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Senator Byrd

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August 12, 2006

Byrd, Emergency Teams Break Ground on New 911 Center

U.S. Senator Robert C. Byrd, Congressman Nick J. Rahall, both D-W.Va., and Raleigh County emergency services personnel formally broke ground on Saturday for the new Raleigh County Emergency Services/911 Center, marking a significant milestone in the effort to improve community safety in Southern West Virginia.

Senator Byrd guided $1.25 million in federal funding through the Senate for the center’s construction, which was matched by state and local dollars.

The Senator’s remarks from the ceremony are below.

How good it is to be home, in Raleigh County, on this fine morning. I thank the Reverend Mr. Pratt for the prayer. We never forget, in West Virginia, that we are here because it is the Lord's will. That lesson was ingrained in me when I was growing up, not far from here, in that coal miner's home. I also want to thank our Congressman, Nick Rahall, for being here today. When we are in Washington, people laugh a little bit when I say that I need to call my Congressman. Can you imagine -- a United States Senator calling his Congressman for help? But that's what I do. Nick Rahall is as fine a representative of the people as there is in the nation's Capitol. I'm proud of what he has accomplished for West Virginia, and I know that he has a great deal more that he wants to do.

Nick, I wish that Erma were here with us today. I know she's here in spirit. She and I grew up not too far from here, in Stotesbury, where our dads were coal miners. I can close my eyes and see her on that front porch, with a guitar in her hands as I brought my fiddle to her house for music and a dance. I gained more than I ever imagined when I married that high school sweetheart of mine. What a blessing she was to me. She would have liked to be here today, to say hello to each of you and to remind me not to talk for too long.

I want us to go back five years ago. It was a beautiful early fall morning in September. The sun is shining. The clouds are floating across that azure sky. It was on that day when terrorists attacked our country. Four planes. 19 hijackers. Thousands dead in New York, at the Pentagon, and in that farmer's field in Pennsylvania. All of us will always remember where we were that morning. I was headed to the Senate, talking on the phone with my state director in Charleston, and I couldn't believe what she was telling me. A plane had crashed into the World Trade Center. Then another plane hit. The building was on fire. Smoke was rushing out of the Towers, and police officers, firefighters, and emergency medical teams were rushing in.

That day, more than any other, reinforced in our minds the bravery and courage of our first responders. While we may always have known in the backs of our minds that these men and women do heroic deeds as a matter of course in a day's work, that morning crystallized for us the quiet bravery of our emergency responders. These men and women are always ready to place their lives on the line for their communities. Whether at places where terrorists have struck, or where fire has erupted, or where chemical tankers have rolled over on the Turnpike, or where criminals have preyed on their fellow citizens, our police officers, our firefighters, and our rescue squads hold constant watch over all of us and are always ready to respond.

Amazingly, it seems that too many people in Washington haven't learned a key lesson of 9-11. We must give our first responders the tools and money they need to do their jobs. But instead of making sure that our police officers and firefighters receive the training and equipment that they need, the White House has put forward budget after budget that shortchanges our emergency response teams. Instead of providing the funding that police and fire departments so desperately need, the White House forces our local departments to rely on bake sales and bingo nights to pay for their training and equipment.

These folks in Washington have their priorities wrong. When it comes to bravery, no one tops our firefighters and rescue teams. No one tops our police officers. No one tops their courage and conviction. It is time for more people in Washington to have a little courage of their own, and stand for those men and women who answer the alarm bells in the middle of the night.

Here's just one example of Washington's backwards priorities. The President, in his budget, proposed to cut firefighter equipment and training grants by 46 percent and to eliminate the program to hire more firefighters. He also wanted to cut grants to state and local law enforcement by more than $1 billion this year. Neither cut made sense to me, and I went to work to do all that I could to make sure that our emergency response teams did not feel the pain of the budget axe.

Each time the White House said no to our police officers; each time the White House said no to our firefighters and our rescue squads, I stood up and fought back. And, I am proud to report, every dollar in firefighter and law enforcement cuts that the White House proposed, we were able to defeat.

I will continue my work to make sure that our police officers and firefighters have the resources that they need to keep our communities safe. Just last year, I worked in the Senate to provide more than $10 million for West Virginia's local law enforcement and emergency response teams. Those dollars are at work today, protecting communities and saving lives. Here in Raleigh County, volunteer fire departments in Beckley, Beaver, and Sophia shared in that funding. And I am proud to have provided more than $1 million in construction dollars for this new Emergency Operations Center -- which was matched with state and local dollars. Once it is completed, this new facility will help to make sure that, when Raleigh County residents call for help, their cries are answered within minutes.

I am so happy to be here today. To be with each of you. To be home. There is no place like the hills of Southern West Virginia. No people like the people of these mountains. There are many challenges ahead of us. But teamwork and determination can overcome almost any obstacle. Just ask the men and women of our rescue teams. When they are united, when they work together as one team, they can perform miracles. That is the power of cooperation and coordination. That is the strength of the Mountain State, always guided by the Creator’s Hands. "In his hand are the deep places of the earth: the strength of the hills is his also (Psalms 95:4)." I share your strength of faith. I am ready to go another round. With your help, with our combined strength and the Good Lord’s guidance, I am ready to keep on working for the people of West Virginia.

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