Houston, TX —In response to the mandatory evacuation order currently in place within Jefferson, Hardin and Orange counties, the Postal Service has suspended all mail collection services and delivery of Express Mail for Sunday, August 31 within all 776 and 777 ZIP Codes areas. The Beaumont Processing and Distribution Center and Beaumont Main Post Office at 5815 Walden Road in Beaumont are closed. All Post Office lobbies offering Post Office Box service within the 776 and 777 ZIP Code areas are temporarily closed due to the evacuation order.

In addition, the Postal Service will offer no retail service, mail delivery or mail collections on Monday, September 1 due to the Labor Day holiday.

The Postal Service is preparing for the potential impact of Hurricane Gustav by advising customers that service operations at Post Offices located within the path of the storm are expected to be impacted in the event of unsafe conditions such as high winds, flooding, or impassable roads.

Depending on local conditions, some post offices may temporarily close their lobbies as Hurricane Gustav makes landfall. If roads become impassable or unsafe for travel, mail delivery services may be curtailed, and mail collection schedules from mailboxes could be suspended.

Postal Service employees throughout the Beaumont-Galveston-Houston area have been working over the past two days to secure the mail, postal facilities and equipment in advance of the potential arrival of Hurricane Gustav.

The Postal Service will continue to make plans for suspending services where mandatory evacuation orders are issued by local, state, or federal emergency management officials. Customer service operations in any area covered by a mandatory evacuation order include mail processing, mail delivery, scheduled collection of mail from mailboxes, bulk mail acceptance, post office box service and retail post office lobby services. Drop shipment appointments will also be suspended at closed facilities.

For the latest information on USPS service updates, check: http://www.usps.com/communications/news/serviceupdates.htm.

Postal Service employees in the area are being advised to check for changes to their scheduled work reporting status on a daily basis by contacting the USPS National Emergency Notification Hotline to determine if any special instructions have been issued. The toll-free USPS National Emergency Notification Hotline for U.S. Postal Service employees is: 1-888-363-7462.