Town progressing with disaster planning

In the event of a disaster, the single most important factor for an effective response will be availability of information, La Conner Emergency Management Commission member Jerry George said last week.

“And that information,” he stressed, “has to be accurate.”

George and the advisory panel are attentive to communications and information systems well ahead of the next flood, earthquake, windstorm, cold snap or heat wave.

At its Jan. 2 meeting at Maple Hall commissioners heard from Skagit County Emergency Management Coordinator Joan Cromley; Skagit County Fire District 13 Capt. Ted Taylor, who oversees emergency management; and Keri Cleary of the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community Department of Emergency Management.

They provided insight into templates from various government entities as La Conner crafts its own Community Emergency Management Plan.

“It needs to be a living document,” advised Cromley, a former mayor of Hamilton, a town frequently threatened by Skagit River flooding. “We’ll help you with our (Skagit County) template and walk you through it. Part of my job is to help people with their plans.

“Technically,” she added, “these plans are living documents. You’re constantly evaluating them.”

“We’ve done a flooding element,” noted Town Administrator Scott Thomas, “but we haven’t done a comprehensive emergency management plan. It’s always better to have one specific to your needs.”

George said an initial step will be to identify emergency management resources and determine how to implement them.

Cleary said combining resources will be of great benefit to all communities in the area.

“We’re neighbors,” she said. “We need to work together.

“There will be a lot of overlapping and helping each other,” said Cleary. “We want to support one another as best we can. It’s all about partnerships. We’re looking at emergency preparedness in the whole area. We’ll be leaning on each other.”

Cromley said tapping outside resources is likewise a good strategy when drafting a CEMP.

“One of the great things about emergency management,” she explained, “is there’s no penalty for plagiarism. Ideas and resources are shared all the time.”

A major component of any CEMP, said Cromley, is training for responses to emergencies and natural disasters.

“In a large-scale event,” she cautioned, “resources will be limited. It’s important to know who your neighbors are, what resources they need, what their needs are and what should be prioritized.”

Taylor said Shelter Bay has in its disaster planning emphasized resiliency to emergency events.

“We’ve taken steps to be resilient,” said Taylor. “We promote CERTs (Community Emergency Response Teams), HAMs (amateur radio operators) and auxiliary forces.

“We, in Shelter Bay, have to integrate with La Conner and the tribe,” Taylor added. “That’s the direction we’re going.”

Taylor said that earthquakes and wildland fires pose perpetual threats here.

Cleary said she and Swinomish Emergency Management Coordinator Brian Geer are focused on public participation and education.

Anticipated impacts of climate change also factor into emergency management planning, said Cromley.

Training for emergency responses can help rekindle interactions curbed by the COVID-19 pandemic, Cromley indicated.

“The more you train,” she explained, “the more you can get various neighbors used to it.”

Thomas said the next step for La Conner is to reference the state emergency management plan template.

And, of course, to keep open lines of communication.

“We are a resource for you,” Cromley said. “By all means, keep in contact with us and we’ll keep in contact with you.”