Disaster Planning & Response Protocol for Hurricane Season
Wednesday May 28, 2008, Diocesan
All Diocesan Priests:
With the new hurricane season beginning June 1, it is my pleasure to provide a few basic tools to assist you, your staff and lay leadership and parishioners with preparing for a hurricane, as well as providing information on what happens if a disaster should strike your community. Attached are several documents essential to our preparation and response.
Annually, I meet with Bishop Ricard, Diocesan staff and Catholic Charities Regional Directors to plan and define the role of Catholic Charities before, during and after a disaster. While the last two years have been quiet, we remain in a heightened state of preparedness and response and must not become complacent. Three critical messages today:
Take care of you and your family. Please ensure that all staff and lay leadership prepare a Family Disaster Plan.
Plan and prepare parish staff and facilities for the next disaster.
The Catholic Church in the United States has designated Catholic Charities as the coordinator, early responder and long-term recovery lead agency in disaster pre-preparedness, response and recovery when disasters strike a diocese.
Quarterly, I meet with Catholic Charities directors from the Province of Miami, along with Deacon Marcus Hepburn, to plan and coordinate the role of the Catholic Church throughout the state of Florida. Deacon Marcus serves as our Emergency Management Coordinator at the Florida Catholic Conference and has been instrumental in helping establish a Mutual Aid Agreement among the Bishops of Florida and positioning the Catholic Church as a major provider of disaster planning, response and recovery services.
All Catholic Charities personnel are essential and primary personnel as disasters approach or occur in our communities and we stand ready to assist you and your parish community. Please let me know how we can be of further assistance and feel free to contact me with any questions. Thank you.
Mark Dufva, MS
Executive Director
ATTACHMENTS
Developing a Family Disaster Plan
Disaster Facts
Protocol-Hurricane Response-Diocesan Checklist
Catholic Charities Pensacola Disaster Response Plan