A newly formed community group Tuesday asked Gov. Don Siegelman's office to emphasize the education of county residents on what to do in the event of a chemical weapons accident.During a meeting in Anniston with Siegelman legal advisor Ted Hosp, Citizens for Emergency Education, or CEE, called upon the governor to turn his attention to teaching those near the Anniston Army Depot how to use an array of federally funded protective equipment that could arrive in the county within months.
Public education has been a hot issue in disputes over protective measures because the county had long declined to begin information campaigns until the federal government met several demands, including providing protective hoods to residents nearest the depot.
"Our County Commission and county officials have failed at their job to alert the public about what to do if there is an emergency," said Erma Wilkins, a member of the new emergency education group.
Calhoun County Emergency Management Agency spokesman Brian Lazenby said the agency is about to begin a "full-court press" of a public education effort, made possible by the Federal Emergency Management Agency's pledge last week to send $7 million to the area for protective gear.
"Up until now, we couldn't because we knew things would change," Lazenby said. "Erma's right about the county being held hostage - but by FEMA and the Army not equipping the community with tools so the people can protect themselves."
FEMA's promise to release the money led Siegelman to drop a legal attempt to hold up the start date of the Army's chemical weapons incinerator. Although the motion for preliminary injunction was withdrawn, the lawsuit is still in place.
"The governor would agree that there's a need to educate the public," said Hosp. "There's a need to educate the public no matter when the destruction of the weapons begins."
The meeting was mainly an information session for Hosp, complete with videos on shelter-in-place, presentations from the Army on the incinerator and storage of the weapons, and a presentation on gas masks by Ret. Col. Fernand Thomassy of the U.S. Army Chemical Corps.
"We want the governor to use his considerable influence to insist on education," said George Smith, a CEE member, who along with Wilkins is a co-chairman of the Citizens Advisory Commission.
