Don Burke, KB1LXH writes:
Seven scouts from Troop 40 in Taunton visited the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) Region 2 Headquarters in Bridgewater on April 4. To fullfill the requirements for an Emergency Preparedness Merit Badge, the scouts meet with a local Emergency Management Agency (EMA) director and learn how that person prepares, responds to, recovers from, and mitigates and prevents emergency situations in our community.
James Mannion, MEMA Region 2 Director gave the scouts a great presentation about hurricanes, storm surge and tornadoes. Mr. Mannion was recently in Florida to visit the National Hurricane Center in Miami. He came back with new video of damage caused by storms across the Gulf coast and the Eastern US states. Mannion also explained the role MEMA Region 2 and the surrounding cities and towns play in Plymouth Nuclear Power Plant drills. He allowed the troop members a chance to use a Geiger counter and dosimeters.
The scouts also toured the RACES radio room where Mike Leger, N1YLQ, Region 2 Acting RACES Officer, talked about the role Amateurs Radio operators play in EMA events.
Each scout was given an MRE (Meal Ready to Eat) which they may make use of on their next backpacking trip.
On hand for the visit were Bruce Hayden, NI1X and Bill Foster, KD1NX, both of whom are Region II RACES radio operators.
–Thanks, TACG newsletter, May 2011.