Berlin electric utility Connecticut Light and Power gave $500,000 to the Connecticut Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection’s Division of Emergency Management and Homeland Security to improve the state’s emergency preparedness.
The funds will enable the department to prepare for accreditation under the national Emergency Management Accreditation Program, strengthen state emergency response plans and institute an ongoing emergency preparedness exercise program.
The announcement Wednesday came on the final day of a four-day statewide emergency preparedness exercise designed to simulate a Category 3 hurricane. Coordinated by DEMHS, the exercise focused on communications between state and local governments and the state’s utilities.
The donation follows a July 17 report that state regulators found CL&P to be “deficient and inadequate” in its preparation and response to two 2011 storms that caused widespread power outages.