The county’s active summer weather pattern lead to cooling centers needing to be activated during periods of extreme heat in July. Severe thunderstorms, tornado warnings, flooding, air quality alerts and road closures prompted additional responses throughout the month.

The largest response followed the severe storms that impacted Marshall County from August 9 through August 12. The storms brought a tornado warning, flash flooding, numerous road closures and a considerable multi-day power outage.

Following the storms, The EMA conducted damage assessments leading to the County Commissioners declaring a disaster. The damage lead to 211 and Supplemental SNAP being activated alongside SDRF for impacted residents.

The agency also received an AARP Community Challenge Grant for weather radios during the quarter. EMA conducted a severe weather safety presentation and distributed weather radios through the grant. A total of 115 weather radios were programmed with assistance from ARES.

Planning work included preparing an emergency plan for the 2026 general election and continuing updates to county CEMP annexes. EMA added a hazardous materials response plan and a natural hazards and severe weather annex and completed a debris management plan.

Work remained underway on annexes covering warning and public information, communications, mass care and mass fatality.

The EMA also reported an extensive list of training during the quarter. That included two national-level training courses in July, an LEPC tabletop exercise on August 29 and participation in an armed intruder tabletop exercise with PCSC.

Additional training included courses and exercises involving threats and hazards, flood inundation mapping, WebEOC, violent online networks and regional emergency planning.

Community outreach during the quarter included continued updates to the EMA Facebook page and Marshall County App, monthly newsletters and press releases concerning the August disaster declaration, storm assistance and National Preparedness Month.

Other activities listed in the report included submitting National Weather Service event support requests for large outdoor events, proposing the 2027 budget to County Council and obtaining Marshall County’s “Storm Ready” recertification through the National Weather Service.

To learn more about the Marshall County EMA, follow their Facebook Page or visit the County Website.