The information below is courtesy of the ND Department of Emergency Services, for more information on the impacts of the 2009 flood, or to report flooding impacts this spring, contact the Cavalier County Office of Emergency Management at 701-256-3911. To report EMERGENCY Road Closures, after hours, please contact the Cavalier County Public Safety Dispatch at 256-2555.

Bismarck, ND – The North Dakota Department of Emergency Services (NDDES) says now is the time to prepare and assess flood risk and take steps to mitigate property damage.

“With potential flooding this spring, it is important to start the planning and preparation process now,” said Greg Wilz, Director of Homeland Security. “People should assess their risk, decide whether to purchase a flood insurance policy and consider the supplies you will potentially need this year like sand and sand bags and the amount of each that you will need to safeguard your property.”

Other steps to take:

• Clear snow from foundations and basement windows.
• Ensure eave troughs are clear of snow, ice or other debris. Use extenders on downspouts to direct water away from your home.
• Move belongings to an upper floor, particularly important papers, valuables, photos and other irreplaceable items.  Consider removing carpeting from basements.
• Put all hazardous materials in a flood-safe storage area.
• Plug sewer drains to prevent backup.
• Make sure sump pumps are operational.
• Contact your insurance agent to check coverage of sump pump failure and sewer backup.

Another important step to take is to prepare a basic emergency supply kit for every member of your family as well as household pets.  A complete list of what your emergency supply kit should contain can be found at:

www.nd.gov/des/uploads/resources/186/basicemergencysupplykit.pdf

For more information about mitigation, please contact your local emergency manager at 701-256-3911 or NDDES at 1-800-472-2121 or nddes@nd.gov.

For more information about flood insurance, contact the Federal Flood Insurance Program at www.floodsmart.gov or contact an insurance agent.

For other flood preparedness information, please visit the “Get Ready, Get Set, Get Safe” section of the NDDES website:

www.nd.gov/des/get/flood-preparedness/

Winter has definitely arrived:

During the storm over Christmas we had record amounts of snow in the county. Official measurements are taken at Sarles and Langdon. Sarles showed 16″ for the event.

During times of cold weather please use CARBON MONOXIDE DETECTORS, these inexpensive devices can and do save lives.

Because carbon monoxide is slightly lighter than air and also because it may be found with warm, rising air, detectors should be placed on a wall about 5 feet above the floor. The detector may be placed on the ceiling. Do not place the detector right next to or over a fireplace or flame-producing appliance. Keep the detector out of the way of pets and children. Each floor needs a separate detector. If you’re getting a single carbon monoxide detector, place it near the sleeping area and make certain the alarm is loud enough to wake you up.

Be aware that the average life span of many carbon monoxide detectors is about 2 years. The ‘test’ feature on many detectors checks the functioning of the alarm and not the status of the detector. There are detectors that last longer, indicate when they need to be replaced, and have power supply backups — you need to check to see whether a particular model has the features you require.

Survival kit for winter driving:
■ Coffee can or other empty and clean food can
■ 60-inch length string (cut into 3 equal pieces – used to suspend can)
■ 3 large safety pins (tie string to safety pins and pin to car roof interior to suspend can
over candle)
■ 1 candle 2″ diameter (place on lid under suspended can for melting snow). Canned
Sterno will also work to heat water.
■ 1 pocket knife, reasonably sharp (or substitute with scissors)
■ 3 pieces of bright cloth 2″ wide x 36″ long (tie to antenna or door handle)
■ Several packets of soup, hot chocolate, tea, bouillon cubes, etc. (mixed into melted
snow to provide warmth and nutrition)
■ Plastic spoons
■ Packages of easy to eat, high energy foods like peanuts and candy or canned, ready-toeat
soups or fruit
■ 1 pair of socks and 1 pair of gloves or glove liners; cotton is not recommended because
it provides no insulation when wet).
■ Extra clothing and a blanket or sleeping bag
■ 2 packages of book matches
■ 1 sun shield blanket or 2 large green or black plastic leaf bags (to reflect body heat)
■ 1 flash light and batteries (keep separate)
■ First aid kit
■ Toilet paper and sealable container for bathroom purposes
■ Fire extinguisher
■ Small tool kit
■ Ice scraper/snowbrush
■ Shovel
■ Sand or other traction aid
■ Tow rope or chain
■ Jumper cables
■ Road flares or warning lights
■ Gas line antifreeze
■ Large plastic garbage bag
■ Pencil stub and paper
■ Plastic whistle
■ Cellular phone with a charger
You may want to keep the survival kit in the passenger compartment in case you go into a
ditch and can’t get to or open the trunk.
Put all items in a plastic storage container and place in vehicle when traveling starting in mid
October.

Links to information on influenza

http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/general_info.htm

http://www.ndpandemicflu.gov/

http://www.ndflu.com/

Some precautions:  Wash your hands often for 20 seconds. (sing the Birthday song through twice). Cover your cough, use hand sanitizer,  use disinfecting wipes for surfaces such as counters, tables, telephones, remotes etc.

For your centerpiece please consider a box of tissues, a bottle of hand sanitizer and a container of disinfecting wipes surrounded perhaps by some decorations.

Who will Emergency Workers contact if you are not able to respond to them?

PLEASE Program this contact name into your cell phone

Contact name:  ICE    and then the number of the person you want contacted in an emergency

This will assure you, that your loved ones will be contacted if you can not respond!

In Case of Emergency

Hazardous Material Transportation Safety

Most hazardous materials are required to be shipped in containers that meet specifications established by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT). A DOT label is found on individual packages, drums, or other small containers and is in the shape of a 4-inch diamond. A DOT placard is also diamond-shaped, but is larger and found on the outside of the transport vehicle. Placards are used only if there are 1,000 pounds or more of various materials on board.

Diamond-shaped symbols are used in accordance with the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) for indicating the various hazards of the material in a fixed location such as a storage warehouse.

Should you come upon an accident involving a container or truck marked with a label, or placard, do not approach. Do not come in contact with any released materials. Remember, hazardous materials may occur in liquid, solid, or gaseous state. Do not smoke or allow any combustion source in the area.

Advise bystanders that the material may be very dangerous and ask them to leave the area immediately. If the material is on fire, or several substances are mixing together, there is a risk of explosion or other violent reaction. Instruct everyone to evacuate from the area to a distance of at least one mile.

Report the incident to local authorities immediately. Communicating the following information will greatly speed up the response:

1. The exact location of the incident.

2. Type of vehicle (container) involved.

3. If there is a fire.

4. The color of the placard or label and any numbers or names printed on them.

5. Whether the material is leaking.

6. If anyone is injured.

7. Weather conditions in the area.

GATHER THIS INFORMATION ONLY IF IT IS SAFE, DO NOT ENDANGER YOURSELF SIMPLY CALL 911

A hazard study done in Cavalier County found that we are most vulnerable to the following;

Winter Storms, Summer Storms,Hazardous Materials Incidents, Floods, Fires, both urban and rural, and Drought . I’m sure this comes as no surprise to any of us.

As humans, we naturally think that nothing bad can happen to us, and we always will hope this to be true! No one wants a disaster to happen, but they can and do.

SO LETS BE PREPARED!

That’s what emergency management is all about and why, as Cavalier County Citizens we should prepare.

On this website, you’ll be provided with links to ideas and sites that are all about preparedness. For private citizens, there are links to all kinds of information. With ideas about winter and summer preparedness kits. How to survive on your own for the first 72 hours following a disaster. What to have in your disaster plan? What does shelter in place mean? What should you pack up to take in a hurry? How big of a generator do you need? What about pets, what do they need?

There are also links to business continuity planning. What happens to that Rolodex full of hot contacts when a fire or tornado destroys your place of business? Do you back up your data? Know a safe spot to keep your backups if you do?

These are all things that are well worth taking the time to plan out, so that you can think, when and if a disaster strikes, about the one important thing, saving lives.

For Emergency Services this site will contain training links and information on upcoming local training. Links to information that you can use to do the jobs that you have volunteered to do. We thank you for that!

Please read on, investigate the site, make comments about what you’d like to see here! Links to preparedness sites are on the left!