Program aims to help special needs Utahns

Emergency responders hope that the next time a disaster strikes Utah, they will have a way to know where to go to provide the best aid for people with special needs.

But some of that help depends on whether people with special needs have registered with the Utah Special Needs Registry, an Internet-based tool that allows emergency managers to know specific needs when resources are suddenly scarce.

Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. announced the creation of the registry in December, and so far, membership in the registry is climbing, albeit slowly. About 480 people and 120 care facilities statewide have their information in the database, said Lisa Cook, a trainer with the Utah Division of Homeland Security.

"We need to be able to have a concept of how many people we have," Cook said.

Seventeen counties and cities can currently access the registrants' information, and a handful of local governments are in the process of applying for access. The information is only to be used by emergency managers in planning for and during an emergency, Cook said.

Davis County Commissioner Bret Millburn, who was instrumental in developing the registry when he worked for United Way of Northern Utah, said he was pleased Davis County will soon have access to the registry. But he doesn't want to give residents a false sense of security.

"It isn't a guarantee that someone is going to show up and save you in the event of an emergency," Millburn said.

Davis County Sheriff's Sgt. Sue Campbell, the county's emergency manager, said residents are responsible for making sure their information stays updated so responders don't waste precious time going to wrong addresses.

The registry was developed for northern Utah by the Northern Utah Citizen Corps Council, which is part of a national Citizen Corps, an organization designed to help coordinate volunteer activities to make communities safer. The Utah organizers pitched the idea to the Utah Division of Homeland Security, which made it a statewide program.

People with special needs can register or update their information two ways: by going to www.specialneedsutah.org or by calling 211. Relay users may call 1-888-826-9790.

Registrants are asked what kind of impairment they have, contact information for a doctor and what help they may need in an emergency.

"Who knows when a big earthquake is going to happen in Utah," Campbell said.

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E-mail: jdougherty@desnews.com