Vol. 9, No. 03, March 2013 |
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"From its bare-bones beginning, SART has quickly moved to the national forefront of agricultural emergency preparedness. Its success is due to strong partnerships, the ability to organize effectively, and procedures that are constantly evolving. SART is laying the groundwork for national standards in training for response to natural disasters, animal disease and terrorism. These uniform standards will give volunteers the skills they'll need to help in a disaster, whether it strikes in their home state or across the country."
Excerpt from 2012 Florida SART Video Production
 FDACS' Ann Vuxton appears to ask, "Oh oh. Did I forget something?" Very little, Ann – job well done! |
 UF/IFAS Extension Service officer Robert Kluson is from Sarasota. He attended the "information sharing" seminar. |
 Dale Dubberly – FDACS, Agricultural Environmental Services, spoke about the technical and political issues in vector control. |
"Be Prepared. The meaning of the motto is that a scout must prepare himself by previously thinking out and practicing how to act on any accident or emergency so that he is never taken by surprise."
Robert Baden-Powell – Founder of the Boy Scouts
 Jim DeValerio, UF-IFAS Bradford County Extension Service, Starke. |
 Sharon Gamble, UF-IFAS Volusia County Extension Service, DeLand. |
"Hurricane Sandy proved [there is] a need for greater attention to preparedness and recovery. There is a need for timely and relevant disaster-related information."
Regine A. Webster - Co-founder, Center for Disaster Philanthropy5
 Orange County's Dennis Mudge: natural resources and livestock issues. |
 Jed Dillard is Livestock & Forages, Extension Agent in Jefferson County. |
 Recognized for dedication to SART, FDACS' John Court works in Arcadia. |
"If you're not networking, you're not working."
Denis Waitley, Psychologist & Author
SART's 2013 Planning Meeting – All About Networking, Building Relationships |
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"History teaches that a lack of hurricane awareness and preparation are common threads among all major hurricane disasters."
National Weather Service, NOAA
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"A lifetime of training for just ten seconds."
Jesse Owens – Olympic Gold Medalist
NOTE: All photos from the 2013 SART Planning Meeting will soon be available on the SART web site at http://www.flsart.org/photogallerylist/.
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Lee County Horse Rescue
By Sgt. Randy Hodges,rhodges@sheriffleefl.org
Lee County Sheriff's Office, Agricultural Crimes Unit
On Sunday, February 10, Lee County Sheriff's Office Agricultural Crimes Unit Deputy Matt Faulk responded to a call for assistance. An elderly horse was down and could not get up. The horse needed to be lifted with the livestock rescue equipment and a team was mobilized including Hendry County Sheriff's Office Sergeant Charles White and Collier County Sheriff's Office Cpl. Doug Fowler. Faulk, White and Fowler are members of the Region Six Team.
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The livestock rescue equipment including an "A" frame and Haas lift kit were utilized to successfully lift the horse and it eventually walked away under its own power. Special thanks also to: Dr. Harvey, DVM of Van Roekel & Associates in Alva for traveling out of his way to assist, and Lee County Sheriff's Office Lt. Augie Malagon and Lt. Marty Baer who were on scene and assisted greatly.
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Florida SARC Offers April Training
The Florida State Animal Response Coalition (http://www.flsarc.org)invites responders to "Take the next step and become a Disaster Animal Responder!" According to SARC's Melissa Forberg, "Cat Depot is hosting the Florida SARC Awareness Level Small Animal Emergency Sheltering Class on Saturday, April 20th from 8:00 am to 6:00 pm." Cat Depot is located at 2542 17th Street, Sarasota, FL 34234 and to find the Training Room, please enter at the rear of the building.
 Melissa Forberg of SARC. |
This class is offered free of charge due to a generous grant. Costs are incurred for each participant who registers and, Forberg says, "We hate to waste valuable grant money!" So if you register, please honor your commitment to attend. Breakfast, snacks and lunch will be provided through a sponsorship by IAMs Pet Foods.
Course Topics include: Personal Preparedness, Overview of the Incident Command System, Deployment Preparedness, Assisting in Shelter Set Up, Daily Care and Feeding, Proper Cage Cleaning and Disinfection, Animal Behavior, Stress Management, Zoonotic Disease, Personal Safety and more.
NOTE: In order to respond as part of a team, Florida SARC team members must complete three FEMA courses. These courses do not however have to be completed before class! "You can take them at anytime," Forberg says, "but they must be completed before you are eligible to deploy! These are self-study online courses and are free of charge."
IS-100.b Introduction to Incident Command System
IS-200.b ICS for Single Resources and Initial Action Incidents
IS-700.a NIMS an Introduction
If you complete ICS 100, 200 and 700 courses before attending the Awareness Level class, take the completion certificates with you to class and you will receive a FREE Florida SARC uniform t-shirt!
For more information contact Melissa Forberg at smforberg@aol.com.Register at
http://events.r20.constantcontact.com/register/event?oeidk=a07e725s18t8a4465d1&llr=cmn8hziab.
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Under the Radar
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USDA – 9 Florida Counties "Primary Natural Disaster Areas"
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has designated nine counties in Florida as primary natural disaster areas due to damages and losses caused by the recent drought: Baker, Columbia, Duval, Gadsden, Hamilton, Jefferson, Leon, Madison and Nassau.
Farmers and ranchers in the following counties in Florida also qualify for natural disaster assistance because their counties are contiguous: Alachua, Bradford, Clay, Gilchrist, Jackson, Lafayette, Liberty, St. Johns, Suwannee, Taylor, Union and Wakulla. (Contiguous Georgia counties also qualify: Brooks, Camden, Charlton, Clinch, Decatur, Echols, Grady, Lowndes, Seminole, Thomas and Ware.)
All counties listed above were designated natural disaster areas on February 27, making qualified farm operators eligible for low interest emergency (EM) loans from USDA's Farm Service Agency (FSA), provided eligibility requirements are met. Farmers in eligible counties have eight months from the date of the declaration to apply for the loans. Additional information is also available online at http://disaster.fsa.usda.gov.
Deployment for EHV-1 Outbreak and Quarantine
Causes Cancellation of March 11 SART Steering Committee Meeting
[March 5] On February 20, FDACS Division of Animal Industry (DAI) was notified that a horse in the "Horse Shows in the Sun" (HITS) show in Ocala had been referred to the University of Florida's College of Veterinary Medicine and had tested positive for Equine Herpes Virus (EHV-1), wild-type strain.
 EHV - Equine Herpes Virus or Rhinopneumonitis. There are 5 known strains of EHV. EHV-1 is associated with viral abortion and neurologic disease. This is a DNA virus and can remain dormant in neural tissue much like human Herpes viruses and may then become active during periods of stress. |
DAI veterinarians began monitoring other show horses and tracing exposed horses that had already left the show grounds. As a result, five additional horses were found to be positive for EHV-1.
Concerned that the outbreak was widespread, the showgrounds was quarantined a week later. Movement of horses on or off the showgrounds was prohibited. The quarantine remains in effect at least 21 days from the last exposure (February 20). Any horse showing febrile, respiratory or neurological signs will be tested and FDACS personnel are manning the gates of the showgrounds 24/7.
Another horse associated with the HITS Show grounds, which never showed any clinical signs of EHV-1, has tested positive. Exposed horses moved prior to the HITS quarantine have also been quarantined.
Recommendations for horses shown at HITS since February 5 include close monitoring of animals, reporting of fevers greater than 101.5 F (38.6 C) and strict bio-security measures for at least 21 days after departure from HITS.
Animal Care Emergency Programs envisions a nation working together to protect the public through ensuring the safety and well-being of animals during disasters. Supporting animal safety and well-being during disasters is a significant factor in ensuring the safety and well-being of people.
- Provide national leadership on the safety and well-being of pets during disasters.
- Promote effective planning at the local, state, tribal and national level.
- Deliver training in the management of pets during disasters.
- Mobilize highly trained AC personnel to provide technical assistance, resource management, and response.
- Provide contingency planning guidance to facilities regulated under the AWA.
Red Tide
Officials in Collier County say the "red tide" algae bloom is not present along Naples beaches, but dead fish continue to wash up on shore. Removed by the Collier County Natural Resources Department, there have not been further reports of symptoms since March 1.
Meanwhile, experts warn the county still has high levels of red tide pooling off shore and with an onshore wind expected in the next few days, the toxic algae could cause people to cough and sneeze.
Why is a localized algae bloom significant – other than to the sealife it kills? With a record 87.3 million visitors in 2011, Florida is the top travel destination in the world. The tourism industry has an economic impact of $67 billion on Florida's economy.
A seasonal visitor quoted by WINK News (www.winknews.com) in Naples said, "It's heaven right here and now. We're from Minnesota so how much better could you have it. There's 12 inches of snow there; here we're enjoying ourselves on this beach."
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A note about the science: Red tide is a colloquial term used for a naturally occurring harmful algae bloom (HAB). The term "red tide" specifically refers to blooms of a species of dinoflagellate known as Karenia brevis. "Red tide" is being phased out because such tides are not necessarily red and many have no discoloration at all; they are unrelated to movements of the tides; and the term is imprecisely used to refer to a wide variety of algal species.
Annual UF CVM Open House
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The annual University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine Open House will be April 13 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The event will be held at the college, 2015 SW 16th Ave., in Gainesville. The college and the Student Chapter of the American Veterinary Medical Association work together to put on this wonderful, fun and education event each year. |
The Open House is an opportunity to learn more about the veterinary profession and what our Small and Large Animal Hospitals have to offer, engage in learning opportunities, see cool stuff and even adopt an animal from a local shelter. Come learn more about us! What a great way to spend a Saturday!
There will be: educational demonstrations, "How to Get into Vet School" lectures, tours of the Small and Large Animal Hospitals, dog agility demonstrations, pet adoptions from local shelters and educational games and prizes.
Kids can bring their torn or ripped stuffed animals and veterinary students in the Class of 2014 will repair them in our ever-popular Teddy Bear Clinic! Food and drinks will be available for purchase. Proceeds from products sold will benefit veterinary student organizations.
For more information contact Amanda DeCerce adecerce@ufl.eduor Jo Ann Winn at (352) 294-4240www.vetmed.ufl.edu/2013/02/11/cvm-open-house-2/.
Disaster by Rodent
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Not every rodent-based disaster is as severe as the Black Death that caused 100 million or more to die in the 1300s … but if you or your agency is caught in one of these mini-disasters and you can't properly do your job it may feel that way.
Tampa Electric officials say a squirrel or other small animal touched off a "perfect storm'' of events that resulted in a power loss at a water treatment plant and a "boil water" notice (for drinking and cooking) to more than a half million people in February.
Tampa Electric spokesman Rick Morera said that a small animal likely caused an outage on one of two underground power lines to a city of Tampa water treatment plant. He added that a problem with the city's equipment exacerbated the issue by causing the second line to fail, leaving the plant without power.
Governor Signs "Beekeeper Protection Bill" in August 2012
Governor Scott signed The State Preemption/Apiculture Bill 1197 a.k.a. "Beekeeper Protection Bill" at his office in Tallahassee last August.
This bill gives the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) exclusive authority to regulate beekeeping, apiaries and their locations. Florida State Beekeeper Association representatives were invited to the governor's office to take part and witness the event.
In attendance representing the Florida State Beekeeper Association were Tony Hogg (Legislative Committee Co-Chair), Gary Ranker (FSBA President), Elmore Herman (past FSBA President), Melissa and Keith Councell (FSBA Vice President), Becky Hogg, Sam Hogg, and of course Governor Rick Scott.
To read complete bill go to www.flsenate.gov/Laws/Statutes/2012/586.10.
Powers and duties of department; preemption of local government ordinances.
(1) The authority to regulate, inspect, and permit managed honeybee colonies and to adopt rules on the placement and location of registered inspected managed honeybee colonies is preempted to the state through the department and supersedes any related ordinance adopted by a county, municipality, or political subdivision thereof.
Who Are The Stray Animals In Our Shelters?
Late in 2010, Dr. Margaret Slater, Dr. Linda Lord and Dr. Emily Weiss conducted research to learn more about the frequency of pets getting lost, as well as the percents of those animals then recovered.
"We were really interested in looking at the question of who are those stray animals in our shelters, and gathering this information was a step toward that goal," Weiss said.
The study has been published in the peer-reviewed journal Animals, an international and interdisciplinary scholarly open access journal.. To view "Frequency of Lost Dogs and Cats in the United States and the Methods Used to Locate Them" go to www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/2/2/301or the 3rd Quarter 2012 issue of the FACA Trax newsletter http://floridaanimalcontrol.org/facatrax.
Florida Nursery, Growers and Landscape Association News
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The Landscape Show 2012. |
* May 14-15
It's time to tell the story of how plants get their start and the Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival is the right place to do just that. FNGLA and Disney's Horticulture team have teamed up to showcase the newest flowering plant releases and the greatest innovations in the Floriculture Industry.
Hosted during the Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival, FNGLA will broaden its successful partnership with Walt Disney World and host industry field trials for annuals, perennials and vegetative crops in conjunction with a cutting-edge industry educational conference.
For information or registration, go to the FNGLA web site at www.fngla.org.
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About the SART Sentinel |
The SART Sentinel is an e-mail newsletter prepared monthly by the members of the Florida State Agricultural Response Team. Past issues of the Sentinel are archived on the Florida SART Web Site www.flsart.org. If you have a story or photo that you would like to have considered for publication in the SART Sentinel, please contact the editors. Editor: Rick Sapp, PhD, Technical Writer, under contract with the Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services, Division of Animal Industry rsa5@cox.net Associate Editor: Joe Kight, State ESF-17 Coordinator, Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services, Division of Animal Industry Joe.Kight@freshfromflorida.com [top] |
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