Patrick County fire
A wildfire that started April 14 in Patrick County and burned nearly 4,000 acres has been contained. The fire received a federal declaration for fire management assistance and the Virginia Emergency Operations Center went to Increased Readiness status to assist the state departments of Forestry, Fire Programs, Transportation and local and state agencies with fire suppression and evacuation efforts. The Virginia National Guard deployed 46 soldiers to assist in operations at Bull Mountain after Gov. Tim Kaine declared a state of emergency on April 15. Situation reports and a map of the area are available online.

Interoperability grants
The State Homeland Security Grant Program has awarded $2 million to Virginia localities to support local interoperability projects. The State Interoperability Executive Committee, made up of local first responder representatives, assessed 38 proposals and awarded funds to projects in 28 localities. Virginia is the only state in the country with such a committee, and the Department of Homeland Security's SAFECOM program recognizes Virginia interoperability efforts as a best practices model.

Hazard mitigation grant for Gloucester County
Gloucester County will receive more than $1 million through the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Hazard Mitigation Grant Program to pay for elevating 19 homes and buying and demolishing five others impacted by Hurricane Isabel. FEMA will pay $1,033,684, 75 percent of the project costs. State funds will make up 20 percent and local funds will provide the remaining five percent. The program funds projects that will reduce or eliminate future disaster losses from either public or private property. Projects must provide a long-term solution to a problem. In addition, a project's potential savings must be more than the cost of implementing the project.

Master exercise practitioners
Two members of VDEM's Preparedness, Training and Exercises Division staff have achieved certification as Master Exercise Practitioners. Hampton Hart, Commonwealth exercise training officer, and Dee Hayes, exercise training support specialist, completed the course in March. The Federal Emergency Management's Emergency Management Master Exercise Practitioner Program consists of three classes that teach students:

• how to develop, conduct, evaluate and follow up basic and full-scale exercises
• fundamental requirements and evaluation of an overall exercise program
• how to construct sound exercise planning documents
• a team approach to major accomplishments in the exercise process

Students demonstrate their proficiency through classroom discussion and exercise activities. Only 400 individuals nationwide have achieved this certification, which is open to local, state and federal emergency managers whose duties include conducting exercises.

VEMC presentations
PowerPoint™ presentations shown at the 2006 Virginia Emergency Management Conference are now available online in PDF format. Presentations include:

• "2006 Hurricane Season: What have we learned from the past and what might we see in the future?" by Chris Landsea, Ph. D., National Hurricane Center
• "Managing Civil Disorder During a Disaster" by Captain Darrin Peterson, Biloxi, Mississippi Police Department
• "Law Enforcement Response During 2005 Hurricane Season" by Chief Peter Paulding, Gulf Breeze, Florida Police Department
• "Harrison County, Mississippi: Effect of Katrina, Aftermath, Recovery" by General Benjamin "Joe" Spraggins, director of Emergency Management, Harrison County, Mississippi
  

National Public Safety Telecommunications Week
Recently, National Public Safety Telecommunications Week honored the thousands of men and women who respond to emergency calls, dispatch emergency professionals and equipment, and render life-saving assistance to citizens around the country. VDEM would like to recognize the telecommunicators who are the emergency point of contact for the Commonwealth of Virginia, connecting the Virginia Emergency Operations Center to local emergency managers throughout the state, to other state agency emergency centers and to emergency management partners at the federal level. They work 24 hours a day, seven days a week to coordinate day-to-day operations of emergency alerting, hazardous materials response, search and rescue operations, and regional helicopter medical evacuations.

• Chris Bruce
• Jennifer Farrell
• Barry Gaulding
• Jim Griffin
• Jeanne Hall
• Valencia Johnson
• Thelma Peele
• Parker Winborne

Training...
Mitigation Planning Workshop
This course is designed for local government emergency managers and those responsible for developing or implementing mitigation projects. Students will learn the requirements and components of the Stafford Act Section 322 All-hazard Mitigation Plan. Throughout the course, success stories and Virginia "best practices" will highlight the basic principles of mitigation, from damage assessment to successful implementation of mitigation. Class is May 17-18 in Woodbridge.

Family Assistance/Reunification Center demonstration
The UASI-funded NCR Family Assistance/Reunification Center System Plan project is offering an equipment demonstration May 11 from noon to 4 p.m. in Arlington, Va. To facilitate the efficient set-up of these centers during an emergency, the demonstration will feature "FAC in the Box," which includes badging/credentialing, case management, patient tracking/missing persons and inventory capabilities. Emergency managers, law enforcement personnel and ESF 6 (mass care) staff in the NCR are encouraged to participate. Observers from outside the NCR are welcome to attend. Participants will learn about these centers, including their purpose, management procedures and best practices. More information and registration is available online.

Produced by the Virginia Department of Emergency Management
10501 Trade Court, Richmond, Virginia 23236