Since the tragic events of September 11th, Ventura County has received more than $22 million in Homeland Security funds to increase terrorism prevention, preparation, response, and recovery.

“With the 10th anniversary of 9/11 quickly approaching, we are asking ourselves what have we accomplished and are we more prepared?” said Susan Duenas, Grant Administrator for the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office of Emergency Services.

Duenas addressed this question in a presentation given on February 2nd before the County of Ventura Management Council. The presentation provided an overview of how local agencies have utilized grant funds to enhance protection against terrorism since September 11, 2001.

“Local agencies have never had so much financial support for preparedness,” said Duenas.

Since 1998, the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office of Emergency Services has administered grant funds from many federal programs including the: Domestic Preparedness Program, State Homeland Security Program, Law Enforcement Terrorism Prevention Program, Urban Area Security Initiative, and Buffer Zone Protection Program. These grant fund allocations have been distributed countywide to local law enforcement and fire departments, public health agencies, emergency management organizations, cities, and other supporting agencies. Seventy-eight percent of the money has been spent on equipment with twenty percent allocated to training/planning and two percent on local exercises.

“Ventura County residents are a direct recipient of many of the grant funds with programs like Reverse 911 and CERT, as well as equipment utilized in emergency response to bomb threats, hazardous materials incidents, and search and rescue operations,” said Duenas.

Duenas concluded her presentation with an impressive list of what has been accomplished countywide as a result of the homeland security grant programs. Some of those accomplishments include:
Strengthened security at critical sites.
Provided for training and resources to identify, track, and locate potential terrorist threats and criminal activities.
Allowed for additional training and equipment for terrorist, hazardous materials, active shooter, and bomb threat incidents.
Increased inter-agency communication and improved connection to regional, state, and national intelligence networks.
Provided training and equipment for public information officials to provide essential information to residents during a local emergency.
Trained more than 217 Terrorism Liaison Officers have been certified and trained on how to identify and report pre-incident indicators.
Trained more than 2,500 volunteer Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) members to assist other residents in their community during an emergency.
Created and enhanced partnerships with the business community, schools, military, and other non-profit organizations to better prepare for, respond to, and recovery from a local disaster.

For more information, please contact the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office of Emergency Services at 805-654-2551 or via email at oes.oes@ventura.org.

Location: Ventura County Government Center, 800 S. Victoria Avenue, Ventura
Date & Time: Wednesday, February 2, 2011 at 4:00 p.m.
Unit Responsible: Ventura County Sheriff’s Office of Emergency Services
Administrator Preparing Release: Cynthia Elliott, OES Program Administrator (805) 654-3655
Follow-up Contact: Susan Duenas, OES Grants Program Administrator (805) 477-1589
Approved by: Laura Hernandez, OES Mgr.
Date of release: February 7, 2011