WINTER PREPARATION EMA officials lead session to prepare for emergencies
Topics included handling a flu outbreak, outages and severe weather.
By NANCY TULLIS
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Along with the holidays, December and January bring the potential for severe weather and flu outbreaks.
To prepare for these possible crises, Mahoning County Emergency Management Agency and Communications officials and Dr. Larry Frisch of the Mahoning County Board of Health are leading a crisis planning and intervention session todayat Oakhill Renaissance Place on the city's South Side.
Walter Duzzny, EMA director, said the potential for severe weather and flu outbreak during the coming winter warrants an exchange of ideas among individuals who would respond to such weather or health crises to fine tune an action plan.
Duzzny said Mahoning County officials and representatives of area safety services, medical facilities, health departments, ambulance services, emergency and medical support services, educational facilities and utility companies were invited to attend the meeting.
Among the topics planned are relocation, evacuation, security and emergency declarations.
Additional items
Also on the agenda are Gary Garnet of the National Weather Service on winter weather predictions, Paul Harkey of First Energy on utility service outages and Clark Jones, EMA operations director on relocation and disaster declaration plans.
Frisch is to lead discussions on preparation and response to a local flu outbreak or the local response to a national or global flu outbreak. Listed on the agenda as areas of concern during a flu outbreak include plans for inoculation, isolation and quarantine.
While county officials are preparing to respond to residents' needs during crisis, residents can help themselves by being informed and prepared, Duzzny said.
Information on emergency topics such as winter travel, home disaster plans and what to expect if an evacuation is ordered are available on the EMA Web site, www.disaster-emergencymgt.com/