Agenda - 08-04-1993 - VII-C - Laserfiche WebLink

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it TUESDAY, DECEMBER 29, 1992 Mayor: Preparafion aided tornado , deanup By RAY GRONBERG "One of the reasons it worked so The Chapel Hill Herald smoothly is that we had prepared for for him in took vancer After�a short disc u-- said. Those meetings are more than get- emergency planning, Waters IfILLSHOROUGH — County and town this," explained Hillsborough Mayor Sion an hour after the storm hit, Town acquainted sessions: participants agree I officials didn't count on the same winds Horace Johnson. "There was no clash of Manager Eric Swanson and County Man- that without them the relief effort would that'blew a neighborhood apart to bring egos about who was in charge." ager John Link Jr, agreed to leave com- have taken longer and wouldn't have "i I them together in the aftermath. Johnson recently praised the actions mand of the clean-up operation in his worked nearly as well. Planners already had sketched the out- taken by county officials after the Nov. hands. lines of how they would respond to a 23 tornado, which killed two people and Much of the storm's damage occurred 'According to Waters, successful disas- major disaster in Orange County, and destroyed more than 50 homes after in Hillsborough town limits- But there ter relief thabased on ncbes--thick planning when a tornado struck the outskirts of touching down at 2:30 a.m. documents. Hillsborough last month the merely was never any doubt or hesitation about documents. Much of what there is 'to those ideas into action. Y Y put Nick Waters, emergency management turning over control of the operation to learn is learned from others'mistakes. service director, coordinated the efforts county officials.Swanson said. In the last meeting held before the tor- The result, town officials say, was a of both town and county officials, as Officials. from Orange County, hills_ Halo, for example, planners discussed Hills- cleanup effort that was a mode]of inter- well as the help that poured in from borough, Chapel Hill and Carrboro gath- agency cooperation- the problems encountered in Florida neighboring communities. er at ]east once every three months to please see CLEANUP76 after Hurricane Andrew. One Once search and rescue ef- "You try to look,at disaster Johnson and others have problem they identified, and forts were completed,county of- functions as a extension of a pointed out that the tornado vowed not to repeat here, was ficials did their best to make person's normal duties,"Waters didn't miss Hillsborough's the failure of Florida officials to sure that problems were han- said. "You just expand their downtown area by much. W5- control access to damaged dled by people with the exper- role to accommodate the extra ters agreed that if it had struck areas- tise to deal with them.As much needs of disaster victims." So when the tornado hit Hills- possible, planners tried to farther south, the damage could as os The planning meetings also have outstripped local re- borough, local officials quickly match ,the: agency, whether served to build mut6i tiiag confi- sources. leading posted po lice Fairview every road to nor county, with the task dente among town and county neigh- i borhood. Passes were issued to officials, a factor Swanson said The county public works de- shouldn't be underestimated. "As devastating as this was, relief workers,in hopes of keep- partment, for example, coor- "Knowing the individudls I'd be in terms of its potential it was-'a ing mere spectators from inter dinated the removal of downed working with—personally and manageably sized storm," Wa- fering with cleanup efforts. trees and other debris,.while professionally — was"for me "None of these things are re- the Department of Social Ser- the key to the whole process," tors said. "It proved to be well within our capabilities to ban- ally made up," Waters said. vices 'eventually took over ef- he said. ( 1 "They're lessons learned in di- forts to'help'families left home Hut to some extent, luck also allot Nworosee situation with had I r casters in other places." less b the tornado. Y y`: played a role. same storm."