Preparedness

The solution — in this case, funding — lies within the power of the Minnesota Legislature. It hasn't happened yet — at least to the extent it should — but we hope it's something that can be revisited and pushed through sooner than later.

The county teamed up with Northern Sonoma County Community Emergency Response Team and radio volunteers on the project, making it the county's first public-private communications tower.

Two new labs at SUNY’s Albany campus are searching for cybersecurity vulnerabilities in open-source intelligence and IoT devices. Ten other labs are planned to open in the university’s cybersecurity college by 2025.

What to put inside: Make sure you are stocked up on supplies before a tropical storm or hurricane threatens the area. If you already have one ready from last year, remember that kits need to be refreshed.

The award recognizes programs or activities at the front lines of floodplain management. Local governments from across the country, and certain regional forms of local government compete for the Witt Award annually.

A good hurricane kit will have a combination of both the essentials and the handy. And you don’t want to wait until a storm is headed this way to get your kit together. Start working on it now.

Having used the Genasys platform to alert and evacuate residents during 2020 fires, Santa Cruz County was ready with the same platform when flooding occurred during January of this year.

There are lessons to be gleaned from the rubble left behind, from the water marks that are as high as 15 feet branding Fort Myers buildings to the roads washed away as far as 50 miles inland in Arcadia because of river flooding.

“It’s an awesome opportunity to put our hands on real train equipment,” said Pell City Fire Capt. Andrew Minyard. “Norfolk Southern runs through our city. We have nearly 15 train crossings in the city limits.”

Severe bleeding can kill a person in a matter of minutes and it can happen in the house, at work in the city. The Stop the Bleed program teaches people around the world how to stop the bleeding and save someone’s life.

School boards are expected to contribute up to $400 a year toward the program; the Regional Office of Education will additionally apply for grants or similar forms of funding.

Monitoring coronavirus conditions is becoming more difficult as the pandemic’s post-emergency phase has seen data collection and reporting endeavors either scaled back or abandoned entirely.

The state’s proposed $48 billion budget for climate measures this year was pruned in January from $54 billion over five years for its many water, energy, electric vehicles, transportation and wildfire programs.

For Pinellas County homeowners, National Flood Insurance Program premiums are expected to rise 112%, from $1,537 to $3,257. Hillsborough County homeowners should brace for 125% increases, from $1,132 to $2,549.

Faith leaders from across the county were invited to a gathering at the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown organized by Cambria County District Attorney Gregory Neugebauer and other law enforcement officials.

"Homeowners, particularly those who are financially vulnerable, need affordable flood insurance policies to protect against catastrophic financial loss when future storms befall," wrote House Oversight Chair James Comer, R-Kentucky.

The local EMA works year-round with the state and federal counterparts to update evacuation plans, response plans and to update the county's website with all of the most up-to-date information so the public can be informed.

The agency previously offered an online reporting tool, but it was too buggy to use effectively. It was duplicating information within the police department's data management system, so the agency took it offline.