2008 Woodie Awards
Committee modifies crisis management plan
Ian Paterson
Issue date: 2/23/07 Section: News
- Page 1 of 1
Southwest Baptist University President Dr. C. Pat Taylor met with a newly-founded committee Thursday, Feb. 15 to discuss modification of the crisis management plan.
At the meeting, Taylor and others discussed how to make sure the campus would not be devastated by any kind of natural forces as fierce as those that ravaged Polk County Jan. 12. Mark Grabowski, head of Safety and Security, is chairing the committee for disaster preparedness.
The massive winter storm tore through Bolivar, including SBU, leaving in its wake a dispersion of snapped tree limbs, downed power lines and knocked over light poles. The destruction was so devastating that Missouri Governor Matt Blunt declared the entire county a natural disaster area.
Taylor immediately executed his communication network plan developed to respond to emergencies such as this. The network consists of many SBU faculty and staff who are notified either by cell phone or e-mail. However, the ice storm Bolivar suffered was so severe that it knocked out power to a vast number of buildings, including most buildings on the SBU campus.
"Our plan right now is basically based on communication," said Taylor. "We learned some things with this storm, because who would've thought we'd have a day without cell phones? The cell phone tower went out ... it was frustrating."
In the midst of the confusion, frustration and destruction surrounding the Polk County area, Taylor allowed himself to see the bright side of a very dark situation.
"We do know that a whole dimension of response would change if we'd had 1,500 students here instead of 500," said Taylor.
"We felt blessed that the ice storm came [when it did]. It was good for us. If it was going to happen, it needed to happen when we didn't have all of our kids here."
The biggest hurdle to be jumped was that of the loss of power. It is all but impossible to execute a plan based around technology when there are downed power lines and crippled cell phone towers throughout the county. However, Grabowski and Taylor, along with the rest of the disaster preparedness committee, were able to come up with a solution for that very problem
"The technology people have already come up with a plan where we'll have another server out there somewhere," said Taylor. "I'm not sure where it will be, but it will keep us up and running."
Another main issue on the docket for Feb. 15 was that of what disasters SBU would be likely to face besides just ice storms. Plans were made to accommodate conditions provided by tornadoes, floods and even earthquakes. Although the committee knows there will always be new challenges to face with each disaster, they are confident that they are much better equipped to handle the next natural disaster.
"We're going trying to get all that organized into one document, fully knowing that every crisis has a life of its own," said Taylor. "And just like we did with this ice storm, we're going to take things one day at a time."
At the meeting, Taylor and others discussed how to make sure the campus would not be devastated by any kind of natural forces as fierce as those that ravaged Polk County Jan. 12. Mark Grabowski, head of Safety and Security, is chairing the committee for disaster preparedness.
The massive winter storm tore through Bolivar, including SBU, leaving in its wake a dispersion of snapped tree limbs, downed power lines and knocked over light poles. The destruction was so devastating that Missouri Governor Matt Blunt declared the entire county a natural disaster area.
Taylor immediately executed his communication network plan developed to respond to emergencies such as this. The network consists of many SBU faculty and staff who are notified either by cell phone or e-mail. However, the ice storm Bolivar suffered was so severe that it knocked out power to a vast number of buildings, including most buildings on the SBU campus.
"Our plan right now is basically based on communication," said Taylor. "We learned some things with this storm, because who would've thought we'd have a day without cell phones? The cell phone tower went out ... it was frustrating."
In the midst of the confusion, frustration and destruction surrounding the Polk County area, Taylor allowed himself to see the bright side of a very dark situation.
"We do know that a whole dimension of response would change if we'd had 1,500 students here instead of 500," said Taylor.
"We felt blessed that the ice storm came [when it did]. It was good for us. If it was going to happen, it needed to happen when we didn't have all of our kids here."
The biggest hurdle to be jumped was that of the loss of power. It is all but impossible to execute a plan based around technology when there are downed power lines and crippled cell phone towers throughout the county. However, Grabowski and Taylor, along with the rest of the disaster preparedness committee, were able to come up with a solution for that very problem
"The technology people have already come up with a plan where we'll have another server out there somewhere," said Taylor. "I'm not sure where it will be, but it will keep us up and running."
Another main issue on the docket for Feb. 15 was that of what disasters SBU would be likely to face besides just ice storms. Plans were made to accommodate conditions provided by tornadoes, floods and even earthquakes. Although the committee knows there will always be new challenges to face with each disaster, they are confident that they are much better equipped to handle the next natural disaster.
"We're going trying to get all that organized into one document, fully knowing that every crisis has a life of its own," said Taylor. "And just like we did with this ice storm, we're going to take things one day at a time."
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