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Lake Area Emergency Management Prepare for All Hazards

Prior to 1998, the cities of Deephaven, Excelsior, Greenwood, Independence, Long Lake, Maple Plain, Medina, Minnetonka Beach, Minnetrista, Mound, Orono, St. Boni, Shorewood, Spring Park, Tonka Bay, Wayzata and Woodland each had it’s own emergency plan. Each city in Minnesota requires an Emergency Plan.

In 1998, the police chiefs (Emergency Management Directors) in the Lake Minnetonka area formed the Lake Minnetonka Regional Emergency Preparedness Planning and Review Committee. They designed a mutual aid emergency plan to cover the Lake area cities and the properties of the Three Rivers Park District, the Hennepin Sheriffs Office and the Hennepin Emergency Preparedness. The Committee became known as the Lake Group.

For over a year, the police chiefs met to design the all-purpose, all hazard emergency plan. All the affected cities accepted the plan and passed an identical emergency management. ordinance designating the “Lake Group” as the emergency management organization for their community.

The plan required mutual aid among the lake cities and pledged to train as a group. The plan worked so well that it became a model that is taught by the State in the State’s emergency planning classes throughout Minnesota.

The Lake Group meets monthly to discuss mutual concerns, receive training, and update the plan as needed. They use that time to discuss police matters of concern to the lake area police departments.

In 2002, the Lake Group received a grant from Hennepin Emergency Preparedness to purchase a twelve-foot enclosed utility trailer. It was stocked with the necessary equipment and supplies that an agency may need to deal with an incident in their community. The trailer is an “in progress” project, and as time goes by, more equipment and supplies will be added to the trailer.

The emergency trailer is available to a participating agency whenever needed. The trailer can serve as a field emergency operations center and is self-contained with electrical generation and phone-fax equipment on board.

Pictured above from left to right are Chief Craig Anderson (Minnetrista Police), Sgt. Bob Wynnemer (Three Rivers Park Police), Chief Kevin Kelleher (Wayzata Police), Chief Stephanie Good (Orono Police), Chief Harlan Johnson (Deephaven Police Department) and Chief Ed Belland (Medina Police).