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Home City Hall Municipal Court Police / Fire Emergency Management Homeowner Information New Resident Information Utility Services Diggin' the Dirt Calendar Parks Planning / Zoning History Links City of El Lago 98 Lakeshore Drive El Lago, TX 77586-6136 Tel: 281.326.1951 Fax: 281.326.0165
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Emergency ManagementEmergency Management CoordinatorTom Merchant, 281.326.2658 Emergency Management Assistant CoordinatorFrank Coppola, 281.326.2161 For current Emergency Management Information, click herePage TopicsHurricane Evacuation: A Difficult Decision you have to make - May 2008By: Tom Merchant (Note: This is a reprint of Tom's article for the May La Ventana del Lago) This month’s article focus’ on the complex issues facing those living in the coastal areas and on those who have to give forecasts, recommendations and eventually the call for mandatory evacuation. Much of what is in this message has been taken from an article by Bill Read (formally with the Houston/Galveston National Weather Service (NWS) and now the head of NOAA in Florida). It was published in the workbook for the 2007 NWS Hurricane Workshop. One of the major variables in the decision making process for the call to evacuation is “Uncertainty in Forecasting.” Beyond 24 hours there is a degree of uncertainty in forecasting of the path a storm takes and the intensity. If the steering currents are strong and well “behaved” then forecasters have a little more confidence. Tricky storms to predict are those that develop quickly, most often those that develop in the Gulf, and intensify very rapidly. To put this into perspective, decision makers need to make the call for a mandatory evacuation about two days before landfall. Landfall means the arrival of tropical force winds (40 mph) on the coast. Also note that the average track error in 2007 was about 65 statute miles. For Rita the two day error was about 130 miles. Not too that each time a decision to wait is made we all lose 6 hours since this is the time delay in getting new weather information. Communication of weather and evacuation information is another complication we encounter mainly because of the almost instantaneous media coverage. What we try to do is get the right message to those in need of it first but as all of you know once it hits TV then everyone starts to move. The result being that no matter how well we try to plan and coordinate it is a lot like herding cats across a river. I feel that a lot of progress has been made in this communication process by using pagers, conference calls, and e-mail and community call systems such as the one we use in El Lago. Many of the cities south of us are using the same system so we all can “selectively target” those in the most extreme coastal areas. The demographic and infrastructure issue also complicate evacuation. Since the 1983 storm (Alicia) the Houston/Galveston/Brazoria area has grown by 1,200,000 people and is still growing. It is now estimated that along the upper Gulf Coast and Galveston Bay areas there are 850,000 people who are subject to storm surge flooding. Most category 3 and for certain all category 4 & 5 storms about 1,000,000 people will be evacuating. This is the reason for the somewhat utopian goal to have everyone evacuate in coordinated phases. The plan is to first evacuate those living in the immediate barrier island communities followed by mainland communities in the surge zone by using zip codes. The success or failure of evacuation depends in a large part on each and every one of you and in being prepared. Decide now under what circumstances you would evacuate. Keep in mind that if you stay and the mandatory evacuation order is given and you have decided to stay then remember you will be alone. Most especially what I mean is that no rescue personnel will be available; no medical people will be here since the hospitals will be closed; chances are cell phones won’t work nor will land lines. You should determine the conditions under which you will leave and then make plan of action. Next month I will provide a check list that can assist your preparations. This will also be posted on the City Web site. As you determine the conditions under which you will leave, consider the following about the hazards associated with hurricanes and use this in evaluating when you will stay or evacuate:
I sum up with what you can expect from me and how I arrive at my recommendation. It starts the minute a storm of any size seems like it will enter the Gulf or develops in the Gulf. E–mails go out to all emergency management coordinators and phone conference calls with the state and NWS are established. Initially these are once a day until our area falls in the probability of impact. The purpose is to get updates from the NWS and to set up local conference calls so those EMC’s in Harris and Galveston Counties (and several other surrounding counties) can begin to activate our coordinated plans and our timing decisions. From these calls and meetings enough information will be gathered so I can meet with the mayor and give a recommendation. A message will then go out using our call system to advise first a voluntary evacuation (my aim for this is to give you time to get out ahead of the crowd and use routes you choose) and at the same time I will let you know when I expect the mandatory evacuation order will be given. Once this mandatory order is given you then will not have the option on what route you want to follow. I hope this helps you in putting together your plans. Hurricane Season is almost here - April 2008With the approach of the hurricane season it seems appropriate to review the weather terms associated with storms: Tropical Disturbance – A closed low pressure circulation at the surface with winds up to 39 mph Tropical Storm – A closed low pressure circulation at the surface with winds in the range between 39 to 73 mph. Hurricane – A close low pressure circulation at the surface with winds in excess of 74 mph. Hurricanes are further broken down into five levels:
The significance of the storm surge is relative to ground elevation. For example, if your elevation is 17 feet above normal tide and a surge of 18 feet is predicted then you could expect to have one foot of water on your property. Hurricane Watch – This means that a hurricane may threaten the area within 24 to 36 hours Hurricane Warning – This means that hurricane force winds or high tides and seas are expected to strike the area within 24 hours. As the emergency management coordinator I like to focus on giving facts to you that will better prepare you for emergency situations. However, currently there are three issues that I feel strongly about and encourage each of you to be come knowledgeable about and voice your opinions to State and local leaders:
As I have done in the past, more of the hurricane activities will be put in the May issue. Severe Storm Awareness Week and more - March 2008Although a little late in timing, the week of Feb. 24 – Mar. 1 was designated as “Severe Weather Awareness Week” in Texas. Emergency management does play a role in this effort and what took place was a mock tornado warning for all 23 counties in southeast Texas. The mock warning was conducted by the Houston/Galveston NWS for the purpose of practicing our emergency operation plans for tornadoes. Thus far I have not heard any hurricane predictions but have been notified by the NWS that this year is expected to be another difficult year for wildfire. Forecasters are saying the conditions will be dry and windy very similar to the winter of 2005-2006 which was one of the worst fire seasons in Texas history. For more information you can visit the Texas Forest Service Web sit at http://txforestservice.tamu.edu/. Here is some good advice I recently saw and thought it worthy of passing along. Some of this I have been doing for years:
Fire AwarenessBy: Tom Merchant (Note: This is a reprint of Tom's article for the February La Ventana del Lago) Normally in February I like to raise your awareness of fire safety, in particular home fire prevention and detection. Also this year I am going to write a little on pipeline safety. Taking detection first, if you do not have smoke alarms – get them! If you do then check them, replace batteries or if you have a home monitoring security system then give it a test. Notify the monitoring company first so you do not create a “false alarm” but I would check to be sure everything works. Also, with this current cold spell and the use of furnaces and other supplemental heat sources, be aware of the signs and conditions for carbon monoxide. Here is a twelve point check list for fire protection in the home. There are more but this will get you started:
That’s a quick twelve point check list, now a topic I’ve not addressed in the past but because of where we live I feel it worth thinking about. Also I get a lot of information on Pipe Line Safety. I am confident that 99.9% of you are aware of the fact that we are literally surrounded by underground gas transmission pipelines. That’s the good, the bad and the ugly that we live with but may not often think about. The good we benefit from the products carried and they enhance our quality of life. The bad is the potential for mishaps. The ugly is when something does happen. What follows is a list of what to look for that may give an indication that something may be wrong:
Action to be taken: call 911 from a safe distance and report what you observe. More information on pipeline safety can be found on the Texas Evacuation Safety System, Inc (TESS) Web site at www.digtess.org. Winter Weather and Holiday Safety - December 2007By: Tom Merchant, Emergency Management coordinator (Note: This is a reprint of Tom's article for La Ventana del Lago) Winter storms have and can impact our area so it seems advisable to begin to think along those lines. So far this year it seems that we are under the influence of La Nina weather pattern which means that it will be (on average) warmer and dry for us. That does not rule out coastal wet spells or cold spells but they will not be long lasting. With this in mind, here are a few tips:
Stay safe, be happy and enjoy family, friends and good food. Emergency Management update - November 2007By: Tom Merchant, Emergency Management coordinator (Note: This is a reprint of Tom's article for La Ventana del Lago) With some confidence I can say another hurricane season is behind us. But I would note that Ann Vernon (City Secretary) and I recently looked at those who have signed up for the city call service. Although all land lines are in the data base, only 10% of residents have registered cell phones and/or e-mail contact information. My encouragement is to have you provide that contact information. This would be of big benefit to you in letting you know when to return in the event of an evacuation of any sort. Houston Transtar has added sensor coverage that provides real time traffic conditions. Some provides info as far as 100 miles from downtown Houston. This real time info is available at www.traffic.houstontranstar.org, for a desktop or other Internet-connected mobile device. Public access by using a mobile device can use mobile.houstontranstar.org. So from Huntsville to Galveston, Orange to Columbus and Schulenburg and up US 290 west to Hempstead, we can see traffic conditions. We are now well into the new school year – so watch out for our youngsters while they walk and bike to and from school. Being retired I have the opportunity to drive around our city at all times of the day and too often I see a lot of speeding and rolling stops. Drive with caution please. This is also the time of year for a lot of hunting activities. Most hunters I know understand and practice sound weapon safety. However, reminders for heightened awareness I believe are good. Be sure all weapons are in good working order, keep firearms out of reach from youngsters, use trigger locks, keep ammunition in a different place from guns and educate your children about the safety principles. Recently I received a brief from the “National Center for Foreign Animal and Zoonotic Disease Defense.” The subject was West Nile Encephalitis (WNE); this is the mosquito–borne virus that can cause an inflammation of the brain tissue in both animals and humans. I point this out since many in the city have horses or may be involved in raising farm animals for school projects and for those who hunt migratory birds. For further information, check the Center for Food Security and Public Health. Harris County announces evacuation procedures and routesOn May 21, 2007, Harris County Commissioners announced the plans for evacuation procedures and evacuation routes. These plans are for large Cat 3 and above storms. Evacuation notification is to be a multi county coordinated effort using four classes of zip codes. The main purpose is to first evacuate those people who live along the flood prone low areas on the coastal waters. The seven zip codes in this area are designated “Zip-Zone Coastal” and include Brazoria, Harris and Galveston Counties. The next notification will go to those who live in the in the surge zone. This is the “Zip-Zone A” group which includes 77586, THIS IS US. The remaining two zip zones will follow. The big emphasis is that you should run from water and hide from wind. The main evacuation routes during a mandatory evacuation, that will be under the control of TxDOT and the Highway Patrol, will be I-10 West to San Antonio, SH 290 to Austin, I-45 to Dallas and SH 59 to Nacogdoches. Details of this information, including maps, can be seen on the Harris County Office of Emergency Management web site, www.hcoem.org. Three other informational items:
Weather Terms to Know
When a Hurricane Threatens
Hurricane Safety TipsSecure Your Home:
Evacuation Tips
Disaster Supply Kit
Red Cross Hurricane Preparedness Guide (printable)Hurricane Evacuation Questions and AnswersHow do I know when to evacuate?
Who should consider leaving before hurricane evacuation becomes mandatory for the general population?
What should I do if I need help to evacuate?
What items are not allowed in public shelters?
How do I know where to go in an evacuation?
Hurricane Evacuation InformationDuring recent past months, new developments have taken place that should influence your thinking when putting your emergency plans together.
What residents can expect to hear from El Lago City Officials concerning necessary actions to be taken due to impending severe storm impact on our city: First, “STORM IN THE GULF” notices will be posted on the City Web site and at City Hall, once a storm enters the gulf. Next, if conditions change and storm-damaging circumstances seem likely to hit El Lago, a “VOLUNTARY EVACUATION NOTICE” will go out. This should be the time to evacuate. The goal is to give residents time to be ahead of those evacuating from areas south of El Lago.
Finally, “MANDATORY EVACUATION ORDERS” will go out, simultaneously with other area governmental entities. Enforcement of the Traffic and Shelter Management Plans will then be set in motion. Managed Sheltering of EvacueesMuch has been accomplished in the area of providing shelter for large numbers of evacuees. The results are summarized below:
Get Connected with... El Lago Connect CTY Emergency Notification SystemThe City of El Lago will be using the Connect-CTY notification service to send residents and businesses important emergency information such as an evacuation, utility problem or missing child. It can also be used to communicate relevant city-wide civic announcements. PARTICIPATION IS 100% FREE.
Please accept our invitation to participate in this great communication network. With the Connect-CTY service, we can contact you by your home phone. Additionally, YOU can customized the service to also be contacted via cell phone, email or PDA. This may be especially important if you are away from your home during an emergency event such as in an evacuation. To customize your contact information with your cell phone, email and/or PDA, please go to El Lago’s web site at www.ellago-tx.com. Click on the Connect-CTY icon and you will be linked to a page where your additional contact information can easily be entered. If you do not have access to a computer, call the City Secretary at 281-326-1951, ext. 12 to have your information customized for you. The first test message will be sent out on June 27, 2007. This test will introduce the Connect-CTY service and announce the City’s 4th of July Celebration. If you do not receive a call on your home phone or other device you have added through the web-site, contact the City Secretary at 281-326-1951, ext. 12. Reverse 9-1-1 SystemHarris County's Neighborhood Early Warning System (NEWS) along with the City of El Lago implemented a system that has the capability to provide early warning to citizens of emergency and/or hazardous situations such as:
NEWS utilizes the 9-1-1 database, which is the most accurate database available. It is updated multiple times each day and includes both published and unpublished telephone numbers. The warning would be given through telephone calls generated by the system to every telephone number in the 9-1-1 database, within a designated danger area. Authorized city personnel are able to contact the Network's Command Center to request activation of NEWS for a specified area, whether it is one block or the entire city, and for a specific emergency situation. Either a prerecorded or real-time voice message will be created for use in various emergency situations. If the resident is unable to answer, NEWS will leave a message. Important LinksHarris
County Office of Emergency Management Emergency Numbers
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