Calhoun County EMA recognizes volunteer groups
By Crystal Jarvis
Star Staff Writer
04-22-2007


Ninety-year-old Hugh Smitherman is on call 24 hours a day.

When a disaster strikes in Calhoun County, Smitherman quickly gets on
his radio at home to dispatch Calhoun County Civil Defense volunteers.

He sends the trained volunteers out to search for lost people, clear
debris from roadways after hurricanes and tornadoes, handle plane crashes
and search for drowning victims.

County volunteer groups like Civil Defense were recognized Saturday at
the Calhoun County EMA's Community Awareness Day. Several organizations set
up tables at Zinn Park to showcase their vehicles and equipment used to help
in area emergencies.

"We wanted to use this day as a chance to invite the public out to see
how we work together to protect the community," said Shay Cook, public
information officer for the Calhoun County EMA.

Other groups in attended include, Metro Services, Piedmont Civil
Defense and CERT Team, Calhoun County Animal Control Center, Calhoun County
911, American Red Cross and Calhoun County Unified Search and Rescue.

William Chapman, Director of the county's Animal Control Center,
showed passersby how they can protect their animals on a hot day or prepare
a dog travel kit out of a dog's traveling cage. With a portable pet bowl,
canned food and a chew toy, the cage instantly becomes a emergency kit when
disaster strikes, he said.

Smitherman, board chairman of the county's 30-member Civil Defense
group, founded the group November 2, 1962.

In 1989, the organization helped assist victims of Hurricane Hugo in
South Carolina. They cleared trees in the streets and helped people pick up
the pieces of their lives to put back together.

"That was a mess over there," Smitherman recalled. "You could see all
these motor homes just looked like a bulldozer piled them up."

Area residents showed their gratitude by giving the volunteers pies
and cakes, he said.

Smitherman knows when a disaster strikes in the area and is always
thankful when everything is running smoothly. That means all of the
residents here are safe, he said.

"As long as I'm being able to sit still, everybody's in good shape."




About Crystal Jarvis Crystal Jarvis is a graduate of Auburn University. She
covers the cities of Oxford and Hobson City for The Star.


Contact Crystal Jarvis Phone:
Fax:
E-mail:
256-235-3544
256-241-1991
cjarvis@annistonstar.com