Galveston OEM and NWS under one roof

[GalvestonDuck]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Jim Billman/281-309-5027

Officials to break ground on unique emergency facility Friday

LEAGUE CITY - Local, state and national officials will break ground Friday on the new $5.2 million Galveston County Emergency Services facility, the first in the nation to bring local emergency managers and the National Weather Service under one roof.

The facility, to be constructed adjacent to the North County Building on FM 646 in League City, will be funded in part with bond funds approved by Galveston County voters in November 2000. It will be capable of withstanding the 155 mph winds and storm surge of a Category 5 hurricane, the most powerful storm on the Saffir-Simpson scale of hurricane strength.

The county's Emergency Operations Center, located in the basement of the North County Building, is susceptible to flooding from a Category 3 storm or higher. So is the Houston-Galveston offices of the National Weather Service, located just opposite the North County Building on FM 646.

In addition to the Galveston County Office of Emergency Management and the NWS, the new facility will house the 911 Communications District and provide additional space for state and federal emergency managers who assist the county during disasters.

"This facility is the first of its kind in the United States - bringing the National Weather Service and local emergency management disciplines under one roof to better mitigate, prepare for, respond to, and recover from all types of emergencies,'' said Tesa Duffey-Wrobleski, Galveston County's emergency management coordinator.

"The development of this facility is the essence of good government,'' County Judge Jim Yarbrough said, "truly leveraging taxpayers' resources to best serve our county and region. When construction is completed in January 2005, we will have greatly improved our ability to respond to both natural and man-made disasters."

County Judge Jim Yarbrough and U.S. Rep. Nick Lampson will attend Friday's 3 PM groundbreaking along with National Weather Service and 911 District representatives. Local and state officials also have been invited.