Walking the aisles of an artifact collection room, one sees emergency food rations and sanitation kits that once were distributed by the Oneida County Office of Civil Defense, a federal government-funded department. Civil Defense was the forerunner to the modern-day Department of Homeland Security.
"Volunteers consisted of community members that would fulfill different roles during an attack," Howard said, describing what would happen if the groups were activated in the 1960s.
Those who recall the Cold War with the Soviet Union back then are familiar with nuclear disaster preparations, including fallout shelters; the infamous "this is a test of the Emergency Broadcast System" across the television and radio airwaves; and the "duck and cover," where students were instructed to duck under their desks and cover their heads in case the unthinkable occurred.
Preparedness history shows that fears of disasters, whether they be natural or manmade, are not new. They are just packaged differently as technology evolves. Now, there are coordinated plans in case of different kinds of emergencies from active-shooter scenarios, to weather events such as flooding and major snowstorms, to hazardous waste incidents, such as the recent gasoline spill that occurred off the North-South Arterial in New Hartford.
"This is the new normal," said Kristin Devoe, director of public information for the Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services in Albany.
Devoe's familiar words referenced a noticeable trend over the last few years where weather and public safety incidents seemingly are impacting more segments of the population.
Government spends more
Because of these concerns, the state, counties and local municipalities plan for the worst. Government is spending more money on preparedness measures and state budgetary line items also are a new normal.
An executive briefing of Gov. Andrew Cuomo's proposed 2017-2018 state budget shows proposed allocations for continued emergency preparedness. It also tells the story of activity since the 2015 terrorist attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, California, after which the Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services increased the amount of security assessment exercises across the state.
If the budget is approved, public safety agency spending is expected to reach $5 billion.
So, how does this money allocated by Albany play out in state and local preparedness initiatives?
Collaboration between the state and Oneida County resulted in Oriskany becoming home to the New York State Preparedness Training Center, a multi-discipline complex operated by the state Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services.
The center is used by first-responders to train and simulate a number of emergency scenarios, and features classrooms and offices, an emergency vehicles operations track, and training areas that re-create everything from city streets to trailer parks.
In other collaborations, the New York State Local Emergency Management Accreditation Program in February gave its designation to Oneida County — which piloted the program for the state — based on overall proficiency of its agency in 21 standards in areas of emergency management, including training, citizen preparedness, use of the incident command system, emergency communications and incident recovery.
"We found the accreditation process to be very valuable, and it is gratifying to be the first county in New York state to obtain the accreditation," said Kevin Revere, the director of the Oneida County Department of Emergency Services.
Getting citizens involved
Devoe said work on preparedness doesn't stop with state and local officials. Since 2014, there have been initiatives to get citizens prepared.
Emergency preparedness classes offered through the Department of Homeland Security have graduated about 150,000 across the state.
"It was a result of the governor's desire to help us make sure people have the basic supplies and know-how to truly be the first responder," she said.
"You get a preparedness kit. People bring their kids. ... People ask a lot of questions about sheltering," Devoe said. "Flooding is the No. 1 hazard statewide. ... We are making sure they are aware of different hazards (across the state)."
The 90-minute class often has a healthy turnout.
"We had over 200 people show up" at a recent class in the city of Oneida, said Ted Halpin, Madison County director of Emergency Management.
Sitting in the basement of the Madison County Public Safety building in Wampsville, Halpin said the "command center" was built below ground and intended to be used as a fallout shelter. He said Madison County currently has 12 designated sites, but they aren't publicized now.
"We don't want people going to them when there isn't an emergency," he said.
But, in the event that there is the need to seek shelter, officials say the information will be communicated to the public and a plan will be put in place. And, each county has an emergency management website that contains action plans and other tools for residents to access in the event of an emergency. However, the emergency heads say that not all information is on the sites, due in part to the large volumes of data. But, residents have what they need.
Things change over years
Back at the Oneida County History Center, Howard said that at one time, the public was given printed maps to area shelters. Elsewhere, a 1974 evacuation plan — printed and inserted in area newspapers — shows routes to take in the event a mass evacuation was enacted.
From a box, Howard pulled booklets, pamphlets and other materials that educated readers on survival skills, what to pack in an emergency and even how to deliver a baby.
"This is frightening stuff," Howard said.
Follow @OD_Cleaver on Twitter or call her at 315-792-4956.
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