Post office extends deadline for McDuffie ZIP surveys

A deadline to answer a survey for Columbia County residents with McDuffie County ZIP codes has been extended for 30 days.

The U.S. Post Office's address management center in Macon, Ga., sent out surveys in November to 148 homes on the western fringe of Columbia County with Thomson ZIP codes to ask if they wanted to switch either to an Appling or Harlem ZIP code.

Columbia County Emergency Services Director Pam Tucker's office sent a letter to the affected residents last week encouraging them to respond to the survey by the original deadline last week. That's when the calls started pouring into her office, she said.

"After my letter went out, I started getting phone calls from people saying they never got a survey," Tucker said. "I started keeping a list of those and then I sent it on to (Address Management System Director Gerelyn Reaves)."

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Tucker said that nearly 50 affected homes were excluded from the survey. In response, Reaves agreed to send a survey to addresses that didn't get one. She also extended the deadline to receive the responses, to Jan. 11.

The switch to a Columbia County ZIP code could improve responses from emergency services, animal control, public works and other county departments, Tucker said.

Anyone with questions about changing their ZIP codes, can call the county's EMA office at 868-3304 or e-mail ptucker@co.columbia.ga.us.