EMERGENCY PLANNING

Moraine Township works with other local and countywide governments to have a plan to assist citizens in the event of any emergency, large or small.

Prevention
Moraine Township works with local Fire and Police Departments to prevent accidents. Carbon monoxide and smoke detectors, for example, are made available at little or no cost to income- or age-qualifying residents, and are distributed by the Fire Department in Highland Park, including to Highwood homes upon request.

Fire
Following a residential complex fire in Highwood in October, 2006, Township Supervisor Mari Barnes convened an informal task force to define procedures for "small" emergencies. The need for coordination of immediate and follow-up response services came to the fore as a lesson from this fire. The initial task force for "small emergency" planning consisted of representatives from the Township and Highland Park and Highwood fire departments, City of Highwood, local schools, and Family Service. (See also the article in Talk of the Township, Spring 2007 issue.) Each organization's respective function was organized into a flow chart. The final plan, a variation of a calling tree, was adopted by the Board in February 2008, and a training session was held in April, 2008. (See Talk of the Township, Spring 2008 issue.)

Disaster Planning
Disaster planning is a function of many governments, often requiring intergovernmental cooperation, and the Township participates as a partner. Lake County planning involves townships as the natural distribution points for local emergency response information and supplies.

In addition, for example, the City of Highland Park has initiated CERT. The following text and link is from their website:
CERT - COMMUNITY EMERGENCY RESPONSE TEAM
The City of Highland Park has a Citizen Corps Council under the guidance of FEMA and the Department of Homeland Security, that is maintained by the Highland Park Police Department. One of the Goals of the Council is to identify groups and individuals that will assist themselves, their neighbors, and the city in the event of a disaster.
  The Council has a training program for Community Emergency Response Teams (CERT). This training program was first developed on a national scale by FEMA and is now administered here in Illinois by the Illinois Emergency Management Agency.

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