Print |
E-mail to a friend
NEWS
W.Va. Homeland Security officials meet in Huntington
WV Dept. of Military Affairs to Public Safety Secretary James W. Spears speaks during the WVDMAPS 2009 Southwestern Regional Homeland Security Summit on Tuesday, Dec. 1, 2009, at Pullman Plaza Hotel in Huntington.
Purchase this photoRelated:
HUNTINGTON -- Officials with the West Virginia Department of Homeland Security are in Huntington to discuss the state's defense strategy for the next few years.
James Spears, West Virginia's Homeland Security adviser, said about 130 first responders, law enforcement and decision makers from southwestern West Virginia attended the first day of meetings Tuesday. It continues at 8 a.m. Wednesday, Dec. 2, at the Pullman Plaza Hotel.
Spears said the best way to develop a strategy is to meet and talk with the people who would be implementing the plan in the event of a crisis.
"We asked (these people) to listen to what we have been building," he said. "And sit down and discuss the pros and cons in order to help us craft our next strategy."
He said the comments and suggestions will be incorporated into West Virginia's homeland security strategy.
"We find ourselves reacting to federal guidelines and implementing, but we don't always realize we need to check the effectiveness of our programs," Spears said.
The first meeting, Spears said, was held last month in the northeastern part of the state.
