Hurricanes Ahead
Santa Rosa County, FEMA prepare for 2007 season
BY FRANKLIN HAYES Gulf Breeze News news@gulfbreezenews.com

Hurricane Season 2007 is a little more than a week away and government agencies are preparing for what weather forecasters are saying will be a very active storm season. However, Mother Nature could care less about official calendars and agendas, sending the year's first named storm into the Atlantic Ocean earlier this month. Tropical Storm Andrea stayed east of US shores, generated sustained winds of approximately 45 mph and dissipated on May 11 about 80 miles northeast of Cape Canaveral, Fla.

On a local level, preparedness is of the utmost importance. Santa Rosa County's Emergency Operations Center (EOC) officials have increased their paid staff and trained volunteers to better handle a tropical storm or hurricane.

"We have taken a bunch of steps to increase our preparedness for hurricanes," said County Emergency Services Coordinator Brad Baker. "We feel like we're a lot more prepared but we still have a long way to go. Hopefully, we won't have any storms."

Baker said EOC staff will participate in a statewide hurricane drill May 30 and 31. Hurricane Season officially begins the next day.

Meanwhile, the recovery process for the devastating Hurricane Seasons of 2004 and 2005 remains a top priority for other agencies.

"We're trying to maintain relationships and build new ones during the slow time," said Stirling Boomhower, Administrator of Community Strategies for United Way of Santa Rosa County (UWSRC). "Over the last two years we've been working to get houses done. Now we're trying to concentrate more on preparedness."

From an EOC standpoint, Baker said one of the most important improvements since Hurricane Ivan's devastation in 2004 has been the development of Community Emergency Response Teams (CERT). Baker said the CERT volunteers are trained to coordinate other volunteers, assess storm damage in their community and help facilitate hurricane supply Points of Distribution, or PODs.

"We've teamed up with faith based organizations throughout the county and we now have over 50 CERT volunteers," Baker said.

Boomhower added that UWSRC has been awarded additional Emergency Repair Funds by the county government. Property owners who have sustained damage in Hurricanes Ivan or Dennis can apply for a grant that would assist in the hiring of contractors to complete the repairs needed. The funds are available through an application process that is income and document based.

"There are a number of requirements that must be met to attain approval," Boomhower said.

Once the grant is approved and the repairs are concluded a forgivable lien will be recorded on the subject property for a period of 5 years. There is neither payment nor interest accrued on this funding. All applications will be handled on a first come first serve basis until the available grant has been exhausted.

Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA) officials, who are still very active in the Gulf Coast's recovery from the 2004 and 2005 seasons, say they are more prepared logistically for the impending storm season but still want residents to be prepared for the worst.

"Citizens should be prepared to be on their own for at least 72 hours," said FEMA official Kurt Pickering, a public information officer based out of Atlanta, Ga. "There are usually 1,000's of citizens for every one emergency worker."

"We're much more forward thinking now. We have pre-staged materials and people close to where hurricanes could make landfall. That allows us to be stronger and more nimble," Pickering said.

FEMA officials encourage residents in hurricane prone areas to visit www.ready.gov, www.floodsmart.gov and www.fema.gov for more information on disaster preparedness. Residents interested in UWSRC's Hurricane Emergency Repair Grant should contact the Case Management Office of UWSRC at 850-623-4507. For more information on the county's EOC visit http://www.santarosa.fl.gov.