About 100 firefighters, emergency management officials, CERT volunteers and concerned residents gathered at the Farmington Centene Center Wednesday night to hear about earthquakes and how agencies are preparing for the big one along the New Madrid fault.

Speakers talked a lot about why earthquakes occur, the history of the New Madrid fault, the chance of a significant earthquake occurring and the effect it may have on St. Francois County.

The highest earthquake risk in the mainland United States outside the West Coast is along the New Madrid Fault, which stretches 120 miles. The Great New Madrid Earthquake of 1811-1812 was a series of more than 2,000 shocks in five months. The last significant earthquake was a 6.6 magnitude near Charleston on Oct. 13, 1895.

Speakers representing FEMA and SEMA and the local 911 Center spoke about resources that are available to the state if an earthquake did occur. Residents were encouraged to put plans in place for their homes, workplace, and schools.

After two hours of listening to speakers, the audience had a chance to ask their own questions and voice their own concerns.

One man said he was concerned about all of the mines in the area and wondered if there were concerns that towns would fall in if there was an earthquake.

Steve Besemer, SEMA Earthquake Program manager, said there is not a lot of concern about how land like that will react during an earthquake.

A church leader said they have a large church gym that could be used as a shelter and wanted to know what he could do to help. Officials said one step is to become an American Red Cross shelter. Another way is to talk with the community’s emergency management planner — who is often times the police chief.

Another person asked if there would be problems with communication devices such as cell phones after an earthquake. Besemer said if cell phone towers are working, they likely will be overloaded. He said people with amateur radio capabilities, especially in areas closest to the fault, will be important for communication.

J98 Program Director Scott Kubala, who acted as the emcee for the town hall meeting, reminded people that radio stations will disseminate a lot of information so it will be important to have batteries available for the radios.

Alan Wells, St. Francois County 911 director, said 211 is another resource for landline phone users to get information such as the location of shelters.

He said the county strives to keep their communication system as state-of-the-art as possible. The Farmington Police Department’s Dispatch Center is the county’s 911 backup. He said they also have a mobile command center and some satellite communication capabilities. The use of amateur radios is also part of their emergency plan as a backup.

Sue Heisler of the Strategic National Stockpile program, said it is important for any plan to have a lot of backups in place.

Another person asked where is the ideal spot to put an emergency supply kit in your home. Besemer said the best place to put it is somewhere you can get to it quickly like a hall closet.

A kit should include one gallon of water per person per day for at least three days. There should be at least a three-day supply of non-perishable food.

Other items for the kit include a battery-powered or hand-cranked radio; a Weather Radio with tone alert; a flash light; a first aid kit; a whistle to signal for help; a dust mask, plastic sheeting and duct tape for use if air has been contaminated; moist towelettes, garbage bags and plastic ties for personal sanitation; a wrench and pliers to turn off utilities; a can opener; local maps; and extra batteries. People should also have a week’s worth of medicine, and a copy of their prescriptions.

People were encouraged to become part of a CERT team. CERT team volunteers are trained to respond to any kind of a disaster. They are trained to locate and turn off utilities, extinguish small fires, treat  injuries, and conduct light searches.

Officials in St. Francois and Washington counties are working to activate CERT teams in each city and community. If you are interested, call your local health department.

The officials shared resources that people can go to for information about earthquakes: SEMA, FEMA, the Missouri Division of Geology and Land Survey, U.S. Geological Survey, Lessons Learned Information Sharing, and the Central U.S. Earthquake Consortium.

Local agencies showed off their emergency management equipment which included a Haz-Mat trailer, the county mobile command trailer, Farmington’s mobile command bus, a mobile generator and a mass care trailer to supply an emergency shelter.

Teresa Ressel is a reporter for the Daily Journal and can be reached at 573-431-2010, ext. 179 or at tressel@dailyjournalonline.com.

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