Operations Committee talks emergency readiness
Anderson County Commissioner Anthony Allen has brought concerns about educating the public on emergency response to the Operations Committee. (photo:Ben Pounds )
The committee’s efforts have focused on areas in Oak Ridge near Y-12 National Security Complex, a nuclear weapons facility,
Resident Carolyn Hahs Fogelman, county Commissioner Anthony Allen, and Brice Kidwell, director of the Anderson County Department of Emergency Management, led a presentation at the Operations Committee meeting Oct. 9. Allen represents District Six, which is near Y-12 and possibly at risk during a disaster for that reason. The district includes Oak Ridge’s historic Scarboro neighborhood, among others in Oak Ridge.
“Experts out there, they know what to do,” Allen said. “But how would the person that actually lives in a house in Scarboro or the Scarboro area? Do they actually know where they should evacuate to? Do they actually know what to take with them? Do they actually know where their children will be if they’re not at home and at school?
“People need to know exactly what to do, and I think that’s one way to cut down on panic when people know what to do and where to go,” he said.
Fogelman said, “Human life is what we’re talking about here, and there are dangerous chemicals we need to protect people from. And educational information is power in helping them.”
Later updates came at the next Operations Committee meeting, Monday, Nov. 3. Kidwell said the Department of Energy is looking into creating a short emergency preparedness brochure with basic instructions instead of the 26-page document it uses now.
Kidwell also said the city of Oak Ridge told him it could send Integrated Public Alert and Warning System notification messages to people’s phones on whether they should shelter in place or evacuate. Anderson County is also interested in creating an app that can give such notifications.
City of Oak Ridge Senior Communications Specialist Lauren Gray, when asked by The Courier News about these issues. gave a link to a booklet from Tennessee Emergency Management Agency, the National Nuclear Security Administration, Tennessee Department of the Military and U.S. Department of Energy. This “Oak Ridge Emergency Response Guide” is on TEMA’s official website.
The booklet is also available at the Oak Ridge Public Library’s Ready Reference shelf. Patrons just need to ask the front desk to view it.
People can also pick up a copy at the Oak Ridge Fire Department headquarters at 200 South Tulane Ave.