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LA county lacks money to print emergency guides, officials say
| Thursday, Jun 8 2006 7:15 AM
Last Updated: Thursday, Jun 8 2006 7:15 AM
County emergency preparedness officials have prepared detailed guides to help disabled and elderly people survive natural disasters, but say they don't have enough money to print and distribute the documents.
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After Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast, the county's Office of Emergency Management put together a 20-page booklet containing tips and a checklist for special needs residents, who officials estimate number in the tens of thousands.
But the office has only enough money - $2,788 - to print 5,000 copies of its report, said Joyce Harris, who led the project.
While a 20,000-print run, plus copies in Braille and large print, would cost less than $30,000, buying television air time for a 30-second public service announcement that the county produced could cost up to $500,000, she said.
"It's just like everything else we do in the public service arena - there's a limited budget," said Michael Brooks, the county's acting director of emergency management.
Some advocates for disabled people say the county has an obligation to help needy people prepare for a disaster.
"The need is magnified for a special-needs individual," said Carole Jouroyan, executive director of the Glendale Association for the Retarded. "The elderly and the disabled always have to take a back seat to any type of funding needs."
Brooks said most of the department's $4 million annual budget goes toward salaries and running the emergency operations center, leaving little for other purposes.
David Janssen, the county's chief administrative officer, said the county could probably find the money to print more copies of the pamphlet if there's a demand for them among disabled people.
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