City of Independence hosting emergency preparedness training for information technology experts from across the country

The Emergency Preparedness Division of the Independence Fire Department is hosting an emergency communications training event with the Information Technology Disaster Resource Center (ITDRC.org) from Thursday, June 23, through Saturday, June 25.

ITDRC is a nationwide non-profit staffed by over 3,100 volunteer technical professionals and leverages the collective resources of the entire tech sector to deliver Information, Communications, and Technology solutions connecting survivors with responders immediately following a disaster.

All of ITDRCs services are provided in-kind (zero cost) and for as long as the need exists. A map showing all of the over 1,200 active sites is available on their website as well as more information about the specific capabilities available. Training events like this help prepare volunteers for real world deployments in post-disaster environments.

This three-day event (Thursday-Saturday) will be using multiple city conference rooms and a portion of the parking lot at City Hall. There will be several response vehicles on site Thursday and Friday. Events on Thursday and Friday will focus on classroom style training and Saturday will be a field exercise simulating a typical disaster scenario. Some areas of the north City Hall parking lot will be closed to the public during this event; however, some parking will remain available for public use at both City Hall and the Central Police Building. City Hall and the Central Police Building will be open to the public on Thursday and Friday for regular business hours.

Additionally, ITDRC will be delivering a quick response vehicle that will be permanently based in the region to provide immediate response across the FEMA Region 7 area which includes Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas, and Missouri. This vehicle is equipped with enough equipment to provide long haul and local area communications and internet access within a few hours of a disaster. This regional asset and all of ITDRC's resources are available to all communities following a disaster.