(Photo by Kris Todd) Rhonda Wemark, an AmeriCorps volunteer assisting with Clay County's Project Alert program, and Clay County Emergency Management Director Eric Tigges show Project Alert kit items, in foreground, and emergency supplies suggested to be kept on hand in case of an emergency or disaster, at left. [Order this photo]

The goal of Project Alert, a pilot program taking shape in Clay County, is to ensure that individuals, especially those with special needs, are better prepared for emergencies. By taking part in this program and providing some critical information, emergency personnel coming to aid a program-enrolled person will also be better prepared to assist with whatever greets them.

"What excites me about Project Alert is that it gives somebody a resource," said Eric Tigges, the Clay County Emergency Management director. "If you have a family member, friend or even yourself with a special need, (all they have to do is) fill out some paperwork -- which remains completely confidential and is not released to the public. That information, in turn, would be given to emergency responders, whether it's the ambulance team or law enforcement, as they're going to your address. If you have a special need or a disability, they would be made aware of that. They would then be able to more accurately and safely provide assistance to you. By filling out the paperwork, that information is then going to be entered into a database which will be attached to your address and, therefore, available to the dispatch center and responders, which, I think, is a wonderful idea."

When a person enrolls in Project Alert, he or she will be asked for information such as his or her address, telephone number, next of kin, an emergency contact and specific physical information.

A corresponding emergency information sheet kept in a container in his or her refrigerator or freezer would include information for first responders such as a doctor's name, allergies, pharmacy information, a brief medical history, medications and emergency contacts.

"I want to stress that the information collected for the communications center will be kept completely confidential," Rhonda Wemark, the AmeriCorps volunteer assisting with rolling out the Clay County program, added. "It is placed in a sealed envelop and mailed to the communications center, where it is only accessed in an emergency situation."

The local Project Alert project was initiated because Spencer resident Treva Johnson attended an Americans with Disabilities Council-affiliated conference held during the summer of 2005 in Atlanta, Ga., where participants were encouraged to return to their communities and devise emergency plans and projects such as Project Alert. Johnson, in turn, brought the idea back to the local ADA Council, which formed a Project Alert committee that has been working in conjunction with representatives from the Clay County Emergency Management department, the Clay County Sheriff's department, the E-911 system and first responders around the county.

Wemark, who has been enrolling people in Project Alert, has signed up over 200 Clay County residents to date. Her goal, besides preparing 2,500 Project Alert kits, is to speak to as many civic groups and at as many public events, as well as meet with as many individuals to help them complete the form as possible.

"Along with this program, we're encouraging people to prepare emergency kits. Part of the Project Alert packet is how to prepare for emergencies and making an emergency kit," she said. "...As we witness the debilitating and life-threatening effects of natural disasters such as the flooding and tornados on persons with special needs throughout Iowa, we know now, more than ever, the importance of advanced planning to address their needs in an emergency and/or disaster. We estimate that up to 20 percent of our country's general population has a special need: Persons with a visual or hearing impairment, persons with limited mobility, persons with mental disabilities and other health problems due to aging or chronic illness that require special consideration."

"With anything, I think it's important to be your own advocate," Tigges added. "Taking preemptive steps and preparing yourself with a disaster kit, particularly for a person with special needs, buys you some time until responders can get to you."

* For more information, or to receive a Project Alert kit, call 262-9438.