Letter: Sheriff Tanner blows it on re-entry
It is a shame that the stellar performance of the boots on the ground (especially the law enforcement officers and utility repair crews) was marred by the totally inept resident return policy created and implemented by Beaufort County Sheriff P.J. Tanner and his emergency response team.
His Soviet-inspired processing/detention plan, the inexcusable delays in formulating and publishing that plan, and the near total lack of any communication about when and how residents could return to their homes, was almost as disastrous as the hurricane itself.
Sadly, one consequence is that the next time the governor declares a mandatory evacuation, thousands of Beaufort County residents will ignore it rather than subject themselves to Sheriff Tanner’s demonstrated lack of judgment.
Jackson Steele
Bluffton
This story was originally published October 17, 2016 at 6:22 PM with the headline "Letter: Sheriff Tanner blows it on re-entry."