Travelin time

We went to the East side of the state today. We visited some small towns like Mequon, WI today. This was the highest water evidence we've seen. Probably 4 feet in the road and more near the homes. I'll try to get some pictures scanned and uploaded later.

I lost my car keys today and had a hell of an evening...grr.

More details when I'm not so brain dead.

2nd day on the job

My second day, we visited Jefferson county. We started by visiting the emergency manager who was a lady who really had her stuff together. I would like to learn some more from her...very impressive handle on chaos.

Jefferson was screwed up. A big hassle for the residents was the bridges were out and you had many miles to drive (all the way down to Ft. Atkinson) to get over the river. Very severe flooding and the water hasn't gone down much. One bridge is open to only emergency vehicles. It's guarded by the National Guard and to cross, you have to show ID, drive 5mph down the middle one car at a time and think light thoughts.

We then went south to see Ft. Atkinson. Got blocked in some places by flooded road. Crazy. Hard to get places.

I got to meet up with some friends tonight and ate the best steak of my life. I had the meat sweats from the pound of ribeye. Yum.

First day on the job...

The alarm rang at 6am. I was fed, dressed, and at the office at 7am sharp. I called the lady at the office who was my point of contact. She instructed me to call in on the morning conference call and listen in...ostensibly to learn what was going on.

Turns out that half the country...the middle half...is underwater. FEMA is stretched. There's a lot to do and not many people to do it. The resource curve is catching up, though. Despite what the media likes to report, this is an amazing organization full of amazing, motivated people.

After the usual paperwork, I got a cell phone, an ID badge, and an assignment. The Public Information Officer function is short-staffed so they asked me if I was interested in helping out with that function since I have a small amount of experience. I got 'interviewed' for that position and they must have thought I had a face for radio...fine with me. I got assigned to a Community Relations (CR) team.

Community Relations is the process where FEMA gets into an area and establishes a presence. The goal is to get the citizens affected by the disaster to call the 1-800-621-FEMA number and register for assistance. Getting that word to everyone in the area is a challenge and it involves going to churches, businesses, bars, old-folks homes, etc and mostly door-to-freakin-door to talk to people. We also are out there to be identify the needs of the community.

So that's what we did today. We were in the smallish town of Watertown, WI where the Rock River ran amuck. The damage wasn't catastrophic here, but there were a LOT of flooded basements. It was a good warm-up. There will be a lot more tomorrow.

Nothing really remarkable. My co-workers are a nice bunch from the 4 corners of the country. One from Jersey, another from Mississippi, another from New Hampshire, and finally one from North Carolina. We didn't spend too much time getting to know each other. I look forward to getting to know these folks as the time goes by.

I really am hoping for a group of people to hang out with after hours. I know that will materialize soon enough. For now, I have my laptop and cell phone to stay busy with. Tonight after work, I tried to get some indigenous treats. Culver's is a local fast food legend that makes some amazing hamburgers!! I also picked up a six-pack of 'Spotted Cow' Ale. Very nice!

Not a bad day...I'm back in the saddle. I look forward to meeting up with some online friends that live here in Madison...that will be fun. One more Spotted Cow and off to beddy-bye

Here's the tired boy. Had to try out the mobile blogging feature..it works. Yay me.

So I'm here...now what?

Welcome to the blog. I'm going to try to record my experience with the 2008 storm season helping out with FEMA and whatever elso comes my way.

Today I arrived in Madison, WI. I don't have a lot of intel on exactly what the damage is with regard to the flooding. I just checked into my hotel and will go to the Joint Field Office (JFO) tomorrow to see what's up.

Since I was only one state over, I rented a car and drove instead of braving the air travel system. If I end up staying here, it may be a good decision...I was able to bring a cooler, my boom box, and some other comforts of home.

Chicago sucks to drive through. I'm bushed...Good night.