September is National Preparedness Month in Illinois

SPRINGFIELD – National Preparedness Month is recognized each September to promote family and community disaster and emergency planning. As we learned this spring with the COVID-19 pandemic, disasters don’t wait. They can strike at anytime and anywhere. The Illinois Emergency Management Agency (IEMA), and local emergency managers, are encouraging Illinoisans to take time to prepare for potential emergencies at homes, at work, and in the community.

“The ongoing battle against COVID-19 underscores the importance of building a culture of preparedness,” said IEMA Director Alicia Tate-Nadeau. “Now is a good time to take the lessons learned from the spring, when COVID turned our world upside down, and build an appropriate disaster plan that meets the needs of your family. Preparedness is more than building a kit, it’s about communication, mitigation and education. While being prepared will not prevent a disaster, it will provide the foundation for an expedited recovery and instill the confidence to meet challenges when they arise.”

This month, residents are encouraged to consider COVID-19 guidelines when evaluating and improving their family emergency plan. Some things to consider include:

• Make a Plan for When a Disaster Strikes: Your family may not be together if a disaster strikes, so it is important to know which types of disasters (tornadoes, floods, earthquakes, ect) could affect your area, and know how you will contact one another or reconnect if separated. How will your family adjust its routine should a member of your family require quarantine or isolation due to COVID-19? Plan today for different scenarios that could impact your work, school or family routine. (-more-) Press Release Alicia Tate-Nadeau Director NPM/2222

• Build a Kit: Once a disaster strikes, you will not have time to shop or search for supplies, so it’s important to have supplies pre-assembled. A kit should contain basic survival items necessary during an emergency, such as food, water, weather radio, batteries, medication, supplies for each member of your family. It is also recommended that you include face masks, hand sanitizer and disinfecting wipes in your emergency supply kit to address the current COVID-19 environment. Because a disaster can strike anywhere, Emergency kits should be kept at home, at work and in your car.

• Prepare for Disasters: Practicing tornado drills and fire drills aren’t just for school. Walking through this procedure at home with your family, and at work with your co-workers, is a great way to prepare for a disaster. As it pertains to COVID-19, take time now to prepare a quarantine space in your home. Quarantine helps prevent the spread of disease if someone has been infected with the virus without feeling symptoms. People in quarantine should stay home, separate themselves from others, monitor their heath and follow directions from their local health department. Additionally, it is recommended that you keep a two-week supply of groceries on hand to aid in a successful quarantine.

• Teach Youth how to Prepare for Disasters: Disaster planning, response, and recovery efforts should take into account the unique needs of children, who make up roughly a quarter of the U.S. population. Get kids involved in building their own emergency kit. Make sure to include your child's favorite stuffed animals, board games, books or music in their emergency kit to comfort them in a disaster. Ready Kids website has a variety of tools and information that can be incorporated into lesson planning for educators statewide.

IEMA offers disaster preparedness information on the Ready Illinois website (www.Ready.Illinois.gov), a one-stop resource for detailed information about what to do before, during and after disasters. During large-scale disasters, IEMA uses the Ready Illinois website, Facebook and Twitter pages to provide critical information about the incident, including shelter locations, road closures, safety information, photos and more.

For more information about emergency and disaster preparedness, visit ready.illinois.gov.

TRIO STUDENT SUPPORT SERVICES GRANT RENEWED THROUGH 2025

Olney, Ill.  --  The grant that funds the TRIO Student Support Services program at Illinois Eastern Community Colleges has been renewed through 2025.

TRIO SSS is a 100-percent federally funded program from the U.S. Department of Education that is designed to provide academic development and assist students toward the successful completion of their postsecondary education.

“The goal of SSS is to increase college retention and graduation rates of its participants and to help students make the transition from one academic level of higher education to the next,” says IECC Director of TRIO Student Support Services Wain Davis. “Students that are the first in their family to pursue a Bachelor’s degree, meet the income guidelines for the program, or have a documented disability are invited to apply for this amazing program.”

Davis says that TRIO SSS has been a part of IECC for more than 25 years and has helped countless participants in reaching their academic goals. TRIO SSS uses a variety of activities to help students including intensive academic advising, workshops and trainings, cultural and college trips, student mentor programs, and tutoring. The program also helps students with budgeting, supplies, career counseling, and provides students with information about financial aid assistance.

Davis says current IECC students who meet the eligibility requirements that want to learn more about TRIO SSS can visit a representative at Frontier Community College, Lincoln Trail College, Olney Central College, or Wabash Valley College. Information about the program is also posted online at www.iecc.edu/trio.

The renewed TRIO SSS grant starts September 1, 2020 and will end August 31, 2025.

Study Says State Could Net $19.4 Billion In Leasing Tollways

Illinois was in dire financial straits before the pandemic-induced shutdowns ground the economy to a halt, but a new study said the state may have an option that would bring in $19 billion to pay off debt or invest in its crumbling infrastructure without doing so on taxpayers' backs. 

The nonpartisan Reason Foundation found Illinois could net $19.4 billion by leasing the rights to nine state-owned toll roads. 

"These are the cream of the crop of the country's toll roads," said Robert Poole, author of the study and director of transportation at Reason Foundation. "Chicago paid off nearly $1 billion in debt with its Skyway lease proceeds, while Indiana fully funded a 10-year transportation improvement program. Today, most toll road leases limit annual toll rate increases to the rate of inflation, so drivers shouldn't fear that. The lease agreement would ensure meaningful state oversight of the toll rates and key performance indicators for the Illinois Tollway, while providing greater accountability and transparency for the public and toll-payers." 

Indiana leased a host of infrastructure projects with a $3.8 billion lease for tollways in 2004, which later grew when the operating company went bankrupt and had to auction off the agreement. Over ten years, Poole said the deal was considered a significant boon for the state's infrastructure.

Even though Illinois stands to make more than any other state Reason examined, Poole estimated the deal would pay down about 14 percent of Illinois' $136 billion in total pension liabilities. 

The lease agreement, referred to as a public-private partnership, would allow a private company to take responsibility for the toll road, collect profits and absorb losses. Poole said the agreement could contain some stipulation about hiking rates and deals on tollway road conditions. The Illinois Tollway Authority had a $1.6 billion budget in 2019. 

The most often used example of a deal like this going wrong is Chicago's parking meter lease. In 2008, the Chicago City Council agreed to a long-term lease of the city's parking meters in exchange for $1.2 billion. In the following years, the private company earned back what it paid the city within a decade of operation and still have more than six decades of the contractual agreement to go on the 75-year lease. Poole said parking meters aren't an asset that should be leased in the same manner as a toll road. 

The city also leased the Chicago Skyway and used the proceeds to pay down debt and improve their bond standing.

RMC Accepting Nominations For Employee Of The Year

The Wabash County Retail Merchants Committee is now accepting nominations for the 2020 Employee of The Year.   

Retail Merchants spokesperson Sharon Harris said the award is handed out to the employee who goes “above and beyond” the call of duty.  Nominations can be made by employers, co-workers, or customers.  The employee must be employed by someone that is a member of the Retail Merchants Committee.   A list of Retail Merchant members can be found at www.wabashcountychamber.com.   

 Nominations should be in paragraph form and can be sent to the WSJD studio at 331 North Market,  or nominations may also be emailed to wsjd@live.com. by September 30th.   

Wabash County Records 86 New COVID-19 Cases In August

August was by far the worst month in terms of Wabash County COVID-19 cases. The month began with 30 cases but finished with 116. Wabash General Hospital Chief of Staff Dr. Levi McDaniel said people need to heed what health officials have been stressing since the pandemic began in March…

 


The spike in cases has kept the health department busy with contact tracing, which administrator Judy Wissel is essential in stemming the cases. She said contact tracing starts when a person tests positive…

Wissel said those who are quarantined are observed for symptoms for 14 days from the date of the contact. Presently, there are two Wabash County residents who are being treated at a regional hospital.

Reminder: Get Your Trash Out The Night Before Pickup

City Clerk Rudy Witsman says a recent change in trash routes by Republic Services may cause residents to miss having their trash picked up. Witsman said the change may result in residents who normally have trash picked up mid-day to now have it picked up early morning. He said residents should always sit their trash out the night before the scheduled pickup to ensure it isn’t missed. 

Local Jobless Rate Continues To Rebound After Lockdowns

Slowly but surely, the Wabash County unemployment rate is getting closer to its’ pre-pandemic levels. According to the latest figures from the Illinois Department of Employment Security, Wabash County’s jobless rate in July stood at 7.7%, down from 9.8% mark in June, but still above the 4.1% rate in July of last year.

In southeastern Illinois, slight employment gains were reported in trade, transportation and utilities, and natural resources and mining. Declines were reported in manufacturing, leisure/hospitality, and government.

Southern Illinois’ lowest jobless rates in July were in Edwards and Richland Counties while Pulaski County had the highest at 12.6%.