Wichita ? Gov. Kathleen Sebelius said Monday she was pleased at the response of local and state emergency agencies to the recent floods in northeast Kansas, pointing to it as an example of the working relationship between local and state officials.

“Emergency management systems really worked the way they were supposed to work,” Sebelius told the League of Kansas Municipalities meeting in Wichita.

On Oct. 2, an unexpected storm dumped up to a foot of rain over parts of northeast Kansas, stranding people in their homes and cars in the flash flooding that ensued in Jefferson, Jackson, Leavenworth and Shawnee counties.

The governor credited the partnership between local and state officials for the fact that the flooding caused no deaths or serious injuries.

Local responders who knew the people and needs of the community responded quickly, and state agencies served as a backup to them, Sebelius told city leaders attending a convention here.

The National Guard helped get people out of nursing homes and the Kansas Highway Patrol did door-to-door notification for voluntary evacuations.

“If there is any lesson we learned from Katrina, I hope it is the lesson of not putting ourselves in a position we are not able to respond adequately to events we cannot necessarily predict,” she said.

The governor also listed other partnerships between state and local governments that have lowered costs by using of the state’s buying power.

One of those allows local jails and the Department of Corrections to buy medications for prisoners at reduced prices. In Wichita, for example, that has resulted in savings of 42 percent in drug costs.

The state health insurance plan – which now covers not only state employees but employees of 45 local government units – has lowered health care costs so much that employees will see a decrease in health care costs in the next two years, she said.

“That is unheard of in the health care arena,” Sebelius said.

“I think we all share common goals and that is to make sure we leave Kansas smarter, more secure, more prosperous than we find it,” she said.