VIDEO: Preparing Communities For Disaster Situations

COLUMBUS, Miss.(WCBI)—When disaster strikes, having trained people ready to respond is crucial..

In Lowndes County, The United Way is working with local volunteer organizations to equip residents with the skills and knowledge to act in a time of crisis.

“Waiting till a disaster, is a disaster,”said  United Way Volunteer Columbus Director Renee Sanders.

That’s the theme for a first responders and volunteer organization meeting on how to teach life saving skills and prepare for outside help when it arrives.

“We are here today, to try and be a proactive community. We’ll know in advance and try and prepare the best we can on how to handle those volunteers,”said Sanders.

The Volunteer Response Center Training Program originally began in 2002 but slowed down after Hurricane Katrina. Lowndes County E.M.A. Director Cindy Lawrence says unpredictable weather in Mississippi calls for the group to reignite.

“We have had a disaster in the last three years, which is why we wanted to bring them back. We had a tornado touch down in 2014, 2016, and 2017. We are now back saying we need to get our volunteers trained,”said Lawrence.

Renee Sanders is the Director for Volunteer Columbus but she serves three counties. She says a lot of volunteer work is needed outside when a disaster hits but the inside job is just as important.

“We need educate individuals on maps, we need individuals in the community to answer phone calls to let individuals know where to get the help, where do I go, we need individuals to help with paperwork because there’s a lot of paperwork that needs to be done when FEMA and MEMA come into town”

The United Way partnered with the Red Cross, Salvation Army, Columbus Air Force Base and first responders throughout the area. Volunteer Mississippi Commissioner Linda Gates says it takes all hands on deck to prepare for the unknown.

“Be prepared in the case of a disaster. This is an attempt to bring many of those together on the front end so that everybody will be trained linked communication wise and ready to go efficiently and effectively,”

The next Volunteer Response Training will be in August.

Categories: Local News

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *