New Ulm Chief of Police Dave Borchert informs the public on different elements of disaster prevention and relief.

NEW ULM — A New Ulm Emergency Management System seminar was held on Thursday at the CAST Senior Center, hosted by New Ulm’s Chief of Police Dave Borchert.

The seminar covered everything from flooding to the consequences of global warming to domestic terrorism. Borchert gave members of the community strategic game plans in the case of a natural disaster and community threats.

“I basically like to get feedback from the community,” Borchert said. “Moving forward, finding better ways of solving problems. We got challenges here, and I’m always looking for community feedback.”

Borchert focused his presentation on emergency management responsibilities to prevent, prepare, respond, recover, and mitigate. He touched on the perils of an aging infrastructure, water runoff due to flash flooding and domestic terror.

Borchert emphasized flood preparedness, stating that the Minnesota River’s usual level sits at 792 feet. The river is currently at 786 feet and minor flooding begins at 800 feet. The river willcross 20th Street at 809.6 feet.

In Borchert’s career, which began in 1999, he has seen five federally declared natural disasters in Brown County, all of them the result of flooding. He provided a slide show to the audience, which included pictures depicting different states of flooding from the centrally located rivers.

He touched on the berm along the Minnesota River, which cost $1.9 million, and protects up to 0.8 miles of shore, providing flood relief for 44 homes. A berm runs along the side of a road or body of water as a raised strip of ground.

“It’s paid for itself many times over,” Borchert said.

Borchert considers these presentations as an informative way to communicate natural and domestic threats.

“I had the opportunity to do a presentations throughout the month, and I always like to interact with people. I learn a lot from the process” Borchert said.