“The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.” -Alvin Toffler

Saturday, October 27, 2012

Webinar: 11/07/2012. Engaging Families in Community Service and Preparedness


Wednesday, November 7th
3:00 p.m. EDT
Plan ahead and be prepared for National Family Volunteer Day on November 17th  by joining the FEMA Individual and Community Preparedness Division and Ready.gov for a FREE Webinar on Wednesday, November 7.  National Family Volunteer Day is held the Saturday before Thanksgiving and kicks off National Family Week. National Family Volunteer Day was created to mobilize family members within the community and is a great opportunity to get families involved in service, including projects and activities that help communities to prepare for disasters. Our guest speakers will discuss ways that you can capitalize on this event and engage families in your community, and encourage those who haven’t yet made a family service-day commitment to do something that will help prepare their community for disasters. Helping others provides opportunities for family members to be role models and brings them closer together, while also making a difference in their communities.

Speakers from the Hands On Network and Serve Alabama will share their own service initiatives and efforts to engage the public in volunteer opportunities and service projects.
Register/Log in 
Register if this is your first time joining the Community Preparedness Webinar Series.
Log in if you have already registered for this webinar, have registered for a previous webinar or if you're a HSIN.gov user.
If you have questions regarding this event, please contact citizencorps@dhs.gov

Thursday, October 25, 2012

Deepwater Horizon: Long Term Effects. October 2012


Press Release
Response Logo
Deepwater Horizon Incident
Joint Information Center
(713) 323-1670

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10/25/2012 10:56 AM EDT

NEW ORLEANS - The Federal On-Scene Coordinator for the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in New Orleans authorized BP to proceed with a plan to cap and plug the containment dome.

In 2010, the 40-foot-tall containment dome was used as a part of an attempt to capture oil and allow it to flow through a pipe to a barge on the surface. The technique was unsuccessful and the equipment was moved away from the well head and riser and set in its current position approximately 500 meters from the original Macando well head.

The operation, which began Tuesday, included BP mobilizing a remotely operated vehicle from the offshore construction vessel Skandi Neptune to the containment dome to place a cap on top of the stove pipe and plug the ROV connection ports on the sides and top of the structure. The cap and plugs were successfully put in place and no further oil emissions from the containment dome were observed.

BP has collected data via satellite throughout the operation and will continue to do so for a five-day period following, in order to detect changes in the surface sheen and to evaluate the effectiveness of these actions in abating or eliminating the sheen. In addition, the Coast Guard plans an overflight of the area later in the week.
Representatives from the Coast Guard, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management and Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement and Gulf Coast Incident Management Team's Department of Interior Liaison, as well as state on-scene coordinators from Louisiana, Mississippi, and Florida observed the controlled feed in New Orleans.

The FOSC has further directed BP to submit a feasibility plan that considers the next steps toward either removing or remediating the threats of oil posed by the riser pipe and containment dome.

The operation and proposed plan were in response to an oil sheen in the vicinity of the Deepwater Horizon incident first reported to the National Response Center Sept. 16. The Coast Guard issued a Notice of Federal Interest to BP and Transocean after the reported sheen was correlated to the oil that originated from BP's Macondo well.

The public is reminded to contact the National Response Center at 1-800-424-8802 to report all pollution incidents or the 8th Coast Guard District command center at 504-589-6225 in the event of a marine emergency.