Rootstown Township becomes the first local government entity to successfully be certified as part of the Portage Preparedness Initiative created by the Portage County Emergency Management Agency.
The free program guides communities, local governments and organizations to adopt policies and procedures, such as emergency planning, operations and hazard mitigation for meeting the challenges of disasters close to home.
Township officials collaborated to accomplish program criteria over a three-month period with the guidance of PC EMA staff. It involved township trustees and township fire, emergency medical services road departments.
“Rootstown Township had a solid foundation in emergency response procedures. To enhance and elaborate on those procedures for catastrophic days has only made the community stronger. There is a local resiliency factor when it comes to effectively recovering from a disaster; having that preparedness planning makes all the difference,” said Ryan Shackelford, PC EMA director.
Those interested in applying can visit the PC EMA website at https://www.portagecounty-oh.gov/emergency-management-agency for a copy of the application and the applicant’s guide. Additional copies of the application and/or applicant’s guide may be requested via email to pcema@portageco.com.
PC EMA Emergency Specialist McKenzie Villatoro, who worked closely with the township, explained that the initiative has been developed to assist municipal governments and organizations in understanding and preparing for their role in disaster response and recovery.
Participation is voluntary and is open to any community or organization in Portage County regardless of the number of citizens, residents, students or employees. The standards are designed to be adaptable and scalable so that any applicant can participate. Rootstown joins Kent State University as the first two organizations to be certified with PPI since the program kicked off last year.
“During a significant event, like the recent Windham Township tornado, the primary responsibility for responding to and managing emergencies begins and ends at the local level. There is support from county, state, and federal agencies which is critical, but it is the local community that is in it for the duration, especially the recovery phase, and this certification would provide a foundation for building back,” Villatoro shared.
She went on to clarify that local entities must meet 24 out of 32 standards which are defined in a guide developed by PC EMA and that address the five mission areas of the National Preparedness Goal (NPG): prevention, protection, mitigation, response and recovery.
An agency staff person is available to assist organizations in being successful with the process.
The 32 standards are organized in the following categories: Communications, Public Information and Warning; Facilities; Hazard Identification; Hazard Mitigation; Operations; Planning; Prevention; Program Administration; Resource Management; and Training and Exercises.
In some cases, applicants will already be performing the required tasks but may not have formal documentation of the process or agreements. To become certified, applicants will need to develop the required documentation in a written format.
The process will take about 3 months from application to final review. The certification is renewed every five years.
For more information, call Villatoro at 330-297-3607 or email her at mvillatoro@portageco.com.
