My goodness, what a week this has been. A bombing in Boston. Ricin in the mail. A small Texas community devastated. Ending the week on a high note, a 100-hour manhunt ends with the capture of one of the Boston bombing suspects.
This week I was in a conference with some 600 of Mississippi's emergency response officials, including police officers, firefighters, medics, hospital personnel, and emergency managers. To say we had a lot to talk about would be a gross understatement!
First, let's look at Boston. As you know, two explosive devices detonated near the finish line of the Boston Marathon. While the picture is still being put together, there doesn't appear to be a specific target, making this incident a classic act of terrorism. The aim of terrorists isn't to kill....it is to instill fear. We don't yet know if the bombers were influenced by foreign players, or if they were just two young men playing out a demented prank. Three were killed, hundreds injured. Boston medics, officers, and firefighters dove into harm's way and saved many. We saw Bostonians stand up and fight back, and they did not let fear rule the day. Certainly there was apprehension as the suspects became known. A police officer was killed by the suspects; another gravely injured. Communities were locked down, neighborhoods evacuated during the manhunt. When the final review is penned though, the case was cracked by everyday citizens reporting information to the police. Boston-area residents fought back in a civilized manner by working with police, not as vigilante hero-wannabe's.
At our conference this week, we heard how, as emergency mangers, we should "engage the public" in a "culture of preparedness". Also, "it's a team sport, what yall do". The discussion regarded disaster preparedness, but those words rang true in Massachusetts this week. Police officers - civilian guardians - engaged the public in a team sport, and it paid off. It can work to capture terrorists, and it can work for floods, hurricanes, and tornadoes.
The drama that unfolded in the northeast, however, almost overshadowed the events in a small town where a "culture of preparedness" is a way of daily life. West, Texas, is a small town of 2800, and like many small towns it is protected by a cadre of volunteer firefighters. On April 17, an alarm of fire at a fertilizer plant brought these volunteers from their homes and jobs. Before the day would end, five volunteer firefighters and four emergency medical volunteers were killed in a massive explosion that devastated the small town. There is not a single person in that town who is unaffected. If their house or business wasn't damaged, they were probably related to a responder. In larger cities, public safety personnel have a natural disconnect from most of the public, as it's just a job. In towns like West, that depend on volunteers, your barber might be the fire chief; your pastor may be an EMT. They're not just public servants, they're friends integral to your everyday life. The town lost firefighters who may have been mechanics, teachers, welders, church deacons.
So as you go on your way, two communities separated by a half a country share a common pain. Keep them both in your prayers. When you can, take time to visit your police officers, paramedics, and firefighters. They may be paid for what they do. But they may be doing it simply from the goodness of their hearts, giving their all for you. Embrace a "culture of preparedness" in your home by getting to know these men and women. Do not simply ride the wave of appreciation we'll see in the next few days. They're there every day...
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