Memorandum

City of Lawrence

City Manager’s Office

TO:	David L. Corliss, City Manager
FROM:	Jonathan Douglass, Assistant to the City Manager
CC:	Cynthia Boecker, Assistant City Manager Diane Stoddard, Assistant City Manager
DATE:	December 28, 2007
RE:	Emergency Shelter Operations

This memo provides an overview of emergency shelter operations in Lawrence and Douglas County, in response to a City Commissioner request for information on the topic.

Douglas County Emergency Management and the Douglas County Chapter of the American Red Cross coordinate the local mass sheltering of victims impacted by natural disasters and other events. A joint decision to open a shelter or shelters is made by those two agencies based primarily on the number of requests for shelter and the extent of power outages. Though not a binding rule, generally a shelter is not opened unless at least a dozen families are in urgent need of sheltering. If fewer numbers need shelter, Emergency Management and Red Cross try to meet their needs individually.

The location of emergency shelters will depend on the circumstances of the event. Shelter agreements are in place at about a dozen locations around Douglas County, mostly schools and churches. If all these locations were operated simultaneously, around 2,000 individuals could be sheltered. Jane Blocher, Executive Director of the Douglas County Chapter of the American Red Cross, notes that while potential shelter space for 2,000 people may exist, resources (volunteers, cots, blankets and other equipment) to operate at that capacity do not exist locally. Douglas County benefits from proximity to the Kansas City metro area however, so resources from neighboring chapters of the Red Cross could be expected to be readily available in a situation requiring that multiple shelters be opened.   

When shelters are opened it is publicized primarily through local media outlets including the Lawrence Journal World, Channel 6, KLWN, KLZR, and KPR. Information is also disseminated through the local public information officers group, which includes members from local law enforcement and government agencies. The Red Cross stresses the importance of radio communications and the need for citizens to have battery powered emergency radios in their homes, because during instances of widespread power outages, radio communication is the best tool for getting information to the public.

If Commissioners have additional questions regarding the operation of emergency shelters in Lawrence and Douglas County, I would be happy to collect additional information.