Lehigh County to Participate in Statewide Weather Emergency Exercise

Hey, have you noticed it's been raining for the last forty days and nights? It's a nice time for something like this - from the office of Lehigh County Executive Don Cunningham:

Allentown – Lehigh County Executive Don Cunningham today announced that Lehigh County will participate in a statewide weather emergency exercise that will include many area schools, hospitals, nursing homes and day care centers. The March 13 exercise is designed to test severe weather emergency response plans that have been developed by municipalities and public or private facilities.

“Statewide weather exercises such as the one scheduled for March 13, give county and municipal governments, schools, hospitals, nursing homes, day care centers, and other special care facilities across the state an opportunity to test their disaster preparedness and response plans,” said Robert P. French, Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency (PEMA). “After the exercise, those plans can be reviewed to see where changes are needed so that in the event of an actual emergency, proper safety and response procedures are carried out in the most effective and efficient manner.”

French said the state has reached out to all schools, day care centers, hospitals and nursing homes in Pennsylvania to encourage them to participate in the exercise. The state provides planning guides to assist these facilities in developing their emergency preparedness plans, and has supplied schools with teaching materials about floods and other weather emergencies.

“Pennsylvania is the most flood-prone state in the country,” French said. “So heavy rain from violent storms or a tropical weather system that leads to flooding is always a concern.” According to French, in 1996, five major floods and record-breaking snow storms impacted every county in the state.

For details on Lehigh County’s participation, contact: Carl Held or John Ott, Lehigh County Emergency Management, Allentown, PA, 610-782- 3073.