During the first few hours after a disaster strikes, professional responders will likely be overwhelmed. It is in this critical time that we will likely be called upon to assist our neighbors nearby.  Hancock County COAD has focused much of our training on the skills needed for that immediate response. A CPR and First Aid certification class was held earlier in the year in Greenfield. In June a practice exercise was done to learn how to assess needs and resources in your own neighborhood.

Recently we have received funding for two additional projects to assist the residents living in Brown, Jackson and Blue River Townships. White Family Foundation made an investment in this effort which will enable us to move forward. The purpose of this project is to assist local leaders in developing a comprehensive, area-specific plan for dealing with any potential disasters with local resources as much as possible, especially during the critical first 72 hours.

Stage one will engage local businesses, churches, non-profits along with school district and township

leadership in order to assess the current status of preparedness and examine the unique challenges area

residents will face in case of a disaster.

Stage two will provide information to area families regarding steps individual families can take to safeguard their property and minimize the risk of injury during and following a disaster. This would include providing materials to guide them through the process of creating a family emergency plan.

Stage three would schedule certified training for any local individuals interested in preparing themselves to volunteer to assist their neighbors. Topics might include shelter management, food service, first aid,

emotional & spiritual care as well as any other identified gaps. During this part of the project we would also reach out to local churches and other facilities to serve as host sites for reception centers, emergency shelters, storm shelters, feeding centers and volunteer processing centers.

Community Foundation of Hancock County recently extended a grant to allow us to provide a CPR/First Aid Course to be held in Jackson Township.  Because the grant this will be able to be offered at no cost to the participants.

Follow Hancock County COAD on Facebook and check out this web site regularly to get details. If you are interested in being a part of the  team leading this effort, please email COAD at iichron7v14@gmail.com.

This Thursday (8/3) the Hancock County Health Department will provide training on Naloxone (NARCAN) usage.  This meeting will be held at the EOC (640 South Franklin, Greenfield). It is open to the public.

Do you know how to help someone you suspect has overdosed on opioids? This course will provide you with the knowledge and confidence you need to respond to a known or suspected opioid overdose emergency.

In this course, you will learn:

• To recognize the signs and symptoms of an opioid overdose.
• The appropriate care to provide based on the person’s breathing and level of responsiveness.
• How to give naloxone to reverse the effects of an opioid overdose.

Whether you’re adding this course to supplement other first aid training or are taking it as your first exposure to first aid training – you will gain the knowledge you need to respond to an opioid overdose emergency.

EMA/COAD Leadership Team

Dwayne Caldwell

Jim Peters

(317) 372-2304

Great presentations on self defense and gun safety at the July meeting. Thank you to Sarah Rose (Roses and Rifles) and Misty Moore (Lona Self Defense)

Both organizations have upcoming classes if you missed the intro at our meting or want more in-depth training.

We will be providing parking support for Greenfield Parks Department for the Live @ the Rails concert Saturday night 7/22. Still could use some help for traffic control for the Flat 50 in August.

At our August 3 meeting (7:00 PM at EOC) Brittany Hanes with Hancock County Health Department will provide NARCAN training. This is important training for anyone volunteering with groups with general public contact – churches, warming centers, food pantries,soup kitchen…..

The recent tornadoes and derecho around the state taught us that the financial and emotional impact of that type of event can be lessened greatly by QUICKLY ramping up the Long Term Recovery effort.  The September meeting (9/7 7:00 PM EOC) will be a working session with the team leads for each of the functional areas – case management, donation management, construction, emotional & spiritual care, volunteer management and communication. Come help us brainstorm the necessary steps to get ready.

Here are the plans for the remainder of the year:

October 5 – workshop to practice communication fo resource needs

November 2 – talk through a mock deployment (where are you going?)

December  7 – Pitch in holiday social

All of our meetings are open to the public. Invite your friends and neighbors.