Hurricane Preparedness And Communications

A fleet of incident command trucks has taken over this field in Robertsdale. Behind the trucks...a tent that looks like something NASA would use on a mission to Mars. But this isn't space exploration, it's a week-long hurricane communications and preparedness exercise sponsored by the Alabama Department of Homeland Security.

"It's very important for us to be able to talk to one another after a storm," says Charles Murph, with the Alabama Department of Homeland Security. "To ensure that we can coordinate assets and coordinate response with numerous agencies like an event as Hurricane Ivan."

"Every disaster, every exercise that's been done since the cavemen were walking around is the problem with communication, the number one problem is always communication. Always. No matter what you do, it's communication," says Rennie Raines with Baldwin County E.M.A.

E.M.A. officials are testing their equipment, running diagnostic checks and are making sure communications systems are compatible with various agencies.
By the end of the week, emergency communications systems from federal, state and local agencies will be tied together, linking different radio frequencies to one, central system. That will help first responders communicate better if a hurricane hits the Gulf Coast.