 |
President's Message
- Pre-Convention Issue 2005
Counties answer call for help during hurricanes
Ivan and Dennis.
Sounds like two professional skiers or half of the Romanian Bobsled team from the Winter Olympics. But somehow, I guess, my year as president of the Association will always be linked to these two fellas - or hurricanes, if you will.
When I put on my campaigning shoes for the office of County Commission Chairman a few years ago, I didn't contemplate that I'd be one of the central figures in providing emergency assistance in Walker County. Maybe I should have known the county's role in disaster response, clean-up and rebuilding, but I didn't And I'd be willing to bet that most other county commissioners had little knowledge of this aspect of their job - until Ivan or Dennis or some other disaster showed up for the first time.
And in those circumstances, county commissioners, engineers and other employees really are in the center of the efforts to provide information, assistance and the manpower and expertise to protect the public and to rebuild once the sky has cleared. That's always a stressful role - and it's often thankless. But that goes with the territory, I guess.
Up here in Walker County, we missed most of the fury of these two hurricanes. But we've learned from our neighbors to the south and we've responded to their cries for help. From the Association's perspective, the leaders in our association have also been a part of the statewide effort to get Alabama back on the road to recovery.
Our convention, which is previewed in this edition of our magazine and will be held in August, is themed around the rebuilding of Alabama's gulf coast and county government in the aftermath of Ivan's visit last fall. And just about the time we began work on this edition of our magazine, Dennis' visit dumped another large load of rain, water, wind damage and challenge in the southern portion of out state.
The massive damage of Ivan changed the landscape of several south-Alabama counties and stretched the ability of county government to respond to such a huge storm. County officials found themselves thrust into the national spotlight as a result of this storm - working to rescue and protect stranded citizens and then provide much needed-assistance and rebuild the county roads, bridges and other infrastructure that was leveled by the storm.
When national and state officials began to assess the damage and develop a plan for assistance, they turned directly to the county commission and its elected leaders. We responded, but not without realizing that our state wasn't as well prepared as it should have been.
The Association's legislative program for the 2005 regular session was impacted by the Ivan Experience, as we crafted a bill to make improvements to the state's out-dated emergency management statute. That legislation, which passed the House but died in the session-long filibuster in the Senate last May, would have been very useful in responding to and recovering from Dennis' impact. But we've set our sights on passing that legislation in another session, so we'll be ready for the next major event - be it hurricane, ice or something else.
The president of our county engineers' organization, Butler County's Dennis McCall, and our Second Vice President Rhondel Rhone were called into service to represent counties on a task force appointed by Governor Bob Riley to respond to the massive amount of marketable timber that was put on the ground by Ivan. Through the work of our two representatives, and others around the state, this timber was moved from the path of the hurricane to the marketplace with as little damage to county roads and bridges as possible.
The county engineers also appointed their own committee to develop a communication notebook to be used by counties that need immediate, short-term help in order to make their county roads and bridges safe. This communication template has been received well by the Alabama Emergency Management Agency and will serve counties well in the future.
The amazing willingness of counties to help each other with equipment, manpower and money is something of which we can all be proud. This communication system should make it easier for us to get help to where it is needed.
These two storms have also emphasized the need for the adoption of the statewide mutual aid agreement that was fashioned by the state EMA with direct and significant input from our Association staff. This agreement, which should be adopted by all county commissions, will enhance the state's ability to respond to disasters and, just as importantly, will allow us to qualify for the maximum amount of reimbursement from the federal government.
And now that Dennis has come and gone, cutting his own path through the gulf coast and into West Alabama, we can answer the question that will conclude my year as president of this Association.
"Are we going to postpone or move our convention because of the two hurricanes?" The answer is a emphatic "no." We will not move or reschedule the convention, it will go forward as planned and you can learn about it in this issue of our magazine.
And, I trust, you will make your plans to attend this event as we celebrate the conclusion of a challenging and productive year and highlight what we've learned and how we've responded to the visits from Ivan and Dennis.
|
|
