Answers to Viewers' Questions

Question
There was discussion about local, county, and state public health participation. Was there any involvement from the US Public Health Service? I know we have a CCRF (Commissioned Corps Readiness Force) which is sometimes sent to the location of disasters.

Nurse detailed to the Federal Bureau of Prisons, Lewiston, MN

Answer
The US PHS was represented very well. The Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) had a large number of responders involved with Hurricane Floyd in numerous states. Dr. Richard Jackson, who spoke to you during the live broadcast of program, is the Director of the CDC's National Center for Environmental Health which is part of DHHS. There were numerous Commission Corps Officers who responded to the hurricane aftermath as usual.

Question
I am an intern working at the St. Louis County Health Department in Duluth, MN. I was put in charge of finding disaster information and rates, because there is a disaster waiting to happen in Boundary Waters and Lake Superior Forest area of MN. Last July 4 there was a storm that knocked down almost all of the trees in the area. The logs are 8 feet thick in most areas. There area is over 200 sq. miles and the number of people that are going to need to be evacuated is 50,000-100,000. We are looking for a formula for calculating how many people can fit into a evacuation site. We would also like to know the rates of medical conditions for fire related disasters, injuries, complications of chronic medical conditions.

Travis, Intern-Student, Duluth, MN

Answer
About the evacuation projections, contact the St. Louis County Emergency Management Office. They should have this information, but if not, contact the Minnesota State Emergency Management Agency. A health studies epidemiologist will contact you with a more detailed answer via email.