National Volunteer Week

National Volunteer Week is April 19-25, 2009, which is right around the corner. This week is intended to profile the dedicated actions of community volunteers. While there are lots of ways to volunteer, Johnson County Emergency Management & Homeland Security primarily supports three programs; CERT, Medical Reserve Corps, and the Emergency Communication Serve (ECS).

These groups help provide vital services and support during emergency preparedness and response. Consider joining now or during National Volunteer Week.

Can Emergency Preparedness be Green?

Johnson County Emergency Management & Homeland Security was recently asked to participate in upcoming Earth Day 2009 activities. As part of that conversation, we were asked "Can Emergency Preparedness by Green?". I thought it was a fantastic question and one that I wanted to propose to all readers of this blog. I'd love to hear ways emergency preparedness is environmentally friendly including opportunities to reduce, reuse, or recycle as a part of that effort.

Post to the blog so all others can see your feedback!

Preparedness for Weekend Winter Storm

A significant winter weather event has moved into Kansas and will impact Johnson County and the entire Kansas City Metro area over the weekend. This event may bring a mixture of rain, freezing rain, sleet, and snow with significant accumulation by mid-weekend. Johnson County Emergency Management & Homeland Security will monitor the event through the weekend.

These conditions will make travel difficult and often dangerous. All Johnson County residents are encouraged to avoid the roadways during the duration of the event to minimize the risk to themselves as well as others on the road such as critical snow plows and emergency service vehicles. If travel is required, all citizens should make sure they have emergency supplies in their vehicle along with a full tank of gas in case they are stranded or delayed.

Preparing to stay at home is also critical. “It is absolutely vital to have an emergency preparedness kit in your home or residence that allows you to stay safe during significant weather events,” stated Nick Crossley, Director of Johnson County Emergency Management and Homeland Security, “This kit needs to include bottled water, non-perishable food, medications, blankets, flashlights, and weather radio.” This is particularly critical if electrical power is disrupted due to the storm.

For more information about the contents of a home emergency supply get, citizens can visit the Johnson County Emergency Management & Homeland Security website at www.jocoem.org or the Johnson County – A Community Prepared Website at www.jocoprepared.org.

Much Thanks to Johnson County Rotary Club

Adam Crowe, Assistant Director of Community Preparedness for Johnson County Emergency Management & Homeland Security spoke this morning to the Johnson County Rotary Club on emergency management and community preparedness. There were lots of good questions about severe weather threats in the area as well as how the County warns of these threats (ex: outdoor warning siren system).

Emergency Preparedness Podcasting

Johnson County Emergency Management & Homeland Security is proud to be able to offer audio files as a new feature on the website. Several educational information as well as topical interviews are included on the page. The files can be downloaded by visiting the Prepared Everywhere page or by clicking here.

We are seeking out additional ways to share these files via podcasting systems like iTunes.

These files were provided in partnership with the KU Audio Reader program.

Responses to the Blog

I would like to thank Jan and Lizzy for commenting on Tuesday's blog posting about health and medical preparedness in Johnson County. You can see their posts as well as my response by clicking on 'Comments' at the bottom of that post. By commenting within the blog, it helps create a sense of community with shared questions and answers.

Health and Medical Exercise for Kansas Representatives

Emergency preparedness representatives from Johnson County Emergency Management, Johnson County Public Health, Shawnee Mission Medical Center, St. Luke's South Hospital, and Children's Mercy Hospital gathered today with other health professionals from throughout the Kansas side of the Kansas City Metro to determine how prepared the region is for medical surge issues that might arise from a variety of emergencies or disaster.

This kind of cooperation is a critical to Johnson County becoming a community prepared!

Canadian Video Highlights the Need for Emergency Supply Kits

Canada is launching a new public awareness video campaign that can be viewed by clicking here. This video is a great reminder about the need for all citizens to be prepared for a disaster by having 72 hours worth of food, water, and personal supplies necessary to be self-sufficient. For more information about how to prepare this individual or family preparedness kit, citizens can visit www.jocoprepared.org or click here for a detailed list.

St. Patty's Mitigation Plan

Legend says that St. Patrick drove all the snakes from Ireland thus removing that hazard from the area. In modern terms, this action of reducing or eliminating a hazard would be called mitigation.

Johnson County has various mitigation strategies in place to reduce, minimize, or eliminate hazards within the county. Examples include the Stormwater Management program and the Hazard Materials Collection Program. Moreover, Johnson County Emergency Management & Homeland Security is in the final stages or creating a multi-hazard mitigation plan to serve as a guide for the entire county.

For more information about what Johnson County is doing to be prepared for emergencies and disasters visit www.jocoprepared.org.

National Flood Safety Awareness Week

March 15-21 is National Flood Safety Awareness Week. Most Americans ignore the risks of flooding, assuming they aren’t in a flood zone. The reality is, floods are America’s #1 natural disaster and can happen anytime, anywhere. In fact, 90% of all natural disasters in the U.S. involve flooding.

FEMA's Flood Smart program has created a great website that provide information about threats as well as historically significant flooding throughout the United States. It even provides an opportunity for the general public to enter their address to determine what the flood threat is for their home or office (see picture).

Johnson County would like to encourage everyone to consider how to be prepared for all types of severe weather including flooding.

Severe Weather Awareness Seminar Series -- Wrap-Up

Johnson County Emergency Management & Homeland Security hosted a series of educational events this week in conjunction with Severe Weather Awareness Week. This Severe Weather Awareness Seminar Series served organizations that were outdoor recreation providers, indoor entertainment venues, assisted living and nursing facilities as well as religious and faith centers.

In summary, 33 people attended the sessions from 21 different organizations. You can click here to see a sneak peak into one of the sessions as well as a hear a first-hand account of how one of the sessions went.

Changes in TV Media Radar Graphics

Regional Emergency Managers (including representatives from Johnson County), the National Weather Service, and the four major television stations (4, 5, 9, & 41) have partnered to for he Integrated Warning Team for the Greater Kansas City area. The goal of this group is for these partners to work together to ensure a consistent message is passed to the public during severe weather events such as Tornado Watches and Tornado Warnings.

The first successful action of this group was to have all four major TV outlets change the radar graphics colors to a uniform pattern. The colors are as follows:

Blue (Severe Thunderstorm Watch)
Yellow (Severe Thunderstorm Warning)
Orange (Tornado Watch)
Red (Tornado Warning)

This video from KCTV5's Katie Horner explains this change well. This video can also be viewed at the Johnson County Emergency Management & Homeland Security YouTube Channel.

Johnson County Severe Weather Preparedness Profiled on KMBZ 980 AM

Eric Bushman of KMBZ 980 AM radio interviewed Adam Crowe about the Severe Weather Awareness Seminar Series that is being conducted this week in conjunction with Severe Weather Awareness Week. A link to the article and radio feed are listed here.

Siren and NOAA Weather Radio Test -- Did You Hear It?

Johnson County Emergency Management & Homeland Security in conjunction with the National Weather Service tested the Johnson County Outdoor Warning Siren system today as part of our observations related to Severe Weather Awareness Week. The National Weather Service also sent a test message via the NOAA All-Hazard Weather radios that we encourage all residents to consider owning as part of their overall preparedness efforts.

For April through November, the Outdoor Warning Siren system will be tested on the first Wednesday of every month at 11 AM.

Severe Weather Awareness Week -- Media References

Personnel from Johnson County Emergency Management & Homeland Security has been interviewed regarding Severe Weather Awareness by Fox-4 TV, KSHB-41 TV, KCTV5 TV, and KMBZ radio. The television spots will all run at 5 PM and/or 6 PM and the radio spot will run on Wednesday morning.

Severe Weather Awareness Tip of the Day....Outdoor Safety

Here is a severe weather awareness tip of the day, courtesy of KPR's interview with Adam Crowe (Assistant Director of Community Preparedness). Enjoy!

KPR Link to Severe Weather Awareness Story

Laura Lorsen, with KPR 91.5, interviewed Adam Crowe last week about severe weather awareness issues. The first part of that interview was played on KPR this morning. A link to the tip is provided here.

New NOAA All-Hazard Radio Video

A new video explaining how to setup and use a NOAA All-Hazard Weather Radio has been posted to the Johnson County Emergency Management YouTube Channel or can be watched by clicking here. These types of radios are a very important part of individual and family preparedness. Enjoy the video!

Recalls & Emergency Supply Kits

Because food and material recalls occasionally happen, it is important to regularly check your emergency supply kit to ensure all recalled materials are handled appropriately. You should review the contents of your emergency supply kits at least twice a year -- during Severe Weather Awareness Week and National Preparedness Month. If you need more information about recalls, you can visit this website.

Severe Weather Awareness Week Proclamation

The Johnson County Board of Commissioners declared March 9-13 Severe Weather Awareness Week (SWAW). This observation is part of a Statewide campaign to bring attention to preparedness efforts related to severe weather.

As part of the SWAW activities, the monthly test of the outdoor warning siren system has been scheduled for March 10th at 1:30. This is a different day of the week and time than the usual monthly tests.

The attached picture shows Adam Crowe (Assistant Director of Community Preparedness) joining Annabeth Surbaugh (Johnson County Chairman) during the proclamation ceremony.

70 Degrees Reminds Me that...

...severe weather season is just around the corner and that it is time for all of us to consider how to be prepared for hazards that occur during severe weather season. Specifically, you need to update the contents of your emergency preparedness kit and update your personal or family plan (if you don't have one and need to create it click here).

You also need to think about how you will stay informed about severe weather threats in the area. We realize most people consider television as their primary source of information related to severe weather, but this may not always be the best source to use. For instance, if a tornado warning is declared during the middle of the night (when most people are asleep), you need to find alternative ways to be notified so you can seek shelter.

We recommend purchasing a NOAA All-Hazard Weather Radio which can alert you 24/7 about threats in your areas. They are cost effective and very accurate. We also have released a new free SMS-Text notification system to provide emergency information related to severe weather. Information about this service is available here. Stayed tuned to the blog in the near future for more information about this service.

Website Changes

In conjunction with the upcoming severe weather awareness season, Johnson County Emergency Management & Homeland Security has released an updated and revised website.

With the help of the Johnson County IT department, the website was overhauled to be more user friendly and topic driven. There is now a set of pages for a variety of topics including citizen information, operational planning, public education, and kids & teachers. There is even a new section that includes links to all of our involvement with social networking and media.

Additional changes will be made over the next few days as well as the addition of training modules for visitors.

Let us know what you think!

Date/Time Change for Monthly Siren Test

Due to Severe Weather Awareness Week, the monthly test of the outdoor warning siren system has been moved to Tuesday, March 10th at 1:30 PM. Please note the time and day of the week change. Please share this information with your friends, family, and coworkers.

Public Health Response During Greensburg Tornado

The National Association of County and City Health Officials released a new online video highlighting the public health emergency response during the Greensburg Tornado of 2007. With Severe Weather Awareness Week starting next week (March 9-13) and an increased change of tornadoes over the next few months, I wanted to bring to your attention not only the devastating impact of severe weather (and tornadoes), but also why it takes everyone to respond to disasters and emergencies.

In Johnson County, the Public Health Department routinely plans, trains, and exercises operational protocols to ensure they are ready to respond. They also maintain a positive relationship with the entire emergency management community to continue to make Johnson County -- A Community Prepared.