Note: This is the fourth article in a four-part series remembering some of North Carolina's most notable hurricanes while highlighting some of the progress our state has made since to ensure we are better prepared for such storms. Click here for Part 1 and Part 2 and Part 3
Improving Fundamental Resources
North Carolina has not only improved it capacity to respond with rescue teams and mobile equipment, but it has developed behind-the-scene tools that more accurately address vulnerabilities and encourage better preparedness. Massive flooding from Hurricane Floyd topped 500-year flood levels, highlighting the state’s need for accurate, up-to-date floodplain maps and safer floodplain development standards. In September 2000, North Carolina partnered with the Federal Emergency Management Agency to remap the state's floodplains using advanced digital floodplain mapping technology. Since then, flood maps for all 100 counties have been revised with routine scheduled updates every five years. The state’s remapping efforts set the national standard for accurate floodplain mapping. It has helped communities and property owners to identify actual flood risks and take appropriate steps to prevent flood damage.
The aftermath of Hurricane Floyd and the September 11th terrorist attacks revealed a lapse in first responders’ ability to communicate with one another without going through a communications center. The development of the Voice Interoperability Plan for Emergency Responders, or VIPER, allowed fire, rescue and law enforcement agencies to communicate directly with one another through a single radio system. VIPER provides another means of joint coordination between state and local emergency responders.
In 2012, North Carolina Emergency Management moved into a new state-of-the-art Emergency Operations Center on the N.C. National Guard joint force headquarters campus. The new building features some of the most modern technologies and energy-efficient "green" engineering. Now, co-located with the NCNG, State Highway Patrol Communications Center and state transportation operations center, the State Emergency Operations center is positioned to more efficiently respond to natural disasters or other emergencies.
“The state’s emergency response capabilities have evolved with every disaster this state has faced,” said NCEM Director Mike Sprayberry. “To think how much better equipped and prepared we are now than we were 15 years ago, is encouraging. Yet there is still much to do.”
To help North Carolinians better prepare themselves for emergencies, NCEM earlier this year launched the ReadyNC mobile application. Available free for both iPhone and Droid devices, the app provides real-time information to help individuals and families prepare themselves for most any type of emergency. The app, along with its sister website (ReadyNC.org), provide up-to-date weather and traffic conditions as well as specific ways to plan and prepare, including instructions for creating an emergency supplies kit.
“We never know when the next disaster will strike,” explained Sprayberry. “But we do know that the more prepared you are before disaster strikes, the easier and faster it will be to recover afterwards.”
###
Contact: Laura Leonard
Phone: 919-825-2599