Preparing for the bigger storm

clear out side streets. this weather is mild compared to some of the winter storms we’ve seen. the blizzard of ’97 ravaged the area, paralyzing the region. at least four people died in colorado, as a result of that storm. so, what if that kind of blizzard hits again? would el paso county be prepared? a day before a huge emergency management drill, krdo newschannel 13’s greg miller is finding out. he’s live near i-25 and fillmore tonight.. a notoriously tough spot for winter driving. just a few inches fell over the last two days … and we saw accidents snarl highways and drivers stranded. but the office of emergency management says a drill planned for tomorrow that involves the national guard, salvation army and a lot of others – will prepare agencies for the next big one. a few final reminders for volunteers like nancy bracken before ‘deep freeze 2016’ gets underway. the briefing is important – even though its only a drill. sot: we don’t want anybody to get hurt. she knows a little something about disasters. sot: my husband and i live in black forest. our house wasn’t burned, but we need to help other folks. she, along with 400 other volunteers, will play actors – pretending to be stranded drivers. not hard to imagine with the recent snowstorms. sot: people are very concerned, to be ready for disasters. from a semi jacknifed on i-25 last night… to wet, slushy and icy streets today. sot: black ice on the road, i slid. greg: it leads to the question, if the big blizzard actually hig, would we be prepared? sot: we would be ready. el paso county emergency management says no matter the storm – there’s no guarentee for safe streets. sot: as far as conditions last night, whenever we have ice, that’s the worst case for our roadways. while roads will be rough during a blizzard – the fire, police, medical, they’re ready for that. the county’s confident they can respond – and says tomorrow… we’re going to be testing the ability to rescue and provide service and care for stranded motorists. preparing them for the worst motorists. preparing them for the worst case scenario. the county says originally they were hoping for a dry weekend, but the bitter cold ahead adds a little reality