If a disaster should strike the City of Live Oak would you be prepared? Generally speaking, most disasters occur without warning leaving you little time to get ready. The key to surviving a major emergency or actual disaster is to be prepared. It is very important that every citizen should know how to protect their family and property from potential disasters.

The need for emergency preparedness in the State of Texas is great. Here are some statistics that may get your attention.

• Texas is number 1 in the nation for tornadoes.
• We are number 1 in the nation for flash floods.
• We also lead the nation in railroad accidents.
• We have more hazardous materials transported over our highway system.
• Texas is number 2 in he nation for hurricanes.
• We also have over 250,000 miles of underground pipelines; persistent droughts and frequent occurrences of wildfires.

The City of Live Oak has had an emergency preparedness program for many years and it has come along way from the days of “Civil Defense.” The current emergency management program was officially established by City ordinance # 551, dated September 27, 1983, by former Mayor Ralph Cullip.

In accordance with the Texas Disaster Act of 1975, the responsibility for emergency preparedness rests with the senior elected official – the Mayor, who holds the title of Director of Emergency Management. State law and our City Ordinance provide for the appointment of a coordinator to manage the preparedness program.

Several individuals have held this position over the years, including former Fire Chief and then Counsel Member, Heinz Mueller and Mr. Robert Horton, a long time member of the volunteer fire department and commission member. The current emergency management coordinator is Gary L. Woppert, who has been with the City since December 1986.

The Office of Emergency Management, or OEM, is a separate City function under the Assistant City Manager.

The City of Live Oak has a complete and up-to-date emergency management plan, signed by the Mayor, and approved by the State Division of Emergency Management. The plan itself is composed of a "Basic Plan" and twenty-two (22) functional annexes covering various subjects. They are:

ANNEX		FUNCTIONAL AREAS
A	-	Warning
B	-	Communications
C	-	Shelter/Mass Care
D	-	Radiological Protection
E	-	Evacuation
F	-	Fire Protection
G	-	Law Enforcement
H	-	Health & Medical
I	-	Public Information
J	-	Recovery Operations
K	-	Public Works/Engineering
L	-	Utility
M	-	Resource Management
N	-	Emergency Operations Center
O	-	Human Services
P	-	Hazard Mitigation
Q	-	Hazardous Material Response
R	-	Rescue Operations
S	-	Transportation
T	-	Donations Management
U	-	Legal
V	-	Terrorist Incident Response

All City Department Heads along with other staff members are responsible for these annexes, along with the Office of Emergency Management. The Human Services annex has been delegated to the American Red Cross by agreement.

The Office of Emergency Management is responsible for determining all of the potential hazards to our citizens and for creating the hazardous mitigation study, which is the basis for our preparedness program. In addition, they are responsible for evacuation planning and the Emergency Operations Center (EOC).

The State of Texas has an excellent emergency preparedness program that is handled by the Governor’s Division of Emergency Management, Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS). Their offices are located in Austin, three stories underground, beneath the Headquarters of the Department of Public Safety building on North Lamar Ave. The captain, in charge of the local DPS headquarters on South New Braunfels Ave, is also the Chairman of the local Disaster District Committee (DDC). If the City of Live Oak needs additional resources, above what we have or can obtain through mutual aid, the DDC can call on whatever county or state resources are needed, to include deploying the Texas National Guard if requested by the Mayor, and approved by the Governor.

In the event of a major incident or actual disaster, the Mayor has the authority under the Texas Disaster Act to declare and sign a “Disaster Declaration.” This activates our emergency management plan, and gives the mayor all of the powers of the Act. Some examples of these powers are to declare dusk to dawn curfews, seal off parts of the City, suspense city services, and if needed, request the deployment of the Texas National Guard. Keep in mind, only the Governor of Texas can authorize the deployment of the guard.

The additional categories on this Web Page will go over the emergency management program and highlight many important areas. The Office of Emergency Management encourages all citizens to look through it and follow the guidance in developing a family disaster plan and learning about the cities preparedness plans.

We also encourage you to come by City Hall and visit the Office of Emergency Management. We have many brochures and checklists available on an assortment of subjects. We even have some coloring books for your children.

The coordinator is available to present programs to any group regarding emergency preparedness. The coordinator works closely with the Live Oak Police and Fire Departments and can assist you with arranging other programs on crime prevention and fire prevention.

In addition, this Web Page offers links to several other sites that you might find interesting to explore regarding emergency management. They are:

• The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)
  
• The State Division of Emergency Management (DEM)
  
• The American Red Cross
  
• The National Weather Service (Austin/San Antonio)
  
• The National Hurricane Center
  

The Council Chambers is equipped with twelve (12) telephone jacks; radio communications equipment; and an assortment of maps and charts are available. City Hall and the Police Department buildings have emergency generators that can provide electrical power in the event power goes out within the City. In addition, one of the water well sites is equipped with generator power to enable the City to continue to maintain our water supply. This will insure we have water available for fire fighting and for our citizens during power outages.

The Office of Emergency Management is responsible for the overall operation of the facility and getting it in operation. Once the EOC has been activated, the local Disaster District is notified along with the State Emergency Operations Center, in Austin.

All department heads and various other staff members fill positions on the EOC staff. The facility is set-up as follows.

POSITION	STAFF MEMBER
Director	The Mayor of Live Oak
Coordinator	Gary L. Woppert
Comptroller	City Manager
Transportation	Assistant City Manager
Administration	City Secretary
Public Information Officer	Civic Center Manager
Shelter Coordinator	Planning Secretary
Recovery Operations	Finance Director
Fire Department	Chief or other officer
Police Department	Chief or other officer
Public Works/Utility	Director of Public Works

In addition, various other city staff members may assist as needed. If necessary the City Attorney and City Engineer may be call in to assist.

The State of Texas does not have a mandatory evacuation law regarding a citizen leaving property that they own. Many other states do! As such, a citizen cannot be forced to leave their home. This does not apply to commercial buildings like shopping areas and apartment buildings.

The City can prevent you from getting to your property in the event the area was evacuated while you were not home. The area is then considered an evacuation zone and is cordoned off by law enforcement personnel. You can be arrested for crossing a police line and entering this zone.

Lets talk about safety regarding evacuations. First of all, the City would never order evacuations unless there was a serious threat to the safety of our citizens. The decision to order evacuations would be carefully considered before the order was given. Another point to consider is this! If you elect to remain in your home following an evacuation, you maybe on your own. If the area becomes contaminated due to hazardous chemicals, rescue workers may not be allowed into the area to assist you.

It is not an easy task to evacuate people because it requires many steps. Once the decision is made, people have to be notified; they must be told why they are being evacuated; where to go; shelters must be established; and certain routes must be determined. Sometimes special instructions must be provided regarding turning off utilities. This takes time and coordination between many different people.

Our shelter locations are identified under Shelters. These are close by, however, the American Red Cross may use many other locations in San Antonio/Bexar County.

If you have to evacuate your home, you are not going to have time to pack many things. There are some very important things to take with you. Here is a short list of some important items.

• Medications being taken by all family members.
• Baby supplies if you have an infant.
• A blanket or two.
• Something to read.
• A favorite toy or doll for a child.
• Money and/or credit cards.
• Identification

There may be other items depending on family needs. It is important to keep a list of these items as part of your Family Disaster Plan that is covered under another section.

One very important thing to remember regarding evacuations, that effect many people. Do you have a pet? If you go to a shelter, pets are not permitted, with the exception of animals used by people for assistance such as dogs used by the blind. As such, you need to think about what you're going to do with your dog or cat in the event you have to evacuate.

In many cases they may be safe at the house, either inside or in the yard. Ensure they have sufficient water and food, because you may not be able to return for sometime. You may want to take them with you and drop them off by someone.

Once the decision has been made to order an evacuation, the area is normally identified by street boundaries. An example would be if you live between IH 35 and Village Oak Drive and from Pat Booker Road South to Lone Shadow Trail.

You will be informed why you need to evacuate. An example would be we have a hazardous materials accident on the access road of IH 35 North at the Pat Booker Road exit, and dangerous chemicals are present.

You will be informed where to proceed to for a possible shelter. In this case, our Civic Center might be in harms way. Therefore, we would inform our citizens to proceed to the Kitty Hawk Middle School, in Universal City for shelter. The shelter location would be coordinated with the American Red Cross.

One last item we would most likely inform you of is which way to proceed. Chances are we would ask you to proceed down Village Oak Drive to Toepperwein Road, and then down Kitty Hawk Road to the school. Why not go Village Oak to Pat Booker Road? Well, the fire department may have their command post located in that area and it is very congested with emergency vehicles.

How would you be notified? That comes under Warning Systems.

When a disaster occurs, victims can be classified into two (2) categories. There are those that are directly effected and those that are in directly effected. If your home is completely destroyed by a tornado or it is underwater because of a flood, you are a direct victim. On the other hand, if your home is located across the street you may have very little damage. Maybe a broken window or two! You are now an in-direct victim. While your home is fine, all of the utilities are off and you really can’t leave because the streets are blocked with debris. You need to be able to manage on your own for the next 24 to 72 hours. This is where your Family Disaster Plan comes in handy. Emergency personnel cannot help everyone immediately following a major disaster. They are going to be very busy putting out fires, rescuing people trapped in homes, treating the injured, etc. The in-direct victims must be able to get by and sometimes help others.

Most people have many items needed for a family plan, however they never thought about making one up. If you have a fire extinguisher on hand, a flashlight or two, with extra batteries, a battery powered radio with extra batteries, and a first aid kit, you have some of the basics.

Having some canned foods on hand along with a few bottles of water can be a great help in an emergency. All family members should know how to turn off the utilities and have the proper tools handy.

Another item regarding family disaster planning is keeping in touch with one another. Suppose a disaster occurs during the middle of the day. A family is normally separated! Mom and Dad may both be at work and Johnny and Susie are in school. Your home sits within the disaster area and you can’t get there. Now what! How do you get back together or even contact one another?

Families should have a meeting place outside the home in case of fire, however, they also should have a meeting place away from the home. Some examples are a church, a school, or some other place. Maybe a relatives home!

Now what about your children! Do you know what kind of disaster plans your school district has? What will happen to your children if they cannot go home or if the school itself is evacuated. Where will they be going and how will you find out. If you don’t know the answer to these questions, you need to contact your children’s school.

Another problem that comes up is family members out of state. They have heard about the tornado and want to find out if you are OK. While it may be impossible to make a telephone call due to down lines, sometimes service is just overloaded. That is local service. If you dial “1” for long distance you can make a call.

The American Red Cross has several brochures available on preparing your plan, and they are available at City Hall or from the American Red Cross. They include:

• Your Family Disaster Plan
• Your Family Supplies Kit
• Emergency Preparedness
• Preparing for Emergencies – A Checklist for People with Mobility Problems.
• Food & Water in an Emergency

Many of these brochures are available in both English and Spanish.

Your plan should include preparations for in-place sheltering. Sometimes emergencies occur so quickly that there isn’t time to evacuate people and it’s safer to leave them in their home. The key to in-place sheltering is that you must seal up your home as quickly as possible. Close all windows and doors and lock them too. Turn off ALL ventilation sources such as air-conditioning and vent fans. Close the fireplace damper. Seal off any gaps under doorways and windows with wet towels or duct tape. The idea is to keep the hazardous substance outside.

Another very important part of your family disaster plan is helping your children cope with a disaster situation.

Disasters can be traumatic for most adults, but they can be very frightening for our children. If a disaster occurs, children may have to leave their home and their daily routine. Many children are used to getting up in the morning, going to school, playing with their friends, and then going to sleep – in their own beds. A disaster can change all of this. Parents need to provide reassurance and guidance. Stay claim and try to explain things to them on their level. Let them know things will be OK. Try to keep the family together.

There are several brochures available on this subject as well, and they are also available in both English and Spanish. One of the best is also a Red Cross brochure called Helping Children Cope with Disaster.

The flood plain, defined by flood plain maps from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, covers the area around the lake in the City park and throughout the drainage channels around town. The lake itself is really a flood control area, and the parkland around it is designed to flood, causing little damage to property.

The Martinez Lake and Dam, is part of a flood control system. In the lake itself there is a place where rising water will flow into and cause it to be released on the other side of the dam, at a slow rate. In October of 1998, flood waters covered most of the park land and the water actually went around the dam. Not over it! That is they way it is designed to work as well. As a matter of information, the earthen dam is safe and in good condition, according to the Army Corp of Engineers.

Since were talking about the lake, it is stocked with fish and fishing is permitted from the shoreline. Private boats are not allowed on the lake, except for personnel from the Texas Department of Fish and Wildlife and the Live Oak Fire Department. The fire department has a small boat available for search and rescue operations, should they ever be needed.

If your home has a drainage channel behind your back fence or if you have one alongside your property, you are close to the flood plain, however, your home itself may or may not be in it. Most likely a portion of your property is. Flood plain maps are available in the Office of Emergency Management, however, the Planning & Zoning Office really handles this area. They have the maps as well, and they are the ones who can determine what part of your property is in the flood plain. Their offices are located at City Hall as well.

Do you have flood insurance? Do you need it? Should I get it? These are some good questions that all homeowners need to ask themselves.

The first thing to do is find out if you are in a flood plain. If you recently bought the home, and flood insurance wasn’t required, chances are you are not in it. If you are in a flood plain, and financed the home with a mortgage company, they would have required it.

Let’s talk about homeowner’s insurance coverage for a moment. Your normal homeowner’s policy for fire, theft, etc., does NOT, I repeat does NOT cover flooding, caused by "Mother Nature.” If a pipe breaks in your kitchen, that’s different! Water coming into the structure following a storm, is not going to be covered by a homeowners policy.

The City of Live Oak participates in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), which allows any resident the option to purchase flood insurance. There are several different policies, however, this is where we end our discussion of insurance. If you would like further information regarding flood insurance, you need to talk to your insurance agent.

If you would like further information on this subject, contact the Planning & Zoning Office to check on the flood plain. The Office of Emergency Management does have several brochures available on flooding and insurance issues.

This document, officially called a Local Hazard Mitigation Analysis Study, is prepared by the Office of Emergency Management. It is actually part of our plan and comes under Annex P, Hazard Mitigation. A group of City officials make up a mitigation team that provides all of the inputs for this study.

The study is made up of several parts. They include:

• An overview of the City (population, businesses, etc.)
• The analysis itself covering all defined hazards
• A hazard summary and rating scale

The actual analysis study covers every potential hazard as defined by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Some of these include aircraft accidents, droughts, earthquakes, floods, hazardous material accidents, power failures, fires, severe weather, and several others that don’t apply to our city or part of the county.

Each potential hazard is outlined with six (6) objectives. They are:

• Predictability
• Frequency
• Control Ability
• Duration
• Scope of Damage
• Impact on the City

Each of the objectives is used with each potential hazard to determine the risk to the City of Live Oak should that specific incident happen.

This document is too lengthy to include on this Web Page, however, it is part of our emergency plan and is open for public inspection in the Office of Emergency Management.

Hazardous materials may be gases, solids, and liquids that are part of our daily lives. These products benefit us in many ways and make our lives much simpler. The listing of these products is endless and includes many things that you might not even consider as being a hazard.

This type of material is transported around the county on a daily basis, with little or no problem. On occasion, accidents do occur! When they do – they make the evening news.

The most common form of hazardous material that we use daily is gasoline for our cars. It normally is transported in tanker trucks or railroad tank cars. Many other products like acids are used in the manufacture of many things. As long as this material is in that tanker it is perfectly safe.

The problem is when an accident occurs and the hazardous material escapes from its container and spills onto the ground or is released into the air. Now we have a problem! Many times these products catch on fire, which adds to the emergency.

The interstate highway, through our City, sees a great deal of hazardous materials traveling on it. In addition, Loop 1604 and Pat Booker Road have some hazardous material traffic as well. The City cannot control the transportation of hazardous material on the interstate highway or City streets providing they have business there.

In the event of a hazardous materials incident or accident, involving the release of chemicals, the fire department is the primary responding agency. They will attempt to first identify the product, cordon off the area, and initiate evacuation of the immediate area, if needed. Depending on the product, they may be able to contain it. If it catches on fire they may attempt to extinguish the fire, or they may determine it’s safer to let it burn. They will insure the fire doesn’t spread, however, letting it burn itself out may solve the problem easier then putting the fire out and then having to deal with a dangerous product.

The Live Oak Fire Department, along with several others in the area, recognized the need for a hazardous materials response team many years ago. The cost for each city to form a team was thousands of dollars, so the cities came up with a plan. An organization called the Combined Emergency Service Organization (CESO) already existed, in which all of the departments belonged to. Working together, many of the area fire chiefs decided forming a CESO Hazardous Materials Response team was the best way to go.

The team was formed in 1995 and is composed of approximately 20 firefighters from various departments in the Randolph area. They have all received extensive training and the team is housed in the Universal City Fire Station. The CESO team is one of two (2) in Bexar County. The only other team belongs to the San Antonio Fire Department. The team members have trained together and may someday respond to a joint emergency call.

In 1999, the Live Oak Fire Department signed the county-wide agreement with the City of San Antonio regarding emergency response to major incidents like hazardous materials accidents.

While we hope a serious hazardous material accident will never occur in the City of Live Oak, the possibility is always there. This type of incident happens quickly and without warning. Depending on the chemicals involved and the location, the incident could require evacuation and sheltering of our citizens.

Another aspect of hazardous material comes under terrorism. Weapons of Mass Destruction involving various chemical agents have been used around the world. This is a new threat that is being taken very seriously, and a new plan annex was recently added.

The City of San Antonio Fire Department has received the necessary equipment and training to deal with this type of incident from the federal government. In conjunction with the countywide agreement mentioned above, the response team dealing with weapons of mass destruction could be called to Live Oak if needed.

Recovery also is something each resident should also consider and build into their family disaster plan. A good place to start would be important papers like insurance documents. These should be stored in a safe place. Many people have a fire proof box with important papers at home, which is a good idea. However, if a tornado destroys your home, that box might be lost forever. Have a duplicate set somewhere. If you have a safety deposit box at your bank or credit union, that would be a good place to put them.

One of the most important parts of the Family Disaster Plan is being able to care for your family for up to 72 hours, provided that no one has been injured and your home is still intact and you can live in it.

In the event a disaster occurs, like a tornado, and your home is damaged, there are some very important things to do. First of all, if you were home, make sure everyone is OK and no one is injured. Then, proceed carefully outside. There is always a danger of fire, broken gas lines, or downed electrical lines in the area. You need to be very careful at this point. Be careful of debris falling on you, especially if you are in a two-story home or any kind of building. Once outside, survey the area. Check on your neighbors and make sure they are OK. Remember life safety should be the first thing on your mind. Check for gas leaks and turn off the meter if needed. If water lines are broken, turn off the water meter. If your home is severely damaged, turn off the outside electrical breakers if you can.

Be extremely careful around downed lines. They may be electric, telephone, or cable lines and you may not be able to tell. Electrical lines may be sparking or they may not. Play it safe, and don’t touch any downed lines and keep others away.

If people are hurt nearby, or if buildings are catching on fire, do the best you can to help the injured and try to locate emergency personnel. Police, fire, and EMS units will be responding to the area, however, help them locate those needing their assistance first.

Following a severe storm or tornado, be cautious of the weather conditions. Is the storm over? If weather conditions are still threatening, the storm may not be over and severe weather may still be in the area.

This is where a battery-powered radio comes in handy, which is a very important part of your family plan. Be sure to have extra batteries on hand too.

If you have children, especially small children, they may be very scared of what has happened. It is very important that you spend time with them and reassure them. If you can keep the family together it will be better. Once the children feel somewhat safe it might be necessary to send them to a relatives home outside of the disaster area.

Following a disaster, relatives and family friends will be concerned about your safety. Many times they will try to call however they won’t be able to because lines are down and telephones exchanges are overloaded. The best way to handle this is for you to contact one specific person who can notify others. This person should be away from the immediate area of the disaster. Determining family contacts is a very important part of your family plan as well. One last point regarding contacting people. As noted telephone lines will be very busy – many times with emergency traffic. Therefore, many times local authorities will ask the public to refrain from making unnecessary telephone calls.

Getting back to recovery efforts, try to secure your home if you can. Cover broken windows if you can and make any necessary repairs to make your home safe. Contact your insurance company as soon as you can. Following a disaster, most larger companies will have disaster teams in the area helping their customers.

Finally, following a major disaster the federal government will begin setting up disaster assistance operations. All citizens affected by the disaster may be eligible to apply for various types of assistance through the various programs that are available.

In closing, the two most important parts of recovery is first of all be prepared by having a plan, and secondly, following a serious incident or actual disaster, think carefully before you act.

Here in the San Antonio area of South Texas we can and do receive a wide variety of severe weather based on several factors. The moisture off of the Gulf of Mexico plays a major part in it. South Texas air is always fairly moist and therefore all we need is something to trigger the storms like a frontal passage from the West to East. As the front moves over the state it meets the warm moist air and showers or thunderstorms occur. Any storm forming this way can become severe very quickly. Most of these storm systems move in an Easterly direction. Many times they miss Bexar County and the City of Live Oak. Sometimes the front meets the moist air almost over the Bexar County area. As a result, most of the storms are East of us.

The National Weather Service office serving San Antonio is located at the airport in New Braunfels, Texas. It is known as the Austin/San Antonio office. The facility has state-of-the-art NEXRAD radar and operates 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. They provide daily weather updates and issue an assortment of weather advisories, statements, and bulletins, depending on conditions. The Storm Prediction Center in Oklahoma also issues various statements regarding severe weather.

All weather notifications, regardless of the type are forwarded to various agencies for broadcast. The Live Oak Communications Center (LOCC), located within the police department, receives all weather statements and bulletins through the computer system. Once received, the information is relayed to various personnel and departments.

All citizens should become familiar with the weather services statements. The primary ones – Watches and Warnings are the most common. A “Watch” of any kind simply means that conditions are favorable for a certain type of weather, i.e. severe thunderstorms to occur over a certain area, during a certain period of time. On the other hand, a “Warning” of any kind means that those conditions are now occurring in the area. A Flash Flood Warning means flooding is occurring! A Tornado Warning means a funnel cloud has been spotted and may be on the ground nearby.

Severe weather can be dangerous and deadly too. Flash flooding is a major problem in and around the area. Flash flooding claims about 150 lives per year. Many of these deaths occur when people try to drive through a low water crossing and are swept away by the rushing water.

Tornadoes claim many lives each year as well, and remember any severe thunderstorm can spawn a tornado with little or no warning. Straight-line winds actually do more damage then tornadoes, and they also can occur during a thunderstorm.

Severe thunderstorms occur most often in the late afternoon hours and into the evening. Daytime heating adds fuel to the storms so to speak and therefore, most severe storms do occur late in the day or early evening. Some occur later and others can occur at daybreak.

Summer time temperatures into the upper 90’s and reaching the 100 mark pose another problem. Heat related medical emergencies occur fairly often to people who work outdoors and the very young and the elderly. Drought conditions occur fairly often in South Texas as well and this contributes to serious wildfire conditions.

Hurricane season begins on June 1st and runs through November 30th, each year. Texas ranks 2nd in the nation for hurricanes. While a hurricane is not going to have a direct impact on the San Antonio area, the effects of a serious hurricane coming ashore can effect us greatly. We can have very heavy rainfall, which can cause flash flooding. Also, once a hurricane reaches land and moves ashore, they can produce tornadoes. In 1988 hurricane Gilbert made landfall along the Texas coast. We had very heavy rain fall here in Bexar County and several tornadoes touched down in the area. Severe damage occurred at Kelly AFB and on the West side of San Antonio in the Medical Center area.

Finally the winter months in South Texas sometimes go by without notice, however, we can get freezing temperatures along with ice and even snow. In 1985, the San Antonio area was hit with about 13 inches of snow and the City came to a stop. Since then, freezing rain has caused many icy conditions that have closed the interstate highways. The major problem with winter weather is we don’t have the necessary equipment to deal with it.

The best advise regarding severe weather is to keep abreast of any changing weather conditions. When skies are threatening, keep a radio or the TV turned on at home. If you have the weather channel, turn it on. Another good thing to have at home is a weather radio. They can be purchased at many electronics stores and you can monitor the National Weather Service 24 hours a day if you like. The best feature of these radios is they have an alerting devise built in. When the weather service issues a bulletin for severe weather, these radios activate with an alert tone. These radios can be life saving devices when storms occur during the night.

Live Oak Civic Center 8101 Pat Booker Rd Live Oak, Texas
	Kitty Hawk Middle School 830 Old Cimarron Trail Universal City, Texas
Judson High School 9142 FM 78 Converse, Texas

For some time now emergency management officials have long feared a terrorist attack on the United States, and many federal dollars were spent on equipment and special training for teams in all of the major cities to deal with this type of threat. As time went by, the feeling was not if an attack would occur, but where and when. On the morning of September 11th, 2001, we learned the answer to both of those questions along with how! It wasn’t a weapon of mass destruction as long feared, but commercial airliners, full of innocent people. These aircraft in a sense became missiles, as they were flown into the World Trade Center Towers, along with the Pentagon.

Since that day, now commonly referred to as 9 - 11, many actions have been taken by various agencies of the federal, state, and local governments. Security has been increased almost everywhere you turn, from airports to municipal stadiums. The President has established the White House Office of Homeland Security, and charged them with the responsibility to create a national and comprehensive plan to deal with security around the nation. The State of Texas has established a similar position, and in addition, county and local governments are also looking into increasing security within their respective jurisdictions.

The City of San Antonio, being a major metropolitan city, has purchased and received a great deal of equipment, with federal funding, to deal with weapons of mass destruction, and has personnel highly trained to deal with these matters. Bexar County has also obtained much equipment and is currently working on training issues however, this is not a simple matter for the county. The Bexar County Fire Marshal/Emergency Management Office deals with many volunteer fire departments, along with many other suburban cities. Training is underway, and many emergency personnel have attended the awareness level class.

The fire departments within the “Randolph Metrocom” realized long ago that their was a critical need for a hazardous materials team, and through the local organization formed many years ago known as the Combined Emergency Services Organization or CESO for short, a team was formed. The CESO Hazardous Materials Response Team operates out of the Universal City Fire Station, and is comprised of firefighters from several metrocom fire departments. The team received some of the equipment that Bexar County received sometime back, and is able to response to calls dealing with weapons of mass destruction. During the past few months they have responded to several anthrax calls. This team along with the team from the San Antonio Fire Department, are the only emergency Hazardous Materials Response teams in Bexar County.

As for the citizens of the City of Live Oak, what should you do to be safe in your home and at work? Here are some suggestions on what you might want to consider.

First of all, don’t panic! Terrorist’s hope we will do just that and it is actually part of their plan. The most important thing you can do is to learn about our emergency management program, and what you should or should not do in an emergency.

The most important you can do is be alert! If you see something that doesn’t look right, or if you have a “bad feeling” about something, notify the police department, and leave the area. Be aware of your surroundings at all times, especially if you are traveling.

What about the mail? Again, be alert! If you receive a letter or package that you didn’t order or recognize; it doesn’t have a return address; the envelope is discolored, or again if it just doesn’t look right, don’t open it, smell it, or shake it. If it is an envelope, place it in a plastic bag, preferably one that seals, and close it up. You can even double bag it! Afterwards either throw it in the trash, or if it does have signs of being a real hazard, call the police. If it is a package, don’t handle it and call the police. Immediately wash your hands with soap and water.

Should I buy gas masks for my family? The answer to that question is NO. First of all, you would have to carry it with you at all times; be properly trained on how to use it; have access to the appropriate filters; and most important, have the capability to detect a hazardous environment. The bottom line. Forget it! Spend the money on other items dealing with emergency preparedness, like a battery powered radio if you don’t have one.

The most important part of emergency preparedness is to have a family disaster plan, and have the necessary items on hand should a serious incident occur. Many items you will already have on hand like flashlights, a battery powered radio, extra batteries, a first aid kit, etc. For more information on Family Disaster Planning, visit that area of this web page. Many brochures are also available at City Hall, or from the American Red Cross.

For additional information on Terrorism, here are some additional Web Sites you might want to visit:

• The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)
  
• Texas Division of Emergency Management (DEM)
  
• Texas Department of Health
  
• The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
  
• The Center for Disease Control (CDC)
  

In closing, the possibility of a terrorist attack in the San Antonio area is remote, however, it could happen. If an attack were to occur, it could have serious consequences. There could be many casualties and the aftermath and clean-up could take a long time. Generally speaking Bexar County and the San Antonio area are more prepared then many other communities. There is an excellent working relationship between the jurisdictions and many mutual aid agreements exist. The State of Texas has an excellent preparedness program that is set-up under the Department of Public Safety, and the state has the resources to handle many emergency situations.

There is one other time when tornado activity can be a real problem. In the event a serious hurricane moves ashore along the Texas coast, in the area of Corpus Christi, the effects will move far inland. Once a hurricane has moved onto land, it generates a lot of thunderstorm activity and tornadoes can occur as well. This was the case in 1988 when Hurricane Gilbert came ashore. Here in San Antonio we had heavy rains and storms all day long and several tornadoes touched down in the San Antonio area.

What can you do to be prepared! There are many things you can do and depending on where you live, you have to plan ahead.

Residential Homes:

Go to the most center part of your home, on the first floor. A hallway closet or bathroom is best. The room should not have an outside wall. If you have none, the hallway itself with all doors closed will work. Stay away from all windows, doors, etc. A closet under a staircase is not recommended because the staircase could collapse on top of you. Sit on the floor or lie down and protect your head.

Mobile Homes:

This type of home is not safe during tornadoes. For some reason, tornadoes seem to find mobile homes and parks and turn them upside down. If you live in a mobile home you need to plan ahead. If you live in a mobile home park is there any place to take shelter. Some parks have recreation buildings, clubhouses, etc. that may offer protection. Some newer mobile home parks have actually built tornado shelters in a basement under a clubhouse. If your park does not have a place to go, you need to go elsewhere. Some examples might be a family member’s home or a friend’s home that is nearby. Maybe your place of business depending on where it is and what kind of building it is! The bottom line is if you do live in a mobile home you need to plan ahead.

Apartments/Condos:

There are many different types of buildings involved here, so you need to ask yourself some important questions. If your in a one story building you should be able to follow the same rules as a residential home owner. Go to the center of the unit and into a bathroom or closet. Now if your on the second or third floor, that’s another matter. Determine the center of your unit as well, however, in the event of a serious tornado threat, it would be safer on the first floor. Again, plan ahead! Do you have some friends in a first floor unit that you could go by? If not, you might want to make other plans.

What about high rise buildings! We don’t have any in the City, however, if your in any type of high rise get into the center most part of the building. Be sure your away from the windows. You should be safe, however, you might consider going to the ground floor if you have time. One thought – take the stairs. The power could go out during a serious storm and you could get trapped in an elevator.

Commercial Buildings, i.e. shopping centers, stores, etc.

This can be difficult because there are so many different types of buildings. You need to think before you act. Go to the first floor of the structure and stay away from windows and the outside walls of the building. Stay away from areas that have heavy objects above you. Shopping malls have large potted trees or plants. These could fall from a second floor. You should be relatively safe in a large structure like this. One final thought! Don’t try to leave the building! Being inside will be a lot safer then being outside or in your car.

Outdoors:

If you are in open country, look for shelter - quickly. If there is no place to go, then you need to look for a place to take cover. A highway bridge, culvert, or even a simple ditch will do. Lie face down and cover your head with your hands. If a tornado is coming, you need to get out of your car and take cover. What about trying to out run the tornado! That’s a hard question to answer. Tornadoes move quickly and change direction often. Trying to out run a funnel cloud, on the ground ia going to be risky. The tornado can go where it wants but you can’t! If your in open country and severe weather is in the area, plan ahead and stop somewhere until it passes.

Being a small community, the City of Live Oak only has a few streets that go through the entire City from North to South or from East to West. The main roadways in the City would be the Interstate Highway 35 and Loop 1604. In addition, Pat Booker Road begins at the interstate and goes through our City and into Universal City, ending at the main gate of Randolph AFB. Toepperwein Road is also a busy street, carrying traffic from the interstate and beyond into the City of Converse.

The main streets within the City would be Village Oak Drive; Lone Shadow Trail; Welcome Drive; Old Spanish Trail; Leafy Hollow Drive; Forest Bluff; and Forest Corner. These are known as collector streets meaning they receive traffic from many others. They are also the widest streets!

During an evacuation, these main streets will be used most often to move citizens out of an area and to designate the evacuation area itself.

Being a small community, we hope most of our citizens become familiar with the City and locations around the City, i.e. City Hall, the City Park, the Clubhouse, the Civic Center, and major businesses like the Northeast Methodist Hospital, or the Albertson’s store. These become reference points during emergencies and when certain instructions are given assumptions are made that citizens know where the Live Oak Civic Center is, since that may be the shelter.

Learning a little about the City should be part of your Family Disaster Plan . Knowing your way around the community could be very important in an emergency. If you have to evacuate your home and if your so used to going one direction, you may not realize how to take a different street. While this might seem unimportant, it could be a lifesaver.

It is very important for citizens to follow directions during evacuations, especially on which route to follow. Depending on the hazardous condition, we may want to keep people away from a certain area. Depending on the situation, traveling a certain direction may be already jammed with traffic. Finally, depending on the emergency, a certain street or area may be designated a command post or a staging area for fire equipment, etc. Needless to say, we don’t want anymore traffic going into this area.

Since were talking about transportation routes, lets briefly discuss the hazardous materials transportation route. This has been a major issue for many years, and the City of San Antonio along with Bexar County, and all of the other cities within the county, have finally gotten together to work out an official route for truck traffic carrying hazardous cargo through Bexar County - without any stops in Bexar county.

The route through Bexar County was designed based on several criteria. These were:

• Using the best type of roadways available
• Keeping the traffic off of elevated roadways in San Antonio
• Protecting the Edwards Aquifer
• Keeping the traffic away from the highest population centers

• All of the interstate highways coming into Bexar County
• Loop 410 around the heart of San Antonio
• All US Highways and all Texas highways within the County

In other words, a trucker coming into the county from Dallas on IH 35 and going to Del Rio must stay on the interstate 35 until reaching Loop 410. They must get onto Loop 410, travel around the loop until they reach interstate 10/U.S.highway 90, and then go west on 90 to Del Rio. The driver cannot take Loop 1604 from IH 35 to IH 10 because that is not on the route.

While this might seem unfair to the trucker, the purpose of the routing plan is to protect the population. Loop 1604 is not part of the route because the upper part is over the aquifer and the lower part is only a two lane roadway with lots of cross traffic and it lacks emergency services needed to deal with a serious hazardous material accident.

The complete plan is too lengthy for this Web page, however, a copy is available for public inspection in the Office of Emergency Management.

The City of Live Oak benefits greatly from being part of a large community. The City of San Antonio has all major TV networks, many radio stations, and a large newspaper – the San Antonio Express. As such, the City has direct access to the news media in the event of a serious emergency.

The City still has one warning siren, located on the roof of City Hall. It can only be heard within a half mile of City Hall, and therefore, it is not our primary warning system. Upgrading it would be very expensive, and warning sirens are not used by most cities any more. The City of San Antonio does not have a siren system either. The siren still operates and we test the siren the first Wednesday of every month, at 12 Noon, with a one (1) minute steady tone. These devices are used as an attention step and citizens still have to turn to some other form of warning to get information.

There are two (2) other warning systems available to us. They are the Emergency Broadcast System (EBS) and the Emergency Alert System (EAS). The EBS system covers all broadcast radio and TV stations and the EAS system covers all of the cable channels.

The Office of Emergency Management has access to both systems. If you have cable TV you will only see the EAS broadcast. If you don’t have cable, then you will see the EBS broadcast. If you have any type of satellite dish, you might want to check with the provider to see if they have any access to emergency broadcasts.

If the EBS system is activated the TV station will interrupt a program with a tone alert and go to a blank screen. They will then delivery the emergency message and necessary information. A radio station will discontinue broadcasting and following a tone alert will also deliver the message.

The EAS system works a little different on cable. You will hear an alert tone and then you will see a message crawl across the screen. It will direct you to tune to a specific cable channel for the information, which will be displayed on the screen.

Both systems will provide specific information to the viewer. Citizens should pay close attention to what City is identified. An emergency in San Antonio or another city within Bexar County may not effect our city at all. Therefore, it is very important that citizens pay close attention to these emergency broadcasts.

As a matter of information, both systems are tested on a regular basis and all citizens and family members should be familiar with the systems and how they work.

In addition to these warning systems, emergency personnel going door to door may be used. Normally these will be police officers or fire fighters. They will briefly explain the emergency and inform you what to do. Needless to say, it is very, very important that you follow their instructions carefully. If they advise you to evacuate your home due to a chemical spill, we serious hope you will comply for your safety.

One other possibility that may occur during emergencies is simply we don’t want people leaving home. Sometimes we use what is known as in-place sheltering. This is covered under the Family Disaster Plan section of this material.

One additional warning device that is available to all citizens at low cost is a weather radio. These can be purchase at many electronic stores and provide severe weather warning, which can alert you to a serious emergency, like a tornado. They cost around $25.00 to $35.00 and can save your life.

The Live Oak Communications Center (LOCC) is extremely busy during any type of emergency. This is especially true during severe weather. Many times citizens call – even on 911 to inquire about the weather. This is really not the place to call, especially on 911, to find out about the weather. The 911 system is designed for reporting true emergencies. We cannot do anything about power outages or cable outages either, however many people call – even on 911 to ask. Now a true emergency call would be if you have power lines down on your street or if a transformer is on fire.

In the event of a disaster are you prepared as the owner of a business? Here are some questions for you to consider.

• Do you have adequate insurance on your building? The contents?
• What if you lost your business records?
• What about computer records? Do you have a back-up system?
• What about loss of business income?
• What about your employees?

A disaster like a tornado or simply a fire could totally destroy your business. A major incident could put you out of business for days even though your facility suffered no damage. You maybe without power, gas, or telephone service! Your business maybe in an evacuated area for days!

What if a severe storm or a tornado warning has been issued while your at work. Where is the safest place in your building to take cover? Do you have an evacuation plan in case of a fire? Do you have a meeting place outside to account for all of your employees? Some more questions to consider!

If you’re the owner of a business or you’re in management, having a disaster plan for your company is very important. Knowing what to do in an emergency could save lives and keep you in business afterwards. Most large companies have plans in place to deal with most emergencies, however many small businesses do not.

Let’s discuss some of these issues, starting with preparedness.
All of your employees should be familiar with emergency preparedness issues such as dealing with a fire, a bomb threat, criminal activity like dealing with a hold-up, etc. All employees should receive training as part of their job orientation on the following issues.

• Safety procedures in performing their job.
• Handling hazardous materials if they are using them.
• Use of a fire extinguisher, evacuation procedures, and meeting places.
• CPR and first aid training.
• Location of utility shut-offs.
• A safe area in the building in the event of a tornado or severe storm.
• How to handle a telephone call reporting a bomb threat.
• How to react when confronted by an armed individual during a hold-up attempt.

These are all important issues and many times employees are unfamiliar with what to do.

Training in many of these areas is available upon request. The Live Oak Fire Department conducts fire extinguisher training classes and can arrange for first aid and CPR training. They can help you set-up an evacuation plan and determine a meeting area nearby. The Live Oak Police Department can look over your business and provide many crime prevention tips including information on how to deal with a bomb threat or an armed robber.

We talked about hazardous material earlier. If you are using any type of hazardous material or store some, how much do you have? Is it reportable under the law and has the fire department been informed of it. If you only have small amounts of a substance the fire department should be made aware of it for their pre-fire plans.

The Office of Emergency Management can help you plan for severe weather activities and discuss other preparedness measures with you. We can try to determine the safest place to be during a tornado warning.

All of these activities are available for the asking. For further information on any of these items, contact the Office of Emergency Management and the coordinator with arrange to meet with you.