WASHINGTON  -  U.S. Representative Jo Ann Emerson (MO-08) has gathered her House of Representatives colleagues who would be affected by a New Madrid Earthquake in a congressional working group.  Missouri, Arkansas, Tennessee, Kentucky, Mississippi and Illinois are represented among the __ members.

 

“The focus of this mission is to work with members across a wide geographic area to coordinate preparations for a potentially calamitous earthquake.  It will be of little consolation if the local first responders in Missouri are ready for a disaster, but those in our neighboring states are not.  We will have to be prepared to help our own residents, as well as to come to the aid of other states where the relief effort may be urgent,” Emerson said.

 

During a town hall meeting she held in Cape Girardeau last month, Emerson learned more about the weak points in disaster preparation.

 

“One of my major concerns is the lack of coordination between counties on this matter.  They don’t know who to talk to, they don’t have the phone numbers and they are unaware of each others’ disaster response plans.  That’s nothing compared to the lack of communication from state to state.  I am starting this working group precisely to remedy that weakness.  There is no disagreement among the experts that a severe earthquake would cause extensive damage to all kinds of infrastructure, especially transportation and communication systems.  The challenges of responding in a compromised environment demand we be thorough in our preparation,” Emerson
said.  “The lessons of Hurricane Katrina are not going to be lost on this group.”

 

Emerson and U.S. Senator Jim Talent have asked the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to conduct a comprehensive exercise to assess preparedness and response in the event of a catastrophic New Madrid quake.