The month of December started with the conclusion of the underserved population course which
started in November. The course continued to examine some of the additional requirements someone with an access or functional need may need in an emergency situation. The next week included a meeting of the Great Rivers 2-1-1 advisory group.
A meeting for the Wisconsin Emergency Management Recovery Exercise named Bright Horizon
took place. Bright Horizon is an exercise that is scheduled for late August and September 2024 and will
be focused on long term recovery from a widespread flooding event. In one of the weeks the concept will
be to open a Multi-Agency Resource Center. Jackson County will be one of the representative counties in
the state and the exercise is drawing federal attention.
On Wednesday, December 6th Eau Claire County held a Functional Emergency Operations Center based on a large-scale power outage. Jackson County Emergency Management was originally scheduled to observe in the morning and participate in the afternoon. Upon arrival Jackson County Emergency Management was assigned the role of the Public Information Officer and held the role the whole day. Additionally, during the week was the Jackson County Towns Association Meeting. Emergency Management provided a high-level overview of who I am and what I am responsible for.
The second full week of December included a class in Wausau. The class was Mitigation for
emergency managers and was the last class required for me to get the Wisconsin Emergency Management Basic Certification. The class focused on potential mitigation strategies pre- and post-disaster. After the class I took and passed the test for the certification.
The ending of December included the WEM region meeting, the holiday season, and a meeting
with the Mississippi River Regional Planning Commission for an update on the application for the grant
to update the hazard mitigation plan. Also, at the end of December the Integrated Preparedness Plan was
completed which is going to be the new standard for the majority of the standard of performance for the
EMPG grant (which helps pay for my position). The anticipated preparedness priorities for Jackson
counties for the next few years are updating from a Hazard Vulnerability Assessment to a Threat and
Hazard Identification Risks Assessment, working on Municipal Plan Updates, working on county
continuity of operations/continuity of governance, concepts around volunteer and donations management and public information.
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