|
|
|
| Senator Moore addresses National Homeland Security Forum at Harvard’s Kennedy School |
|
BOSTON, April 3, 2006 - Senator Richard T. Moore (D-Uxbridge) was among the featured speakers Friday (March 31, 2006) at the Northeast meeting of the National Task Force on Community Preparedness and Response. Senator Moore was joined at the meeting by former Virginia Governor James Gilmore and Galveston, Texas Mayor Lyda Thomas. Governor Gilmore chaired a presidential commission on national preparedness following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, and is currently leading a non-profit, non-partisan national effort to help communities and businesses prepare for terrorist or natural disaster threats. Senator Moore, who co-chairs the National Conference of State Legislatures’ Task Force on Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness, was the keynote speaker for the luncheon session, and was introduced by Governor Gilmore Senator Moore’s remarks were presented as part of a three day Harvard conference entitled; “New Realities and New Solutions: The First 72 Hours.” The program is the first of a series of workshops around the country to develop a “National Template on Community Preparedness and Response.” The goal of the template is to provide best case solutions for community leaders in dealing with a crisis in its first 72 hours before state or national help would arrive. As a former Associate Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency during the Clinton Administration, Senator Moore brought the perspective of an elected official and emergency management leader to the conference deliberations. Mr. Moore is also an Adjunct Assistant Professor at Bridgewater State College who has taught emergency management administration in the graduate school of public administration. In his remarks, Senator Moore urged the participants to develop a partnership with state legislators to help build better prepared communities, and pledged the cooperation of his NCSL task force in promoting the concept of being prepared to deal with the first 72 hours after disaster strikes before help from the government is likely to arrive. Quoting the late President John F. Kennedy who once said, “The time to repair the roof is when the sun is shining,” Moore urged conference participants to plan now to deal with disasters before the next hurricane season, before the next earthquake, and before the next terrorist attack. “It’s not a question of IF disaster will strike,” he told the gathering, “it’s a matter of when!” |
 |
