In times of disaster, the face of emergency response is often in the fire, police, rescue and health service providers who arrive first on the scene. Their work brings order and relief to communities in the immediate aftermath of a crisis, but several other service providers are also essential to maintain health, safety and security through public education and information, monitoring of community resources, support of basic services and postdisaster logistics.
At Penn State, faculty and staff have historically contributed their expertise and research-based information to support local communities in emergencies. This year, Penn State Cooperative Extension has enhanced the organization of its emergency response resources, including the statewide emergency response network that reaches all 67 Pennsylvania counties.
Dave Filson, the new coordinator for Emergency Response for Penn State Cooperative Extension, explained, “Today’s public has an increased awareness of disaster and emergency, and they want to know what is in place and ready to respond. When situations occur, it is reassuring to know that organizations like Penn State Cooperative Extension have been there working for a long time to assist the public with education on disaster preparedness and disaster response and recovery. With this network, we are prepared to give a rapid and effective response to potential disasters.”
Already Penn State Cooperative Extension has robust connections with local governments, communities and organizations. Through Cooperative Extension offices in each county, satellite downlink sites statewide, established relationships with local emergency management contacts, local leaders and other local and statewide agencies, Cooperative Extension can bring many resources to bear to provide for the educational and informational needs of communities in an emergency.
“Penn State Cooperative Extension and extension services in other states have a history of responding to a variety of disasters, from droughts, floods, hurricanes and tornadoes to outbreaks of plant and animal diseases,” Filson noted. “We have been responsible for helping to maintain safety in homes, natural resources, food supplies and agricultural producers and processors, and we have provided essential information and resources to help sustain businesses and communities during times of crisis.
“Part of the philosophy of creating an emergency response network within Penn State Cooperative Extension is if we do a good job on the front end, we will be better ready to meet challenges in the midst of an emergency,” he added.
According to Filson, Cooperative Extension emergency response contacts and other county-based educators are becoming better prepared to provide support in several areas, including consumer family science, youth development, community and economic development and agriculture/agribusiness.
In consumer and family sciences, extension agents have been and may in the future be called upon to provide education in a variety of situations, including maintaining food safety after loss of electrical service, restoring safety to residences damaged by flood or tornado, or testing and restoring safety to damaged private water systems, especially for consumers with springs or wells. Dr. Cathy Bowen, associate professor of agriculture and extension education, has already created a disaster preparation information guide for individuals, called “Preparing for Emergencies: A Consumer’s Guide.”
In the area of youth development, Cooperative Extension works through its extensive ties with schools and through the 4-H program to help young people understand emergencies. Extension already provides curriculum resources to schools throughout the Commonwealth. In case of a disaster, youth development agents can rapidly provide a local source of information and educational programs that can be responsive to specific county needs for youth and youth-serving organizations.
Building on existing partnerships with local agencies, county commissioners, fire and rescue services and business organizations, Cooperative Extension emergency response contacts are working with local communities as a team to develop emergency plans for offices, businesses, schools and individual homeowners and to help the public connect to the services and resources available to them. Such actions can help protect community and economic development even with the advent of an emergency.
Finally, in the area of agricultural and natural resources, ongoing surveillance and monitoring of the health of plants and animals that are part of a farm business or horticulture industry will provide early detection of possible disease outbreaks. Plant and animal disease outbreaks will be followed closely and enable Cooperative Extension agents to act rapidly in case of natural disaster or bioterrorism. Educational programs on the adoption of biosecurity practices for agricultural producers will reduce the risk of bioterrorism or natural contamination of healthy animals and crops.
“Penn State plant and animal diagnostic labs work not only in an emergency, but all the time to respond to individual concerns and to look for trends and signs of potential trouble to alert other agencies,” Filson said. “With vigilance and quick response, there doesn’t always need to be a disaster.”
The emergency response network Filson coordinates will better organize and mobilize these emergency response resources. Network members include three groups: county emergency response contacts, regional emergency response contacts and University Park emergency response contacts.
In each county, one extension agent is designated as the emergency response contact. This agent serves as the first point of contact with University faculty and administrators who provide information and with the Extension Disaster Education Network, a multistate effort by national extension services to improve the delivery of services to citizens affected by disasters. Penn State emergency response contacts are responsible for developing plans and maintaining close contact with local, state and national agencies. Designated county agents regularly receive information and announcements from the Department of Homeland Security, Federal Emergency Management Agency, Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency, Centers for Disease Control, U.S. Department of Agriculture and other agencies. County emergency response contacts then determine an appropriate response within their counties.
In addition to county emergency responders, regional emergency response contacts work with regional Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture offices to supplement their efforts with locally based Cooperative Extension resources and staff.
Finally, University Park emergency response contacts among faculty and staff remain informed of potential disasters in order to apply their expertise through research or extension responsibilities to respond rapidly in a crisis. During an emergency, many faculty and staff would provide research-based information to help communities protect themselves and treat problems.
“Penn State Cooperative Extension has a very good connection to expertise from county to University resources to state and federal organizations. If we do our job well and use education as our tool, we will be more effective in responding to a disaster, manmade or natural,” Filson said. “We may even be able to ward off some of the damage and impact of future threats.”
