Gone Home too soon ....

I just saw a news article about the tornado touching down Little Sioux Scout Ranch in Iowa. Campers were trying to take cover when the storm hit. One cabin was demolished by a direct hit. Many were injured and four Scouts have gone home before their time.

Please take a moment and spare a thought for the victims of this tragedy. Some links below:

• National Post
• New York Times
• ABC News
  
• Scoutmaster Blog
• The Scoutmaster Minute Blog
  
• Boy Scout Trail Blog
  

Clarke Green wrote a good piece on this at his Scoutmaster Blog. He talks not just about fellowship and loss, but what we must all learn from this.

Update: I just saw a TV news report on the tragedy that included photos of the devastation. It is hard to believe from these pictures that anyone could have come through that.

Reports indicate these Scouts were on a leadership training program and had just completed first aid and emergency preparedness instruction. The survivors certainlty put those skills to the test.

Our thoughts go out to the families, friends, and leaders of Aaron Eilerts, 14 from Eagle Grove, Iowa; Josh Fennen, 13, Sam Thomsen, 13, and Ben Petrzilka, 13, all from Omaha.

Emergency Preparedness Adventure - Photos

The 433rd attended the Emergency Preparedness Adventure Day and a great time was had by all.

There was an opening sing song, followed by the unveiling of the new Emergency Preparedness Award (Cubs) and Badge (Scouts). The Provinces Emergency Mobile Operations Center was there. And the Armed Forces communications and rescue teams too.



We learned about first aid and what to pack in our emergency kits.



The Fire Marshall's office was there with their Hazmat gear. The OPP bomb robot was checking hats too. :-)



There were some great giveaways including a very cool flashlight that could work on several common types of batteries. It also had feet so it wouldn't roll away. (Oddly the above link was one of the few local stores with the light on their web site).

Probably the favorite event of the day was the OPP response team's bomb watermelon disruptor!



Update: Some people aren't seeing the image properly. If the image above doesn't display properly try here or here. Thanks.

Update: If you are having problems with the last image, we'll look into it and try and fix it soon. I'll post an update when I have news. Thanks.Thanks to Baloo for fixing this.