Directors/Alternates Present: County, Corene Ederer-Sklar, Cynthia Engelhardt; Benny Stenner, Town Spring Green;Kevin Stieve, City Baraboo; Tom Dorner, Vil Lake Delton; Lisa McGlynn, Vil Lime Ridge; Larry Volz, Town Delton; Bill Fuhrman, Vil Loganville;Earl Clark, Vil Rock Springs; Bryan Schwarz, Vil North Freedom
Directors Absent: Jim Rohweder, Vil LaValle; Nick Fluguar, Ho-Chunk Nation; Tim Stone, Town of Fairfield; Andrew Sherman, Vil Prairie du Sac; Bob DeMars, Vil West Baraboo; Nils Richardson, Vil Spring Green; John Ruhland, Vil Plain; Michael Rogers, Vil Sauk City; Matt Anliker, Vil Spring Green; Bret Anderson, City Wisconsin Dells;Al Shanks, Vil Merrimac;Andrew Arneson, Town Washington/Hillpoint; Dennis Kluge, City Baraboo;Scott Zirzow. Town Fairfield; Kay Bainbridge, Baraboo Township;Lori Knadle, City of Reedsburg; Harold Dallman, Town of Freedom; Darlene Hill, Town Baraboo
Communities without representation: Ironton
Meeting called to order by County EM Director, Corene Sklar in EMBS meeting room
Pandemic Forum - (Corene, I cannot find the info on this in your papers)
Public Health and Emergency Management will be doing a tabletop exercise with the hospitals and doctors on immunizations, for responders. The hospitals will be training with our Health Department on their plans. Hospitals now have satellite phones and are working with ARES/RACES people on antennas. The top 3 security issues being worked on are lack of security staff, traffic control inside and outside of a facility and the inability to do lockdown. If anyone would like to receive the BRAT Consortium newsletter, send Corene your e-mail address.
Health and Human Services is developing performance metrics to help ensure hospitals and public health departments are emergency ready.
State Regional Meeting - none this month because of the Governor's Conference.
Handouts
The Mutual Aid Box Alarm System (MABAS) helps communities predetermine designated backups to respond to calls for additional resources from outside their community, when needed. This bill was signed on April 5th.
All local Emergency Management Directors can voluntarily be members of Wisconsin Emergency Management.
A sample handbook for families on preparing for emergencies, terrorism and disasters, $2.99 each.
Homeland Security and Advertising Council provide parents/teachers with resources to educate children about emergency preparedness, Ready Kids Program website: www.ready.gov
The Emergency Management Performance Grant is being reduced and is being combined with Citizen's Corp. There are major cuts to the Fire Grant Program, Law Enforcement Terrorism Prevention Program and State and local training programs.
Small Business Administration loans were approved for individuals and businesses in Vernon, Dane and Richland Counties from last August's tornadoes.
Assembly Bill 1028 passed unanimously, which will offer public relief to communities that suffer damage from tornadoes and other catastrophic events, in the event a presidential declaration is not received.
FYI on the Watertown tire fire incident - the local agencies are looking for over $1 million in expenses. Chapter 166 (Emergency Management) states that you can bill the responsible party, and all one can do is send a bill every 30 days and ask for payment, it does not force the responsible party to pay.
According to the Hazardous Substances Emergency Events Surveillance (HSEES) system, Wisconsin has had a total of 5,128 events from 1993-2004, resulting in 1,336 victims who became symptomatic as the result of exposure to a hazardous substance, and 43,102 evacuees. Spills involving ammonia represented 12% of the total events for this period.
Scientists say intense sunspots could take out communications systems in 2006.
A study says cell phones or using laptops on an airplane could disrupt cockpit operations.
A dead cat in Germany was found to have the H5N1 strain of the bird flu virus.
The Local Emergency Planning Committee is working on an activity book, which is being funded by a grant and they are trying to have it ready in time for Rural Safety Days.
The National Weather Service, working with the National Law Enforcement Telecommunications Weather Service (NLETS) has now implemented severe weather broadcasts through NLETS.
Tornado Awareness Week is April 16 - 22. The statewide drill is April 20.
Tornado data shows that most tornadoes have occurred in the months of May, August and September.
Update on Fiber Optics: Most all the programming and testing is completed at this point. Merrimac: Need to install radio equipment. Hillpoint: Will be placing racks at facility for fiber equipment then installing radio equipment. Happy Hill: Working on completing wiring between the old and new buildings then begin switching things over to new building.
Lake Delton; Hemlock; Sauk City; Courthouse; Nothing new to report. Spring Green: currently being worked on.
NEXT MEETING: April 27, 2006 at 10:00 a.m.
Respectfully submitted by: Cynthia Engelhardt