SEBRING — When the lines of communication go down during a disaster, ham radio operators can help local rescue crews exchange vital information. If power goes out, the phone lines fail, the cell phone towers don't work and Internet access is down, hams provide that missing two-way communication link that can save lives. During Tuesday night's Hurricane Seminar at the Agri-Civic Center, led by Emergency Management Director Bill Nichols, several ham enthusiasts were on hand to talk to the public and demonstrate cutting-edge radio technology. ...more

June 4, 2008

"Hurricane Complacency" are two words that just never will go together, Pasco County emergency officials say. ...more

June 4, 2008

After a few uneventful years without a major storm, Pasco County emergency officials worry residents have let their guards down as hurricane season begins today. ...more

June 1, 2008

Residents cleaned up Saturday after a tornado plowed a trail of destruction through the east side of Indianapolis, but they gave thanks that nobody was killed and that the only injuries were minor. ...more

June 1, 2008

Stephanie Anderson, the former county emergency management secretary accused of forging payroll records, pleaded not guilty to her charges on Tuesday. ...more

May 28, 2008

As expected, a unanimous county commission voiced support for an investigation into whether the county's emergency management duties should be handled by the Hernando County Sheriff's Office. ...more

May 21, 2008

During the unprecedented 2004 hurricane season, Capt. Joe Eckstein wasn't always happy with the response times from Tallahassee. ...more

May 20, 2008

Incorporating emergency management cuts response times, eliminates redundancies ...more

May 19, 2008

SEBRING — It's just a refrigerated trailer, but for one Desoto City civic group, it's a brand spanking-new humanitarian effort they're trying out in Florida. The Fraternal Order of Eagles' Disaster Relief Trailer, parked in front of the club's hall, already has several pallets full of emergency ration bars and water. Joe Waters of the Eagles in Sebring said this was one of two stationed in Florida, with the other one in the Ocala area. The trailer would go wherever the county's Emergency Operations Center tells them to go. "If they were in need of it ... we would take it anywhere they want," Waters said. ...more

May 19, 2008

Former emergency management director Tom Leto, fired Friday for allegedly having a romantic affair with his secretary, said he will appeal to the county's personnel advisory board (PAB). ...more

May 13, 2008