Extension at Work By Margaret Odom, Regional Extension Agent, Washington County

In 2005, the Alabama Cooperative Extension System (Extension) had tremendous opportunities to provide service to the citizens of Southwest Alabama. Throughout the year, programs were planned and provided to teach responsibility to school-age children, to work with families regarding their relationships, and to provide training to child care workers. The greatest opportunities, however, came not through pre-planned programs, but through the arrival of Hurricane Katrina in late August.

Hurricane Katrina, along with the destructive weather, brought devastation to a part of Alabama that had already been damaged by Hurricane Ivan, Dennis, and Cindy during the past 12 months. Some areas in southwest Alabama were already poverty-ridden, and destitute, in addition to having one of the highest unemployment rates in the state of Alabama. For people already living in substandard conditions, the hurricane brought even greater devastation, fear, and insecurity. Any possible abilities to rebuild and regroup their lives were gone when the storm took basic resources such as survival-food, shelter, clothing, electrical power, water, and gasoline. Without employment or a means to recover financially, many of these Alabama families were stripped of their personal dignity, pride, and self-esteem. Washington, Mobile, and Baldwin Counties were soon declared "disaster counties" by the federal government. In addition, these counties were absorbing evacuees from other devastated areas. We had an overwhelming situation on our hands.

The day after Hurricane Katrina hit land, Regional Extension Agent Margaret Odom immediately involved Extension in the first response effort. A variety of agencies had begun to respond to specific needs; however, each agency had its own limitations. After some initial contacts with these agencies, Odom realized there was not one agency/organization that was "in charge" of the relief efforts. Meanwhile, those agencies were receiving calls and contacts from people all over the country to find out what they could do to help. Yet, the one common denominator in these three counties was Extension.

The Extension Office in Chatom served as the hub for the collection, distribution, and coordination of goods and services. For example, drivers and trucks were identified to distribute donations, and numerous announcements and phone calls were made to solicit survival items. Extension Communications provided educational literature, while much of the aid crossed the Alabama/Mississippi state lines to assist neighbors devastated along the Mississippi coast.

The relief, rescue, and recovery efforts for immediate survival needs continued for three consecutive weeks, day in and day out, with all efforts coordinated by Extension. More than 3500 "survival kits" were created with as many volunteer man hours recorded. Extension secured more than 100 tons of food and supplies, while citizens housed displaced evacuees in their own homes.

National meteorologists have predicted that the next ten years will bring more of the same weather patterns. Instead of being served in a reactive response mode, the citizens of Alabama would be much better served through an organized and coordinated approach by a partnership of service agencies. This is a perfect opportunity for Extension to siege the leadership role in the coordination of these agencies' services. Representation from each of these agencies needs to meet on a regular basis to plan for family-directed response to manmade and natural disasters. All Alabama citizens could potentially benefit from a proactive and coordinated disaster response plan. Certainly, that is the purpose of Extension: to serve Alabama citizens by extending a cooperative, agency-based approach to meeting their needs through education, utilizing resources, and helping them to understand and use available research.