FAIRMONT, W.Va. (WBOY) – With major recovery efforts happening after Hurricane Ian hit the east coast, one event in Marion County looks to make sure people in West Virginia are prepared for a disaster.
Several organizations are coming together for a Preparedness Expo Saturday, Oct. 8. Booths will feature the WVU School of Nursing, the Family Resource Center, the Homeland Security and Emergency Management Center, Friendship Fairmont and more.
The organizations will help West Virginians prepare for a wide variety of situations from floods, to fires to car wrecks to homelessness.
Reverend D.D. Meighen is a co-organizer of the expo and is a part of the Greater Fairmont Council of Churches which will have a booth at the event. He feels that churches can provide a support system for those who have been through a disaster.
“Churches have this degree of confidence and at one time, they were the cultural and spiritual center for the community and so we want to make that happen again,” Meighen said. “They’re assessable and they can provide comfort, sometimes, shelter, food, lodging and certainly the spiritual comfort that comes with anxiety over a disaster.”
The Preparedness Expo will be held at the Fairmont Senior Field House on Mary Lou Retton Drive from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 8.