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by Russell J. Decker, EMA Director
The short answer
is no. But having just returned from the 'National Summit
on Improved Preparedness and Response to Acts of Terrorism'
in Washington, D.C. I believe you would hear the same answer
from most public safety professionals around the nation.
So what can we do and what are we doing
to become more prepared to deal with a terrorist or weapon
of mass destruction event here?
First of all, we can and we are assessing
vulnerabilities within our community and developing realistic
responses to those scenarios. I am particularly proud that
in Allen County we began working together as a broad based
public safety community on these issues more than three years
ago.
At the national summit, the so-called experts
were urging police and fire services to work together to eliminate
"turf issues" before the next major incident occurs;
to make certain that public health, hospital and EMS personnel
are included; and to fully utilize the recognized emergency
management and incident command systems already existing in
most jurisdictions. We have been doing just that right here
in Allen County with formal meetings that date back to 1999.
Additionally, we have reached out to many
private sector partners with special needs and assets to seek
their inclusion in our unified response to this growing focus
on Homeland Security.
We have aggressively worked to get as many
local first responders trained as instructors in hazardous
materials and weapons of mass destruction as possible so that
we can offer this important and costly training to all first
responders in Allen County in a cost effective and efficient
manner. We now have most of the trainers and training materials
in place so that we can begin rolling out this training to
all public safety personnel here without the cost of sending
them away to expensive, out-of-town schools.
Allen County is blessed with great public
safety professionals. It is my honor to work with these dedicated
men and women every day. And while there may be no place in
America that is truly ready for another tragic event like
9/11, I know there is not a harder working group of professionals
anywhere ready to do whatever it takes to save the lives and
protect the property of the citizens we serve.
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 Allen
County's outdoor community warning siren program is continuing
to grow. In 2002 four new sirens are being installed in the
villages of Bluffton, Harrod, and Layfayette. These additions
bring the total number of sirens in the countywide system
to 19. There are currently 17 other locations in the planning
stages for sirens throughout the county and the EMA is actively
seeking public and private grant dollars to help fund hose
projects. It is our goal to have the countywide siren system
up to full strength of 36 sirens by the end of 2007.
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2001 was a very busy and very productive
year for the Allen County Emergency Management Agency. It
was a year marked by many 'firsts' as well as the continuation
of several successful and proven programs.
Some of our favorite programs continued
to grow in 2001. Our partnership with the Lima Safety City
summer program continued for a second year. In this exciting
program we were able to work with more than 500 youngsters
to teach weather safety and the meaning of the outdoor warning
sirens. We look forward to this program growing even more
in 2002.
The EMA once again participated in a number
of environmental events that benefit our community including
the annual Household Hazardous Waste Day and the Ottawa River
Clean-Up. Both events were huge successes in 2001. Additionally
our agency took a more active than usual part in the annual
Safety, Health & Environmental Day at the Veterans Memorial
Civic Center. We expect to be even more involved in the 2002
edition slated for September 26th of this year.
A couple of new programs were launched in
2001. An ongoing program to collect and safely dispose of
mercury yielded great results in its first year with more
than 200 pounds collected! This program will continue indefinitely
and is offered by the county EMA in conjunction with the Ohio
EPA. Anyone who has mercury and needs it properly disposed
of can simply call the EMA at 419-993-1404 and schedule a
pick-up at their home, school or office. There is no fee for
the service.
Also new this year was the use of the county's
mobile command vehicle as a 'Weather Center" for the
Allen County Fair. The fair attracts more than 200,000 visitors
each year and having a good handle on weather conditions is
essential. Fair manager Jay Begg described the EMA Weather
Center as a critical tool to ensuring the safety of everyone
while at the fair. The EMA plans to expand upon those capabilities
this year.
In June the county voluntarily participated
in the Ohio State Capabilities Assessment for Readiness (OSCAR)
with the Ohio EMA and Ohio Department of Public Safety. More
than 78 private and public agencies participated in the three-day
assessment of our local ability to respond to a major disaster
here. Results were for the most part positive and EMA staff
members are working with community leaders to address areas
where the assessment showed more work was needed. This annual
report is one example of new items resulting from the OSCAR
feedback.
Our agency stayed busy with our usual activities
too. We provided in-service training and participated in emergency
exercises at 42 local businesses and industries. We presented
43 lectures and demonstrations at area schools. We participated
in 96 community events including neighborhood association
meetings and service club talks. And our "Calls for Service"
rose to a record 208 responses in 2001!
And finally, no summary of 2001 would be
complete without a look at events of 9/11 and their effects
here. On the morning of 9/11, the EMA met with Sheriff Beck
and members of the local law enforcement community to review
our county's plan for responding to large-scale emergencies.
By that afternoon a similar meeting was held including law
enforcement, fire service, emergency medical, the military,
emergency management and elected officials to discuss and
update our readiness. Other meetings were held throughout
that first day and coming days with private sector partners
in business and industry to make certain that all critical
facilities within Allen County were prepared to take whatever
action might be needed to ensure the safety of our citizens.
In late October our community was advised
that a local company, Titan Scan Technologies on 4th Street
in Lima had been awarded a contract to irradiate potential
anthrax tainted mail for the United States Postal Service.
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 Since
1988, businesses and industries in Ohio that manufacture,
store or otherwise use large quantities of hazardous or extremely
hazardous materials are mandated to report this information
to the Ohio EPA, the county EMA and their local fire department.
Compliance with this law in Allen County has been extremely
successful with more than 150 filers reporting their activity
each year.
While these facilities are located in nearly
every village, city and township in Allen County, the city
of Lima leads all jurisdictions with the most number of overall
facilities reporting, while Bath Township records the highest
number of facilities claiming extremely hazardous materials
on their sites.
Public inspection of these files is available
during normal business hours at the Allen County EMA office
or at the Ohio EPA headquarters in Columbus. Local leaders
and public safety officials pledged whatever resources necessary
to assist with this important mission. To date 48 truckloads
of potentially tainted mail have been successfully treated
here, while another 30 truckloads of 'clean' mail addressed
to The White House, the Congress and other critical Washington,
D.C. destinations have been given preventative irradiation.
This process is expected to continue locally for at least
several more months.
A busy year in Allen County for your Emergency
Management Agency. Our pledge to continue this high level
of service in 2002 is made possible thanks to a dedicated
staff of professionals and volunteers who enjoy doing their
part to keep Allen County the greatest and safest place to
live and work in Ohio.
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The Ohio Revised Code provides that county-wide
Emergency Management Agencies may serve as central clearinghouses
for claims against parties responsible for the unauthorized
release of hazardous materials. In 2000, the Allen County
EMA established a policy to recover extraordinary costs incurred
by emergency responders within our county for such incidents.
In 2001, local fire departments for the
first time began to file claims for recovery with the EMA.
All claims submitted in 2001 were successfully collected by
the agency returning $13,696.50 to local departments, thus
reimbursing local taxpayers the costs of those clean ups.
The following agencies recovered funds through
this new program in 2001: Delphos Fire Department, Elida Community
Fire Company, Emergency Management Agency, Village of Fort
Shawnee, Lima Fire Department, Lima-Allen County Paramedics
and Shawnee Township Fire Department.
| Fire District |
# Calls
|
% of EMA Calls
|
Bath
Beaverdam
Bluffton
Cairo
Delphos
Elida
Harrod
Lafayette
Lima
Perry
Shawnee
Spencerville
Westminster
|
30
5
4
3
8
29
2
2
59
10
39
6
3
|
14%
3%
2%
2%
4%
14%
1%
1%
29%
5%
19%
4%
2%
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Have you ever heard of an 'Ozone Alert Day'
in Allen County? Well not yet, but members of the Allen County
Environmental Citizens Advisory Committee and the Allen County
Hazardous Materials Emergency Planning Committee have joined
forces to help develop an Ozone Action Plan for our community.
The Ozone Plan is expected to be released to the community
sometime this spring with initial implementation this ozone
season (April-October).
Briefly speaking, elevated ozone levels
can be harmful to our health and the environment and are consequently
regulated under the federal Clean Air Act. The burning of
hydrocarbons through actions such as driving your car, operating
gas powered lawn mowers, and cooking out over charcoal can
have a considerable impact on these levels.
On days when our community is at risk of
exceeding allowable levels an 'Ozone Alert Day' will be activated.
On these days everyone in Allen County will be asked to help
do their part to curb emissions. You can help by carpooling
to work, putting off mowing your lawn for a day, and fueling
up your vehicles either early in the morning or after sundown.
Watch for more information from the Ozone
Action Committee this spring!
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As we look forward to the next five
years, it's an exciting time for your Allen County Emergency
Management Agency.
- We anticipate expanding our professional
staff with the hiring of an Assistant Director
- WMD training for all first responders
in Allen County
- Implementing a county-wide Ozone Action
Plan
- Establishing a county-wide Public Safety
Professionals Recognition Program
- Completing of the outdoor warning program
with the addition of 17 new sirens
- Achieving national accreditation for
the county EMA program
- Achieving national accreditation (CEM)
for county EMA Director
|
EMA Speakers Bureau
- presentations available on topics such as Severe Weather,
Hazardous Materials, Terrorism, Titan Scan / US Mail
Project, Bomb Threats, Emergency Planning and more!
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County Commissioners
| Alberta Lee |
Bob Cupp |
Steve Diepenbrock |
EMA Director - Russell J. Decker
Administrative Assistant - Sheila
Hullinger
Deputy Director
| Doug Litsey |
Fred Fassell |
John Walters |
| Jed Metzger |
Fred Eldridge |
Maj. Gene King |
Public Information Officers
| Anne Nashif Decker |
George Dunster |
Communications Officer - Fred Vobbe
Emergency Planning Committee
Tim Haniford, Chairman
Bill Kelly, Vice Chairman
| Jim Bame |
Dan Beck |
Carol Bertrand |
| John Brookman |
Ted Brookman |
Kevin Bruin |
| Jim Caprella |
John Cavese |
Fred Fassel |
| Steve Faul |
Clete Hoersten |
Sharon Houston |
| Mike Knotts |
Doug Litsey |
Jeff Martin |
| Tom Mazur |
Jed Metzger |
Jim Michael |
| Pat Miller |
Todd Numbers |
Dan Protsman |
| Clint Rolland |
Mark Stall |
Jon Solomon |
| Trevor Violet |
David Wagner |
John Walters |
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