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Amityville Village looks to upgrade disaster plan
What would you do if a 30-foot high wave bore down on your home? How would you deal with a major power outage or an environmental disaster? Amityville Village resident Michael DiSalvo wants to help you answer those questions, but more important, be prepared to respond to them. Working with a group of fellow graduate students from the Metropolitan College of New York, DiSalvo has has partnered with the Village of Amityville to develop and enhance the Village's existing emergency preparedness plan and to help raise the public's awareness about how to adequately respond to disasters. "I thought it would be a project that would be beneficial to the Village," said DiSalvo. "We are a group of professionals from a variety of backgrounds who already have an understanding of how important it is to have a plan in place." The group includes DiSalvo, a law enforcement professional and the husband of Village Justice Debra Urbano DiSalvo, nurses, social workers, and system specialists from the college's graduate deby gree program in emergency and disaster management. Heading up the project is Professor Nicholas Cagliouso.
The group has already started its work, completing vulnerability analysis of potential hazards. "Floods and hurricanes seem to be the most concern to the stakeholders in the Village, the police, fire, public works and public officials we polled," said DiSalvo. "We have characterized those concerns in order of importance and are working toward developing an emergency plan that would be implemented in those types of disasters." The Village is required by law and has an emergency preparedness plan written and in place. The object of the program is to enhance that plan and revitalize it, making sure that everyone knows what needs to be done, who is responsible for each job and what the chain of command is. That can only come about as a result of having a program in place that is continuously updated and reviewed by all parties. DiSalvo and the group have also been out trying to meet residents and make them aware of what is being done and what they can do to protect themselves against an emergency. They had a booth at the recent Amityville Heritage Fair and handed out bags of informational material, including everything from to how prepare for hurricanes, to putting together essential items for emergency preparedness. "Simple things such as having a supply of nonperishable food and water on hand is something we want to impress on residents," said DiSalvo. Once the plan is developed and written, it will be handed over to the Village for its recommendations. Following that, drills can be held and the Village can gather an additional source of information on how it can react, how each department within the Village can assume essential responsibilities and work together. From there, they can make accommodations and changes as the need arises.
For information on the program or emergency preparedness, call Village Hall at 264-6000.
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