As South Carolinians assess Hurricane Katrina today a year after the storm devastated the Gulf Coast, they also cast a wary eye seaward as Tropical Storm Ernesto bruised Haiti (as a hurricane) and Cuba.

Weather experts project that the storm probably could hit the Palmetto State, but the forecast is iffy three days out. Hurricane David was born in the Labor Day time frame 27 years ago. It also took a path across the Dominican Republic and Cuba, killing 900 people, and tracked to Savannah, coming inland and moving across the state after downing thousands of trees.

Today thoughts return to Long Beach, Miss., and other Gulf Coast towns where Beaufort County residents went numerous times in the last 12 months to help people rebuild their lives.

In the wake of such terrible destruction and seeming federal government inaction, local residents, especially members of congregations of the six churches, and the Beaufort Chain Saw Brigade made valuable contributions to Long Beach -- contributions that people won't soon forget and contributions that are bound to reward Beaufort with a return of in-kind compassion and service should such tragedy befall this community.

A high-level meeting of congressional, military, National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration and local emergency officials gathered at Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort on Aug. 17 to declare that Beaufort is ready for a storm. In the event of a catastrophic storm, recovery operations would start from the air station. Because it is 37 feet above sea level, buses would be housed there and aircraft would operate from the facilities.

As Beaufort residents and officials focus on the Gulf Coast this week, they also reflect on "things learned" in the process.

While Beaufort County has a coordinator who will operate through the United Way to organize volunteers who would seek to help the community recover, Beaufort Mayor Bill Rauch said this was a priority in the city. When he took the Chainsaw Brigade to Long Beach in September 2005 several weeks after Katrina hit, his crews wanted to go to work immediately. Government officials still were in a state of shock, and no one was organized to direct volunteers to the people who needed help. Plans also are needed to coordinate volunteer housing -- or at least where a tent city can be raised. Rauch said it was important that the city be prepared for volunteers because "enormous assistance will arrive for two to three months and then it wanes."

Beaufort City Manager Scott Dadson said that the city court staff headed by Linda Roper would be a clearinghouse for the municipality's volunteers and would coordinate lists with the county coordinator, who operates under the United Way of Beaufort County. "We aren't trying to supplant what the county is doing, we are supplementing. We saw it as part of the city's strategic plan," Dadson said.

Clarece Walker, United Way of Beaufort County president and CEO, said two volunteers will operate -- one in northern and the other in the southern portion of the county to handle unaffiliated volunteers who want to be put to work. They will match calls to needs, supplies and money contributions to the county. "We coordinate with all health and human service players, but especially those agencies that have their own players, such as the Red Cross and Salvation Army," she said.

William Winn, Beaufort County Emergency Management Division director, says that the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the volunteer coordinator through the United Way, is important. Winn also said it is important on this anniversary not to judge the entire hurricane response on one storm. People may not always be moved to respond to a storm the way that the thousands of volunteers were during Katrina. "It depends on the damage and perceived impact," he said.

South Carolina has developed a better response plan, Winn said. FEMA has positioned trucks with pre-stocked supplies, and the state is planning for more warehouse space to stock supplies, he said.

Winn said Monday that the most important lesson learned from Katrina -- or any hurricane -- as he has talked to other officials is that "personal family preparedness comes out on top of the heap."

"There is a lot that FEMA and everyone else can do for you," he said, "but if you don't have a family evacuation plan, a family emergency plan, know how you are going to evacuate and inspect your personal homeowner's insurance," you are courting disaster. That plan also should include having prescriptions refilled in plenty of time to evacuate and having on hand a three-day supply of food and water for each family member.

Personal accountability and plenty of insurance are important to surviving a hurricane. Winn's advice is to be prepared to leave when officials say to evacuate, and check with your insurance agent to make sure that you have adequate coverage.

Recently Winn said that flood insurance covers only $250,000 of a home's value, and the cost of insuring against wind damage is increasing. Many insurance companies are dropping coverage in coastal areas because of the catastrophic losses they have incurred in recent years.

Complacency is the enemy in the face of a hurricane, whether it is a Category 1 or a Category 5 storm. Specialists call hurricanes the greatest storms on earth. Indeed, some Gulfport, Miss., residents have two horror stories to tell from their experiences in Hurricane Camille in August 1969 and Katrina. Pay attention and heed the experts' advice during a storm. Evacuate when told.