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February 17, 2006

County declared StormReady

By David Mackey

Officials from several north Alabama counties met at Cullman City Hall to recognize accomplishments in disaster preparations Friday.

All member counties of the North Alabama Emergency Management Mutual Assistance Association, an alliance of the 16 northernmost counties in the state, are now certified StormReady by the National Weather Service.

The StormReady program requires that communities develop systems to receive severe weather alerts and notify their citizens; monitor local weather conditions; conduct community education efforts to inform citizens on how to respond to a disaster; and establish a formal emergency response plan.

Cullman County was certified StormReady in 2003 and recertified this year.

Phyllis Little, director of the Cullman County Emergency Management Agency, said Cullman County is well-prepared for storms.

"We've got a lot of proactive people in Cullman County working on hazard preparation, including law enforcement, volunteer organizations like the fire departments, the Rescue Squad and our elected officials," Little said. "All those folks work real close with us in emergency management to make sure Cullman County is as prepared as we can be. We still have work to do, but we always have work to do. I think we're on the right track."

The Friday ceremony also marked the kickoff of Severe Weather Awareness Week.

Jim Stefkovich of the National Weather Service's Birmingham office said Alabama experienced a record 77 tornados in 2005.

"Obviously, it's no secret, the amount of severe weather Alabama receives," Stefkovich said. He said hundreds of storms produced severe weather and hail in Alabama last year.

U.S. Rep. Robert Aderholt, R-Haleyville, was the keynote speaker.

"It's important for the National Weather Service to be able to communicate to these communities the things they need to know to survive, not only afterwards, but before disaster strikes," Aderholt said.

Brian Peters, president of the Alabama Skywarn Foundation's board of directors, said efforts were under way to educate Alabamians about the risks of living in "Tornado Alley" and the proper actions to take in case of severe weather. Booklets are being distributed to county emergency managers and Alabama schoolchildren, Peters said.

StormReady was started in 1999 in the Tulsa, Okla. area, a hotbed of tornado activity. There are now more than 1,000 StormReady communities in all 50 states.

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