http://community.fema.gov/connect.ti/READYNPM/view?objectId=189043&expa=exp&expf=189043&expl=1
City of Los Lunas Fire Dept---Community Preparedness and Fire Safety Classes
Los Lunas, New Mexico is unique in its 'closeness'. At least twice a month, we hold community preparedness and fire safety classes, and I'm always surprised by the attendance. Its a community that truly cares for one another. Since our peak wildfire season seems to have passed now, our focus will lean more toward arroyo safety. All too often people find themselves tempted to enter an unsafe area such as a ditch.
Would you do this type of event again?
Flash flooding in these areas is a weekly event. It will be our mission over the next month to widen our awareness base and educate our community on the hazards and pitfalls of using these areas for play. These areas, when used safely and respectfully can and are fun and relaxing. Knowing those boundaries and the dangers that can be present is paramount to our community. We will keep you all abreast of our upcoming events and the effectiveness of them!
Saturday, September 3, 2011
FYI: Success Story. Workplace Disasters Seminar
http://community.fema.gov/connect.ti/READYNPM/view?objectId=189043&expa=exp&expf=189043&expl=1
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Business Service Associates, LLC---Workplace Disasters Seminar
HICKORY, NC - A "Workplace Disaster Awareness" Seminar was held on May 12, 2011 with approximately 50 people from area businesses attending. The material offered by Lynn W. Sigmon was presented in three main sections: Man-Made Disasters, Natural Disasters and Terrorism. The participants were taught what they could expect,how to remain safe during the event, and the steps to take after the disaster was over. The information was based on the Mitigation, Preparedness, Response and Recovery phases taught by FEMA. We also discussed Disaster Kits and supplies needed to survive afterwards, including food and water. Last, we covered the possibility of violent crimes and how they could affect our businesses, and the need for every entity to be trained to be able to Lockdown their facility at a moment's notice.
We also enjoyed an informal Panel Discussion. The panel was made up of Terri Byers, a Fire Prevention Officer from our local fire department, Captain Alton Price from our local sheriff's department, David Garrison, Regional Director and Susan Anderson, Executive Director of our local Red Cross and Karyn Yaussy, Emergency Management Coordinator in Catawba County, NC. The discussion was lively, with participants interested in what the professionals had to say about the disasters relevant to our area. Our Red Cross Regional Director had just returned from Japan after their earthquake and tsunami, and he told some very heart-warming stories.
I offered a generic Business Emergency Operation Manual prepared for participants to review, which included things like a Vulnerability Analysis and procedures for staying safe during various disasters. Special guests at the seminar included Danny Hearn, President of the Catawba County Chamber of Commerce, and Sue Simpson, CERT past president from Charlotte, NC.
The evaluation feedback I received from participants and guests was very positive, and everyone was given a copy of the PowerPoint presentation for future use, along with other materials provided by local agencies.
I truly had high expectations for this seminar, and I am happy to say they were met, ("WHAT DID YOU EXPECT"© 2010). I will continue to conduct this same seminar through my business, Business Service Associates, LLC. I am also working on smaller workshops in which I can work one-on-one with businesses to assist them in preparing an Emergency Operations Plan. In addition, I am sending out a free newsletter to area businesses concerning safety issues.
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Business Service Associates, LLC---Workplace Disasters Seminar
HICKORY, NC - A "Workplace Disaster Awareness" Seminar was held on May 12, 2011 with approximately 50 people from area businesses attending. The material offered by Lynn W. Sigmon was presented in three main sections: Man-Made Disasters, Natural Disasters and Terrorism. The participants were taught what they could expect,how to remain safe during the event, and the steps to take after the disaster was over. The information was based on the Mitigation, Preparedness, Response and Recovery phases taught by FEMA. We also discussed Disaster Kits and supplies needed to survive afterwards, including food and water. Last, we covered the possibility of violent crimes and how they could affect our businesses, and the need for every entity to be trained to be able to Lockdown their facility at a moment's notice.
We also enjoyed an informal Panel Discussion. The panel was made up of Terri Byers, a Fire Prevention Officer from our local fire department, Captain Alton Price from our local sheriff's department, David Garrison, Regional Director and Susan Anderson, Executive Director of our local Red Cross and Karyn Yaussy, Emergency Management Coordinator in Catawba County, NC. The discussion was lively, with participants interested in what the professionals had to say about the disasters relevant to our area. Our Red Cross Regional Director had just returned from Japan after their earthquake and tsunami, and he told some very heart-warming stories.
I offered a generic Business Emergency Operation Manual prepared for participants to review, which included things like a Vulnerability Analysis and procedures for staying safe during various disasters. Special guests at the seminar included Danny Hearn, President of the Catawba County Chamber of Commerce, and Sue Simpson, CERT past president from Charlotte, NC.
The evaluation feedback I received from participants and guests was very positive, and everyone was given a copy of the PowerPoint presentation for future use, along with other materials provided by local agencies.
I truly had high expectations for this seminar, and I am happy to say they were met, ("WHAT DID YOU EXPECT"© 2010). I will continue to conduct this same seminar through my business, Business Service Associates, LLC. I am also working on smaller workshops in which I can work one-on-one with businesses to assist them in preparing an Emergency Operations Plan. In addition, I am sending out a free newsletter to area businesses concerning safety issues.
Friday, September 2, 2011
FYI: Haiti study: Mass mobile phone tracking
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2011/09/01/haiti_mobile_tracking_natural_disasters/
http://www.plosmedicine.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pmed.1001083
http://www.plosmedicine.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pmed.1001083
Haiti study: Mass mobile phone tracking can be laudable
You'll wish the gov had huge snoop powers - in a quake
Posted in Mobile, 1st September 2011 09:01 GMT
A new study uses the movements of mobile phones during the Haiti earthquake, and cholera epidemic, to accurately show where people went during the disasters, and where help should be delivered.
Studying location data stored by Haiti's biggest network operator, Digicel, Swedish boffins got more accurate estimates of population movements over the period of both earthquake and epidemic than rescue workers on the ground, demonstrating the value of anonymous real-time tracking during national disasters.
The research is published in the peer-reviewed PLoS Medicine journal, and provides a detailed breakdown of the data gathered by the Swedish researchers (one of whom was American, to be fair).
It might seem obvious that the location of every mobile phone would tell you where the population was, but proving that required extensive analysis of the data, as well as adjustments for the penetration of mobile telephones and the demographic differences involved.
The first problem is that not everyone in Haiti has a mobile. The earthquake study tracked 1.9 million SIMs, having discarded numbers that had not made a call in the preceding month (to exclude rescue workers) and those that did not make a call afterwards (euphemistically described as "lost").
Around 200,000 of those SIMs exited Port-au-Prince following the earthquake, which, given the mobile penetration of just under one-third, multiplies up to 630,000 people leaving the capital.
That tallies well with official UN figures, compiled through questionnaires following the disaster, but diverges from estimates made at the time (which were based on a counting of buses on the roads exiting the town).
Even more interesting were the results from the cholera epidemic, which were compiled in less than 12 hours and demonstrated that such a process could provide real-time advice to healthcare workers and governments in containing and treating, as well as tracking, outbreaks.
The researchers suggest that localised SMS could have been used to advise people within affected areas, or to discourage them from travelling elsewhere, as well as to let the authorities know where problems might surface next.
That does, of course, require close integration between the operators' systems and those of the government, which will make many people uncomfortable. Real-time tracking, even by cell site, would have been valuable (for example) to the police during the recent UK riots. That data is already being used retrospectively to work out where people were, and with better integration it could show where people are.
The Chinese government recently launched a research project working out how such data could be effectively used in urban planning and traffic management, but if it were to be available in real-time it could also be used to police demonstrations, football matches and all sorts.
This needn't be an invasion of privacy – anonymous data is still valuable – but we have to decide, as a society, if we think that allowing governments access to the location of their citizens is a risk worth taking in exchange for the benefits it gives. ®
Studying location data stored by Haiti's biggest network operator, Digicel, Swedish boffins got more accurate estimates of population movements over the period of both earthquake and epidemic than rescue workers on the ground, demonstrating the value of anonymous real-time tracking during national disasters.
The first problem is that not everyone in Haiti has a mobile. The earthquake study tracked 1.9 million SIMs, having discarded numbers that had not made a call in the preceding month (to exclude rescue workers) and those that did not make a call afterwards (euphemistically described as "lost").
Around 200,000 of those SIMs exited Port-au-Prince following the earthquake, which, given the mobile penetration of just under one-third, multiplies up to 630,000 people leaving the capital.
That tallies well with official UN figures, compiled through questionnaires following the disaster, but diverges from estimates made at the time (which were based on a counting of buses on the roads exiting the town).
Even more interesting were the results from the cholera epidemic, which were compiled in less than 12 hours and demonstrated that such a process could provide real-time advice to healthcare workers and governments in containing and treating, as well as tracking, outbreaks.
The researchers suggest that localised SMS could have been used to advise people within affected areas, or to discourage them from travelling elsewhere, as well as to let the authorities know where problems might surface next.
That does, of course, require close integration between the operators' systems and those of the government, which will make many people uncomfortable. Real-time tracking, even by cell site, would have been valuable (for example) to the police during the recent UK riots. That data is already being used retrospectively to work out where people were, and with better integration it could show where people are.
The Chinese government recently launched a research project working out how such data could be effectively used in urban planning and traffic management, but if it were to be available in real-time it could also be used to police demonstrations, football matches and all sorts.
This needn't be an invasion of privacy – anonymous data is still valuable – but we have to decide, as a society, if we think that allowing governments access to the location of their citizens is a risk worth taking in exchange for the benefits it gives. ®
FYI: Volunteers Help Rebuild Hackleburg
Rebuilding is underway in Alabama following the April 2011 tornadoes and severe storms. Habitat for Humanity and AmeriCorps volunteers are working in Hackleburg to erect new housing. Voluntary agencies are a vital partner in helping communities recover after a disaster. For more updates on ongoing recovery efforts in Alabama, visit the state's disaster page http://go.usa.gov/b84.
Length: 1:46
FYI: 7.1 magnitude earthquake strikes off Alaska
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44370205/ns/us_news-environment/
7.1 magnitude earthquake strikes off Alaska
A tsunami warning is in effect for parts of the Aleutian Islands of Alaska after a 7.1-magnitude earthquake was recorded in the ocean.
7.1 magnitude earthquake strikes off Alaska
Tsunami warning issued for Aleutian Islands
A tsunami warning is in effect for parts of the Aleutian Islands of Alaska after a 7.1-magnitude earthquake was recorded in the ocean.
The U.S. Geological Survey said the earthquake struck in the waters at about 6:55 a.m. ET, and there are no initial reports of injuries or damage.
The tsunami warning is in effect for coastal areas of Alaska from Unimak Pass to Amchitka Pass.
The areas are very remote and not heavily populated, according to Jessica Sigala, a geophysicist with the USGS in Golden, Colo.
Reuters reported that The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said it did not see a threat of a widespread destructive tsunami.
The quake struck 107 miles southeast of Atka, Alaska, at a depth of 22.1 miles.
FYI: Disaster No-Go For Elk Grove Village, Illinois
http://www.journal-topics.com/news/article_f5623102-d4cc-11e0-b486-0019bb30f31a.html
Disaster No-Go For Elk Grove Village
Posted: Thursday, September 1, 2011 1:57 pm | Updated: 3:29 pm, Thu Sep 1, 2011.
Elk Grove Village Mayor Craig Johnson expressed disappointment upon learning the Illinois Emergency Management Agency (IEMA) would not declare a disaster for heavy flooding that occurred on July 23.No disaster declaration means no county, state or federal assistance to the village for flood damages and no financial assistance to residents whose damages exceed their insurance costs.
Cook County Dept. of Homeland Security and Emergency Management Executive Director Michael Masters told the Journal IEMA's review found damages from the July 23 storm "insufficient for the process to move forward for federal assistance."
Elk Grove Village submitted a report to county department late last month saying 96 properties, 84 single-family homes, 10 multi-family residential buildings and two commercial or industrial properties saw basement flooding; and 33 properties suffered water damage up to the first floor, including 11 single-family homes, two multi-family properties, eight industrial, five commercial and six office units. Twelve properties also experienced other storm damage to vehicles, storage units and trees.
Because the City of Chicago's damages from the July 23 storm were minimal, the county and state did not reach the financial threshold of damage to qualify as a disaster area, according to well-informed sources.
FYI: Haiti: Market Inauguation
www.flickr.com
The U.S. Government, through USAID, inaugurated a market in Acul du Nord. The market was built in partnership with the Acul du Nord municipality as part of the U.S. Government's investment in Haiti's Northern region.
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