; "Frozen" at 11 a.m.; "Inside Out" at 1:30 p.m.; "Minions" at 3:30 p.m.
Winter Wonderland and Teen Night are cancelled for Thursday evening. Gifts from Santa will be delivered to each villa.
Thursday night Village curfew is 8 p.m. due to the expectation of strong tropical storm force winds. Remain in your villa after 8 p.m. on Thursday. We strongly recommend no pedestrian or vehicle traffic after 8 p.m.
Recommendations for you and your family:
1) Please pay particular attention to the local news channels (Ch. 10, 11, 12, & 41) over the next 24 hours for continuous weather updates, theme park information, etc. The theme parks will remain open until they deem it unsafe to operate.
2) In the event of a loss of power, please shut off air conditioning unit and all electrical equipment (such as TV) to prevent power surges and further damage. Fill the tub with water so it can be utilized if necessary.
3) We will continue to have staff in the House of Hearts-Guest Services (#6 on your Village map) 24 hrs/day. In the case of phone loss, please come to House of Hearts for personal support as necessary. If not an emergency and we are experiencing severe weather conditions, please remain in your villa.
4) If you have medical equipment that requires electrical power, please inform Guest Services this evening (dial "0" from your villa phone). Although we do maintain guest files, we want to be sure we are updated with your latest information. In the event of an extended power outage, the Village has sources that can accommodate in an emergency. Please ask for a Manager on Duty to assist.
5) Strong winds and rain require extra caution for you and your children. Obviously, remain indoors. The safest place in the villa is the villa bathrooms, away from windows. As a precaution, please move your porch furniture within your villa by Thursday at noon. If you need assistance, please dial "0" from your villa phone and Village staff will assist.
6) In the event any damage is caused to your villa, please contact our Guest Services department by dialing "0" immediately.
Safety is our top priority and we will continue to monitor Hurricane Matthew as it progresses through the Atlantic, and into the east coast of Florida. We will do our best to keep you informed of changes within Village programs, but request your understanding of changes based on the unpredictable nature of weather conditions. Our primary goal is to ensure you and your family remain comfortable and safe during this potentially severe storm
Updates will be on the GKTW App, Pre-Arrival Website (www.gktw.org/families), digital display boards throughout the Village and by way of printed information delivered to your villa. Additionally, Give Kids The World Village will maintain TV channel 5 as an in-house information channel. We will update as often as possible with Village news and recommendations. Guest Services will be available 24 hours/day. Please dial "0" if we can answer questions or be of service to you in anyway.
