[media-credit name=’DEREK MONTGOMERY/Herald photo’ align=’alignnone’ width=’648′][/media-credit]U.S. Rep. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., met with several state emergency management officials to discuss Wisconsin's emergency preparedness and response strategies Monday at the Wisconsin National Guard Facility.

Baldwin held the roundtable meeting to continue dialogue about the state's ability to handle situations such as a natural disaster or terrorist attack. Eight Wisconsin emergency experts were invited to brief Baldwin about the roles of specific agencies throughout the state.

Though the purpose of the meeting was to discuss the state's emergency plans, Baldwin also emphasized the importance of collaboration between state and federal agencies.

"I am hoping that … any recommendations you make include cooperation and coordination at the national level, also, so I can take that back to Washington with me as I do my work," Baldwin said.

Though he noted several areas of improvement in the state's abilities to handle disasters, Wisconsin Homeland Security Major Gen. Al Wilkening addressed several areas of concern regarding the state's emergency-response plans.

Wilkening pinpointed two specific problems: the state's capabilities to coordinate mass evacuations of large metropolitan areas and the lack of interoperability, or communication, between emergency responders in different parts of the state.

Wisconsin Emergency Management Administrator Johnnie Smith said tight resources is the reason the state has had difficulty in creating interoperability; Smith also said the same problems exist on the federal level.

"Right now, we don't have the dollars to have a hard-wired [system]," Smith said. "And while we're looking at interoperability in the state, I'm not aware of any effort to have interoperability nationally."

Baldwin commended Wilkening and the other officials present for their expeditious work to improve the state's emergency-response strategies.

Wilkening also noted the crucial role of proper training of emergency volunteers and local employees for potential disasters.

"The success of our future depends on the number of people we train and how well they are trained at all levels," Wilkening said. A registry has been compiled of more than 1,000 emergency volunteer workers prepared to assist local and state officials if a disaster should arise.

Madison Department of Public Health Director Kathryn Vedder and Wisconsin Bureau of Response and Recovery Director Rob Rude stressed the need for standardized emergency protocol and training not only throughout the state, but also on a national level.

Baldwin was also briefed on a 2005 report by the Wisconsin Homeland Security Council, which coordinates initiatives between and among federal and state agencies to respond to state emergencies or terrorist attacks.

"This is a journey without an end," Wilkening said in reference to Homeland Security management in the state. "When I started my job here in 2002, I had no idea that we'd be engaged in this [kind of planning]."

Another hot topic of conversation at the roundtable was the possibility of an influenza outbreak in the state, namely an avian flu pandemic. Baldwin said she had "strong concerns with preparedness" at both the state and national levels.

Vedder said although the avian flu is a threat in the United States, public-health departments nationwide have been conducting "more intensive flu surveillance" not only for the bird flu, but for other strains of influenza.

"People need to get out and get their flu shots," Vedder said, explaining that while the avian flu has gained much attention, the general public should protect itself from more common diseases. "We have a big job to educate the public."