CITY TO HOLD TORNADO, DISASTER DRILL THURSDAY

Cape Girardeau city and county officials will participate in a disaster and tornado drill Thursday.

The exact time of the drill is not being announced but city officials are expected to activate the Emergency Operations Center as part of the exercise, said Tracey Glenn, public information officer for the city.

Several large businesses in the county also will participate in the tornado drill Thursday.

As part of the drill, the city will meet at its EOC command post, which has been at Fire Station No. 1, but could be moved.

The police headquarters serves as the dispatch command center for 911 calls so the center could be moved to that location. City department heads will study the emergency management plan and make a recommendation about relocating the EOC post.

Cape Girardeau has been designated as a Project Impact city by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which means grant money was available to help the city draft an emergency plan to help it deal with disasters.

The plan recommends that the city examine installing tornado warning sirens or some mechanism for issuing warnings during severe weather.