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Sheriff's Office

 

Emergency Management

Get Information, Be Informed, Get Ready!

Build an Emergency Kit

A kit typically includes all the basic items your household needs to survive.  A helpful list of items is provided at ready.gov for you.

>>Build Your Kit Now<<



Create an Emergency Communication Plan

Create a family communication plan by visiting the ready.gov website and utilizing their “Make a Plan” tool.  This form can be saved electronically or printed for easy reference.

>>Start Your Plan Today<<



Talk as a family about evacuation plans

Having a plan before an event happens can ease stress on all family members.  Identify and discuss meeting spot locations and find a place accessible by all for your emergency kit to be stored.  Ready.gov has some useful fire evacuation tips.

>>Create your Evacuation Plan<<



Store and protect your important documents

It is important to have documents such as birth certificates, passports, insurance policies, and such in a dry and safe place, like a high shelf or in water-tight bags; consider digitizing documents when feasible.

 


For Families

 

Being prepared for any type of event or emergency is always a good idea.  Educating your family members and making sure everyone is on the same page can be a chore; let us help you make this process easier by pointing you in the right direction.  With so many resources available to you on the internet, where is the best place to start? We suggest that you start by:

  • Storing and protecting your important documents
  • Building an Emergency Kit
  • Creating an Emergency Communication Plan, and Talking to a family about evacuation plans

Schools

Schools are cornerstones of our communities. They educate, feed, and protect our children; lead and support community activities; and many serve as emergency shelters. In planning for emergencies, schools face unique challenges. Emergencies at schools can devastate a community.

La Crosse County Emergency Management works with school districts assisting them with their responsibilities to develop planning strategies, connect school districts with local first response agencies, and develop exercises to test school emergency plans.

Businesses and Non-Profits

Businesses can potentially face a number of hazards, all of which need to have a specific plan.  These hazards include (but are not limited to):

  • Natural Hazards (floods, tornadoes)
  • Health Hazards (serious illnesses, pandemics)
  • Human-Related Hazards (accidents, violence)
  • Technology-Related Hazards (power outages)

Businesses and Non-Profit organizations play a critical role supporting citizen’s safety and recovery. From providing immediate feeding and sheltering assistance to supporting community recovery efforts, La Crosse County needs the private sector to prepare, respond, and recover from emergencies.

Businesses and Non-Profit organizations need to take purposeful steps to plan for emergencies. These plans should include procedures for responding to emergencies as well as maintaining operations throughout the emergency (Continuity of Operations Plans – COOP).

From severe weather awareness to connecting agencies with the appropriate response agencies to discussing planning strategies, La Crosse County Emergency Management can support private sector planning efforts to build resilience. To learn what you can do as a business leader, visit ready.gov’s business portal to download toolkits and other resources.

Local Governments

All Wisconsin cities, villages, and towns are required to adopt an emergency plan and designate an emergency manager [WI § 323.14(1)3.(b)]. The municipal emergency manager is responsible for directing local training and emergency management programs and exercises, directing participation in emergency management programs and exercises, advising county emergency management on local emergency management programs, and submitting to county emergency management any reports they require [WI § 323.15(1)(c)].

Health Care Facilities

We are aware the Centers for Medicare / Medicaid have special requirements for health care facilities to participate in emergency-based exercises with local response agencies.


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