MEDIA ADVISORY:
Mayor Cantrell to Hold
Hurricane Preparedness Press Conference
NEW ORLEANS — Tomorrow, June 1, 2018, Mayor LaToya
Cantrell, joined by several local and state public safety
officials, will hold a hurricane preparedness press conference at the
Ernest N. Morial Convention Center (Hall B) at 11:15 a.m.
WHO : Mayor LaToya Cantrell
Collin
Arnold, Director of New Orleans Homeland Security and
Emergency
Preparedness
Michael
Harrison, Superintendent of New Orleans Police Department
Tim
McConnell, Superintendent of New Orleans Fire Department
Dr. Emily
Nichols, Director of Emergency Medical Services
Gilbert
Montano, Chief Administrative Officer
New Orleans City Council
Maj. Gen.
Glenn Curtis, Adjutant General of Louisiana National Guard
Other public safety and public utilities leaders
WHAT: Hurricane
Preparedness Press Conference
WHEN: Friday,
June 1, 2018
11:15
a.m.
WHERE: Ernest
N. Morial Convention Center (Hall B)
As the 2018 Hurricane season begins this is a MUST READ for everyone in low income, Black, Brown, and disenfranchised communities with the U.S. and globally.
...bureaucratic disaster-response system built up over decades that experts nearly universally agree is failing to provide critical support to low-income, minority communities when catastrophe strikes. “People just give up,” said Keith Downey, president of a local organization called Kashmere Gardens Super Neighborhood, which has been helping local residents recover. A POLITICO investigation found that...
Pacific
Island countries are fast-urbanisation, with unplanned, informal low-income
settlements rapidly growing in size. Such growth increases the risk of disaster
from natural hazards, which is worsened by climate change. To combat this,
resilience has been widely adopted across the world, not least in Sustainable
Development Goal 11 (‘the urban SDG’).
This
PhD concerns the practical application of resilience, including its policy
implications, in low-income settlements in the Pacific. The work will link with
current activities at UNSW. Key to the PhD will be employing multi-disciplinary
approaches, such as social enterprise, urban design, social science and
development.
The ideal candidate will possess a combination
of research and practical experience. They will need experience of qualitative
data collection and analysis and of conducting research in different cultural
contexts to enable the collection of data in a culturally sensitive and respectful
manner. A good first degree in a relevant subject is needed. Ideally, they will
also have had some practical experience of working in urban low-income
settlements in the Pacific region.
UNSW Sydney NSW 2052 Australia Telephone +61 2 9385 1000 | Email unsw2025@unsw.edu.au
Next Generation Leaders (Middle or High School, College\University Level):
1. Describe and tell the function of four (4) major components of from
the photos of the attached device?
2. Resiliency and Environmental points
a. Step-up or Step-down transformer?
b. How would you properly dispose of this device?
c. Can any components be recycled back into a production\manufacturing system for reuse?
d. Of the four (4) major components from Question 1 above, on average what elements are
these components comprised of, and from where (location, Nation, etc.) on average are
are they mined from?
As the 2018 hurricane season approaches in the Caribbean, and addressing disasters and crisis in other communities globally. Always consider the organization that you are giving humanitarian financial assistance. Ensure that you've investigated and research the organization and the actual 'ACTIONABLE' work doing in communities.
Those organizations that truly need the funding directly are there now in the community working tirelessly, and on limited funds that will still be there when the crisis arises.
To our members and friends in the Caribbean I endorse the Caribbean Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA) Emergency Assistance Fund (EAF) as a resource to receive funds for communities in need throughout the Caribbean when the crisis and disaster strikes for both short and long term recovery. I recommend to our Relief & Recovery membership category members to ensure accountability and transparency of funds to communities be provided to the CDEMA EAF.
I attended the 2017 CDEMA Conference in Nassau, Bahamas and commended Ron Jackson, Executive Director on ensuring the community in need received the funds at the lowest level.
CDEMA has been preparing thru education & training all member nations of the agency for the upcoming hurricane season, and ongoing climate change events in small island nations.
Support your local organization, support organizations that are contributing now and in times of need when the disaster strikes. For our members in the Caribbean, support CDEMA and the CDEMA EAF.
Nassau, Bahamas, December 8th, 2017 (CDEMA) – The Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA), presented cheques totaling US $140,000 to the hurricane impacted countries of the British Virgin Islands (BVI) and the Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI). Both territories received US $70,000 each to assist with further relief and recovery efforts post hurricanes Irma and Maria.
The presentation was made to the countries during the general plenary session on Advancing School Safety in the Caribbean at the 10th staging of the Caribbean Conference on Comprehensive Disaster Management, which is being held at the Melia Nassau Hotel, The Bahamas on December 4th – 9th, 2017.
The cheque donation to both BVI and TCI were made possible by the monetary contributions received through the CDEMA’s Emergency Assistance Fund (EAF), which was launched via an online donation platform as well as direct deposits during the response and relief operation phase for both Irma and Maria. Donations were received from individuals, companies and governments. Representatives from both territories expressed deep appreciation by thanking CDEMA and all donors for the overwhelming support to help recover and rebuild after the widespread destruction caused by the catastrophic hurricanes.
The 10th edition of the Caribbean Conference on Comprehensive Disaster Management (CDM) is being held under the theme “The Road to Resilience – Check Point 2017: Building Resilience through Partnerships”. Over 250 delegates from across the Caribbean and the world gather to participate in discussions on disaster management and climate change issues affecting the region. It is hoped that the conference will contribute to the enhancement of resilient capacities and partnerships to fight climate change and strengthen comprehensive disaster management activities going forward.
For further information, please contact:
Clive Murray Communication and Education Specialist CARIBBEAN DISASTER EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY (CDEMA) Resilience Way, Lower Estate St. Michael BARBADOS Tel #: (246) 434-4880 Fax #: (246) 271-3660 Email: clive.murray@cdema.org
TSA announces
new members of the Aviation Security Advisory Committee
National Press Release WASHINGTON - Transportation
Security Administration Administrator David P. Pekoske announced 31 members to
serve on the Aviation Security Advisory Committee (ASAC), which provides
recommendations for improving aviation security methods, equipment and
procedures. “The Aviation Security Advisory
Committee plays a vital role in helping TSA focus on risk-based security,” said
Pekoske. “I thank the outgoing, current and newly appointed members of the
committee for their service and dedication to helping TSA strengthen its
layered approach to aviation security.” The ASAC, a statutory committee
under P.L. 113-238, enhances TSA’s security posture through consultation with
key partners on aviation security matters, including on the development,
refinement, and implementation of policies, programs, rulemaking, and security
directives pertaining to aviation security. The following members will
represent the 19 mandated membership categories on the committee: Air Carriers
• Paul Doell, National Air Carrier Association
• Randy Harrison, Delta Air Lines, Inc.
• Craig Lowe, Airlines for America
• Matthew Vaughan, International Air Transport Association All-Cargo Air Transportation
• Steve Alterman, Cargo Airlines Association
• Roger Libby, DP DHL - Americas
• Gary Wade, Atlas Air Indirect Air Carriers
• Brandon Fried, Airforwarders Association Labor Organizations Representing
Air Carrier Employees
• Bill Cason, Coalition of Airline Pilots Association
• Joe DePete, Air Line Pilots Association
• Justin Madden, Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association
• Chris Witkowski, Association of Flight Attendants – CWA Labor Organizations Representing
Transportation Security Officers
• David Borer, American Federation of Government Employees, AFL-CIO Labor Organizations Representing
Employees of Airport Construction and Maintenance Contractors
• Michael Mayes, Transport Workers Union of America, AFL-CIO Aircraft Manufacturers
• Jens Hennig, General Aviation Manufacturers Association Airport Operators
• Colleen Chamberlain, American Association of Airport Executives
• Michele Freadman, Massachusetts Port Authority
• Cedric Johnson, Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall
Airport General Aviation
• Joseph Dalton, NetJets Aviation, Inc.
• Nobuyo A. K. Sakata, Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association Privacy Organizations
• Kenneth Mortensen, Attorney at Law, former Associate Deputy Attorney
General, Privacy & Civil Liberties, Department of Justice; former Deputy
Chief Privacy Officer, Department of Homeland Security Travel Industry
• Lorraine Howerton, U.S. Travel Association Airport-Based Businesses
• John McGraw, National Air Transportation Association Businesses that Conduct Security
Operations at Airports
• Chris Bidwell, Airports Council International – North America Aeronautical Repair Stations
• Christian Klein, Aeronautical Repair Station Association Passenger Advocacy Groups
• Daniel Rutenberg, The International Airline Passengers Association Aviation Security Technology
Industry
• Scott Gray, Leidos, Inc. Victims of Terrorist Acts Against
Aviation
• Glenn Johnson, Victims of Pan Am Flight 103
• Matthew Ziemkiewicz, National Air Disaster Foundation Law Enforcement
• Jason Wallis, Port of Portland Police Department Airport Construction and
Maintenance Contractors
• TJ Schulz, Airport Consultants Council TSA is transitioning to staggered
membership terms, with approximately one-half of the members serving one-year
terms and the other half serving two-year terms. In the following year
and thereafter, all appointments will be for two-year terms. The ASAC was established in 1989
in the wake of the crash of Pan Am 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland. Visit our
website for more information on ASAC.
The Transportation Security Administration was
created to strengthen the security of the nation's transportation systems and
ensure the freedom of movement for people and commerce. TSA uses a risk-based
strategy and works closely with transportation, law enforcement and
intelligence communities to set the standard for excellence in transportation
security.
For more information about TSA, please visit our
website at tsa.gov.
Is this transfer of military equipment to your jurisdiction needed in your community?
Is there a threat in your community for such force to address normal everyday police and community interactions in our community?
Get involved. Question. Attend budget, and council meetings for safety, and law enforcement policy, equipment, and other important issues in our community.
Is it really needed in your community.
BEMA International
RAND research and commentary on the issues that matter most
May
24, 2018
Photo
by Florence County North Carolina Sheriff's Department
There's
a Pentagon program that transfers excess military equipment to America's law
enforcement agencies. Items include everything from desks to rifles to
airplanes. Because of the sensitive nature of some of this equipment, the
program has long been the subject of scrutiny. This has intensified in light of
recent events, including the 2014 protests in Ferguson, Missouri. A new RAND
report finds that this program is efficient, effective, and responsive to
oversight. But these attributes are unlikely to change perceptions that the
program contributes to the militarization of police. Read more »
Reports of natural and
human-caused disasters are ever present throughout our country. We hear the
stories of seemingly insurmountable challenges faced by families,
neighbors, businesses, communities, and sometimes entire states or
territories. The one constant we can rely on before, during, and after a
disaster is the support and service given by first responders. But what do
first responders need for their own recovery from traumatic events?
This issue of The Dialogue from SAMHSA’s Disaster
Technical Assistance Center (DTAC) highlights the challenges first
responders experience throughout all phases of disaster response—the
visible and obvious and the veiled. The authors provide insight into the
unique culture of the first responder community. This awareness is
significant to providing effective behavioral health services in a manner
that is valuable to and accepted by first responders.
What have you found
to be essential to the care of your first responder team or community? Are
there important lessons learned from your field experiences that could be
highlighted by SAMHSA DTAC in future issues of this newsletter? Please
share your experiences via email to DTAC@samhsa.hhs.gov.
Selected reader comments will be printed in a future edition of The
Dialogue.
Staying
Fit To Protect and To Serve: A Police Officer Talks About Posttraumatic
Stress Disorder (PTSD) A police officer shares his story about
developing PTSD after being shot in the line of duty. He discusses the
physical and psychological pain of PTSD while relaying the importance of
knowing the signs and symptoms and the value of talking through issues, especially
with others with similar experiences.
Perception
Is Reality for Disaster Survivors A rescue specialist with Massachusetts Task Force 1 (MATF-1)
relates the importance of first responder training and self-care to
better manage survivor reactions to disaster. Including a behavioral
health professional as part of the response team is discussed as a
proactive approach to fostering team resiliency.
Psychological
Trauma in First Responders Following Disaster Response The author discusses first
responder care, as part of disaster planning, to address the unintended
mental burden that can develop from long-term exposure to disaster
response. Understanding the culture of the responder community is key to
identifying and providing effective behavioral health support services.
How Do
First Responders Experience and Cope With Trauma? The author provides a
description of possible physiological and psychological responses that
first responders may experience during a traumatic event. Coping
mechanisms and ways to foster resilience as a first responder are also
discussed.
About The
Dialogue
The
Dialogue, a quarterly technical assistance journal, is an
arena for professionals in the disaster behavioral health field to share
information, resources, trends, solutions
to problems, and accomplishments. Read previous
issues of The Dialogue.
The views, opinions, and content expressed in this
publication do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions, or policies of
the Center for Mental Health Services (CMHS), the Substance Abuse and
Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), or the U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services (HHS).
We value your input.
Please complete a brief survey about this SAMHSA DTAC product.
GWP Southern Africa played
a major role in Botswana's development of a national Integrated Water Resources
Management and Water Efficiency (IWRM/WE) Plan. The creation of GWP Botswana
and its involvement in the process was vital to make it a success, allowing the
government to access stakeholders from all levels of society, says Bogadi
Mathangwane, Director of the Botswana Department of Water Affairs. Read more>>
Conflicts and disasters uprooted 30.6 million
globally in 2017, with few long-term solutions in sight.
Africa saw a doubling of people displaced internally by conflict, according to The Global
Report on Internal Displacement, published today by the Internal
Displacement Monitoring Centre and the Norwegian Refugee Council. Conflict
displaced 11.8 million—including 5.5 million in sub-Saharan Africa and 4.5
million in the Middle East and North Africa. Disasters displaced another 18.8
million.
“Internal displacement often heralds the start of broader crises,” said
Alexandra Bilak, IDMC’s director, and while there have been some
improvements—in the provision of emergency aid, for example—it doesn’t come
close to answering the need, she told ReliefWeb.
2.2 million people were displaced internally in the Democratic Republic of the
Congo as a result of extreme violence in 2017, Bilak added on
Twitter—an especially sobering number given the Ebola outbreak now
facing DRC.
Addressing Emergency Department Psychiatric Boarding: A Continuum of Solutions
Tuesday, May 15, 2018 | 12—1 p.m. Eastern Time
People with behavioral health emergencies may board for days in hospital emergency departments waiting for a psychiatric bed. These environments are not conducive to providing safe and effective care for these individuals; however, solutions do exist. Because communities and organizations have different needs and capabilities, presenters will discuss a range of possible solutions to improve care for people with behavioral health emergencies and ways to use data to track results.
Day
5 coverage of NLE18 — don’t miss Day 1,Day 2,Day 3 and Day 4 coverage of the FEMA
National Level Exercise
You could not ask for a more beautiful
spring day on the Chesapeake Bay. Gorgeous blue skies, no clouds, low
humidity and a gentle enough breeze to cool you while you took in the
pleasant scents from the bay. I’m in Perry Point, Md., a small piece of land that
is literally a peninsula situated at one of the northernmost parts of the
Chesapeake Bay.
Standing on the grounds of the Perry Point VA Medical Center, part of the
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the VA Maryland Health Care System,
it is at first glance a pristine view of what “Bay Life” is all about. But as
beautiful as the weather and surrounding 400 acres are, there is a real-world
exercise underway that is anything but attractive. It’s another day in NLE18
and the assembled players are playing out another tragic scenario that no one
ever wants to see happen.
Still reeling from the
after-effects of fictional Hurricane Cora that struck the greater Washington,
D.C., area as a Category 4 hurricane (which is nearly 100 miles away), Cora
hit Perry Point and the surrounding areas of Cecil County, Md., as a Category
2 storm. In its aftermath, this area of the Chesapeake found itself with lots
of debris and power problems, but also more than its share of transportation
challenges.
Railroad lines that pass through the area are silent because
portions of rail lines have been severed by Cora’s wrath. Even many of the
surrounding roads, including Interstate 95, are clogged with debris and
emergency vehicles doing whatever they can to get roads open so recovery
operations and commerce can begin again. On top of that, the tunnels in and
out of Baltimore that could bring any number of supplies and resources into
the area remain closed as they are still flooded. And that’s just for
starters.
Today’s exercise is “two days”
after the Cora strike. A fictional severe thunderstorm fueled by the warm air
and waters of the bay has spawned a tornado that has struck the Perry Point
VA Medical Center campus. Patients and staff are trapped in several collapsed
buildings and members of the Cecil County Fire Department, the Maryland
National Guard and other regional first responders are assembling to execute
their life-saving attack on the structures.
Lights are flashing from
stationed fire trucks, radios are squawking updates and directions to
deployed units are given. Joining me as fellow observers of what is happening
are nearly two dozen fatigue-wearing military personnel from Albania,
Montenegro, Bosnia, Croatia, Macedonia and Taiwan. They are all part of a
National Guard exchange program that shares emergency response practices with
one another.
DISASTER “VICTIMS” IN THE NATIONAL
LEVEL EXERCISE. (RICH COOPER/HSTODAY)
As a small group of National
Guard officers explain what is happening around us, three first responders
step out from the “collapsed” building, pulling a “victim” out on tarp
litter. As they drag the weighted mannequin across the lawn to the medical
triage tent for evaluation and treatment, the radio chatter announces that
more victims have been found.
What follows are more units of
first responders – all in different types of service uniforms, all working
together, probably for the first time, to render aid however they can.
Collectively they all work to familiarize themselves with the building
structure and layout, while trying to ascertain where other victims might be
found and what other resources they may need.
As this is happening, another
group of responders are pulling another canvas litter out of the building –
this time holding a real person, not a weighted mannequin. Trying to maintain
her composure as four men carry her out (and not smile at the
exercise-watchers as they look at her being dragged on the ground), she
raises her head high enough so she doesn’t get her head banged on the ground.
Taking all of this in alongside
the international observers is Brig. Gen. Sean Casey of the Maryland
National Guard. In describing today’s exercise, on top of the events and
aftermath that the fictional Cora strike has brought upon his home state, he
says, “This is the absolute worst scenario for us. It’s bad enough what the
storm [Cora] would do, but the storm surge that follows it would make what is
a bad situation even worse.”
Adding another emergency like the
fictional tornado strike, with supply lines already being stretched thin,
limited highways in use, flooded tunnels preventing additional resources
getting in, and battling physical exhaustion and fatigue of personnel who
have been going nonstop for days, “this is what we have to be ready for.”
Pointing to response crews that
are bringing more victims out of the building, Casey adds, “All of these
people need to meet their counterparts and be ready to do their part.” He
then described how just over 2,000 players – Maryland National Guard,
civilians, public safety, emergency management, private sector and more –
were playing in Maryland as part of the NLE18 exercise.
In speaking with him, Casey
relayed a deep sense of pride at the efforts that were being showcased in the
exercise. But coupled with that pride you also detect a sense of concern that
any leader would have for the unknown time, event and location when they will
be called upon and really tested.
VA MARYLAND HEALTH CARE SYSTEM EMERGENCY MANAGER DAWN IVANCIK (RICH
COOPER/HSTODAY)
That readiness aspect, along with
meeting people in practice, rather than actual game time was echoed by Dawn
Ivancik, the emergency manager for the VA Maryland Health Care
System. Projecting readiness as well as resolve, she is the only emergency
manager for what is a major regional healthcare facility in the state of
Maryland (and mid-Atlantic). But at no time does she ever give a sense that
she is alone in her job.
Like other emergency managers,
she knows that lives are dependent upon her, her decisions as well as the
resources and relationships she possesses. “You can’t do this job alone. I
may be the only emergency manager for this facility, but I regularly train
and exercise the staff here on what we need to do for any number of
scenarios.”
She then described doing monthly
tabletop exercises with Medical Center staff as well as regular engagements
with her Veterans Administration counterparts, the Cecil County Sheriff’s
Office, and Cecil County Fire, as well as other surrounding jurisdictions.
In identifying the tools at her
disposal, she shared, “We have dual-use vehicles here that if we need to move
people in a conventional way or in a hospital ambulatory fashion, we can do
that, and the staff here know how to do those things. Evacuating them is the
last resort and last thing we want to do, but we have to be ready to do it.”
As we discuss the exercise,
Ivancik eludes to the fact that the facility she has emergency stewardship
over is in fact a peninsula – a stretch of land that is almost entirely
surrounded by water. In taking in that geographic condition, I remark to her
that the Cora/NLE18 exercise has probably literally created a number of new
remote islands in the surrounding area as the conventional supply lines and
resources that have always been there are now cut off and inaccessible.
“Exactly!” she replied. “That’s
why doing an exercise like this with search and rescue, the National Guard,
Cecil County Fire, as well as the people here [Perry Point VA Medical Center]
are essential for us.”
Motioning toward the window as
National Guardsmen and local fire and rescue personnel continue to move
equipment and people in the exercise, she noted that her job is “to help look
after our veterans who have already given us so much.”
“I want to make sure we are ready
to give them even more when we are called upon to do so. That’s why I have to
make sure we’re ready because none of us can afford to be alone on any
island. We need to have practice and relationships.”
As she relays her response, two
of her VA colleagues chime in from the side of the room and share that the
Perry Point VA Medical Center team is indeed ready for whatever may come
their way. And they credit Dawn for what she’s done to make sure they
all know what to do when they are called upon to do “more.”
That ability to know what to do
and be ready to take on “more” at a moment’s notice is something Brig. Gen.
Casey also relayed during the exercise. As we watched the Guardsmen work with
the other exercise participants, he shared that his retirement from the
National Guard was on the horizon in a year or so.
“He doesn’t know it yet, but
tomorrow my second-in-command is going to take over for the rest of the
exercise as I’m going to be ‘hit by a bus,’ which then puts him in charge,”
Casey said.
He smiled as he said this,
knowing it would be a helluva curve ball tossed at his team. But in sharing
that detail with me, Casey relayed confidence as to how his team would react
to the sudden (and fictionally dramatic) change in his exercise “status.”
(And this is a fictional “hit by a bus” scenario. No one is going to put the
brigadier general in front of a bus to be struck; at least I hope not. It’s
just his intent to switch from being a “player” to an “observer” for the
remainder of the NLE18 exercise.)
In hearing him describe the
exercise surprise that was yet to be sprung, I asked if he thinks his second
in command knows what might be coming.
Replying with a smile, Casey
said, “I think he knows something’s coming but he doesn’t know what it is
yet.”
“But that’s the point of
exercises like this. Everyone must be ready to step up and do the next job.
That’s how you succeed in tough conditions.”
Which explains why practice and
relationships make all the difference in the world and how you can survive on
unexpected islands or when leadership and conditions unexpectedly change.
It’s about possessing confidence,
skill and collaboration, and when those three ingredients are added to any
mix things always get better. And Maryland has a lot already in its mix, and
showed today that they’re ready to go.
