The Civil Air Patrol National Commander Maj. Gen. Mark Smith, center, and his entourage, including Mel Korsmo of the U.S. Air Force; Hawaii Wing Commander Col. Chantal Lonergan and Joseph Quentin of the Kauai CAP Composite Squadron; are hosted at the Kauai Emergency Management Agency’s Emergency Operating Center by KEMA’s Kaliko Kabasawa, Marty Amaro and KEMA Director Elton Ushio, to learn more about the EOC capabilities in relation to tsunami alerts.
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Dennis Fujimoto / The Garden Island
Kauai Emergency Management Agency director Elton Ushio, left, and Civil Air Patrol National Commander Maj. Gen. Mark Smith, second from right, listen while KEMA’s Marty Amaro, Mel Korsmo, Col. Chantal Lonergan and Richard Quentin have a discussion on communications capabilities of the KEMA Emergency Operating Center.
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Mel Korsmo of the U.S. Air Force and Civil Air Patrol National Commander Maj. Gen. Mark Smith check out a tsunami-impact graphic in the Kauai Emergency Management Agency Emergency Operating Center.
Dennis Fujimoto The Garden Island
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LIHUE A briefing on the communications capabilities of the Kauai Emergency Management Agencys Emergency Operating Center concluded the vist of Civil Air Patrol National Commander Maj. Gen. Mark Smith and his entourage, Thursday at the EOC.
LIHUE — A briefing on the communications capabilities of the Kauai Emergency Management Agency’s Emergency Operating Center concluded the vist of Civil Air Patrol National Commander Maj. Gen. Mark Smith and his entourage, Thursday at the EOC.
Smith and his entourage that included Mel Korsmo of the U.S. Air Force, and CAP Hawaii Wing Commander Col. Chantal Lonergan, also gathered at the Kauai CAP hangars at Lihue Airport for a briefing regarding the Hawaii Wing Tsunami Warning Mission.
Three of the Hawaii Wing aircraft are stationed at Lihue Airport. Some 10 aircraft are equipped with siren systems and positioned at key locations throughout Hawaii to ensure a rapid statewide response along the shorelines in the event of a tsunami alert.
Smith and his entourage participated in a tsunami-warning demonstration flight along Kauai’s shorelines as part of the briefing. The Tsunami Warning Mission is central to CAP’s role in Hawaii.
CAP has a 50-year history of performing tsunami warnings in Hawaii.
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Dennis Fujimoto, staff writer and photographer, can be reached at 245-0453 or dfujimoto@thegardenisland.com.
