EM Update: Nov. 7, 2007


Nov. 7, 2007
South Korea chooses Virginia's training program The Korean National Disaster Management Institute has chosen the Commonwealth to provide all hazards preparedness training to its emergency managers. Approximately 20 South Korean emergency managers have arrived in Virginia to participate along with Virginian emergency managers in classes and a Senior Leader Seminar. The Republic of South Korea is funding the training, travel and lodging costs during their 14-day visit. Emergency managers from South Korea have attended VDEM training classes since 2004, and in 2007, NDMI signed a renewable, two-year memorandum of agreement with the Commonwealth that VDEM would provide training to all its personnel. To date, students from Korea have participated in 10 VDEM emergency management classes. Localities urged to update drought contingency plans Due to the persistent drought that has intensified over the past six weeks, all local governments should review existing local ordinances requiring mandatory non-essential water use restrictions. It is likely that these ordinances will be required in the spring of 2008. Any locality that has not adopted such ordinances should consider doing so. All local ordinances should be consistent with the mandatory non-essential water use restrictions contained in the Virginia Drought Assessment and Response Plan. In addition, all executive branch agencies should review existing drought water conservation and contingency plans or develop new plans and eliminate all non-essential water uses. In areas where local water conservation requirements have not been initiated, citizens and businesses should voluntarily conserve water to the greatest extent possible. This includes minimizing non-essential outdoor water uses such as irrigation and vehicle washing as well as reductions in indoor water uses. The U.S. Secretary of Agriculture has declared the entire Commonwealth an agricultural drought disaster area; all Virginia localities are now eligible for federal disaster assistance to address agricultural drought impacts. New grant information e-mail alerts VDEM's Homeland Security Grants Office now offers an e-mail alert service. Subscribers can choose the type of information they'd like to receive: All Grants Information State Homeland Security Grant Program Hampton Roads - Urban Area Security Initiative Grants National Capitol Region - Urban Area Security Initiative Grants Emergency Management Related Grants Law Enforcement Related Grants Firefighting Related Grants Transportation Security Related Grants Emergency Medical Services Related Grants Health Related Grants Sign up for alerts at http://www.vaemergency.com/grants/index.cfm. FEMA Region III Regional Advisory Committee announced Federal Emergency Management Agency Region III has formed a Regional Advisory Committee, consisting of local and state emergency management professionals who will advise Regional Administrator Jonathan Sarubbi on all aspects of emergency management in the mid-Atlantic. Virginia appointees include: Chief Richard Burch, Chief of Fire and Rescue, Roanoke County Fire and Rescue Hui-Shan Walker, Deputy Coordinator, Emergency Services, Chesapeake Office of Emergency Management Harry Colestock, Director of Operations, VDEM Suzanne Simmons, Volunteer Coordination Program Manager, VDEM White House releases HSPD-21 The White House has released Homeland Security Presidential Directive 21, "Public Health and Medical Preparedness." The directive establishes a National Strategy for Public Health and Medical Preparedness, which builds upon principles set forth in "Biodefense for the 21st Century" (April 2004) and will transform the national approach to protecting the health of Americans against all disasters. HSPD-21 is available at http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2007/10/20071018-10.html. Pet evacuation and sheltering reimbursement policy The Federal Emergency Management Agency has released policy related to reimbursement to localities for pet disaster response. "Eligible Costs Related to Pet Evacuations and Sheltering" outlines the expenses related to state and local governments' emergency pet evacuation and sheltering efforts eligible for reimbursement following a major disaster declaration. The PETS Act passed by the U.S. Congress last year authorizes FEMA to provide rescue, care, shelter and essential needs for individuals and their household pet and service animals following a major disaster. For more information about the policy, contact Stuart Perkins, Policy & Planning Specialist at the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, at Stuart.Perkins@vdacs.virginia.gov. Fairfax County CERT trains area Boy Scouts Members of the Fairfax County Community Emergency Response Team trained Boy Scouts at the George Mason District BSA "Camporee," Oct. 13-14 at the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Academy. The event focused on methods of effective disaster preparedness and mitigation, with a simulated hurricane recovery center that helped scouts earn emergency preparedness merit badges. CERT subject matter experts led scouts through various training and response scenarios and served as command and control staff, moulage technicians and logistical preparation staff. School emergency preparedness resources U.S. Education Secretary Margaret Spellings, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff and Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez released a set of guidelines to help educators and parents interpret federal privacy laws in an initiative prompted by the mass shooting at Virginia Tech. The Department of Education also released three brochures on privacy laws: one for K-12 educators, one for colleges and one for parents. They will be sent to schools, school boards and education associations. A press conference for the initiative "Creating a Culture of Preparedness Among Schools" took place at Mt. Vernon High School in Alexandria, Va., with student representatives from the Fairfax County Fire and Emergency Medical Services Science program and the Fairfax County Citizen Corps Council. A complete DHS list of emergency preparedness resources for schools is available at http://www.dhs.gov/schoolpreparedness. Exercises... Unified Response 07 The Region 3 Tabletop Exercise and Point of Dispensing Drill, Oct. 27 in Campbell County, enabled participants to gain an understanding of the issues and challenges that the public health, emergency management, medical, legal and public safety communities could face during a response to a pandemic influenza outbreak. Associated with the tabletop exercise, the Central Virginia Health Department conducted a drill to activate and operate a Point of Distribution Center. Winter Fury 07 The Region 4 Tabletop Exercise and Drill, Nov. 2-3 in Galax, focused on recovery and sheltering issues following an ice storm. The exercise examined communications, emergency response coordination, evacuation, sheltering and regional multi-agency response. Participating agencies included emergency management, emergency response, human services and hospitals. The drills tested the Twin County Regional Hospital Center's medical surge capabilities while simultaneously testing Galax's sheltering and mass care capability at the Galax Community Recreation Center. Training... Energetic Materials Research and Testing Center training The Energetic Materials Research and Testing Center at New Mexico Tech conducts training for first responders under a cooperative agreement with the Department of Homeland Security. Incident Response to Terrorist Bombings and Prevention and Response to Suicide Bombing Incidents have been approved by DHS and are provided to first responders in the public sector at state and local levels at no cost to the participant or agency. Two classes provide presentations, field laboratories and practical exercises specifically designed for first responders: Incident Response to Terrorist Bombings IRTB is designed for those who might respond to incidents involving explosives. Participants will be able to identify commercial and military explosives, improvised explosive devices, and readily available explosive formulations that terrorists have or could use. Prevention and Response to Suicide Bombing Incidents PRSBI provides the knowledge and skill to develop policies, procedures, training and operational capabilities to prevent, respond to, and mitigate the effects of a suicide bombing. Participants must be senior level decision makers in state and local police, fire, emergency medical services, and emergency management operations. Courses are completely sponsored by the Department of Homeland Security's Office of State and Local Government Coordination and Preparedness. Course information and applications are available at http://respond.emrtc.nmt.edu. Public Transportation Emergency Preparedness Workshop This free workshop, Jan. 15-16 in Richmond, is an opportunity for local and state emergency managers to coordinate with transit and transportation systems in their areas. Instructor presentations, interactive exercises and small-group activities will help participants to start dialogues about their existing disaster plans and to identify steps to improve local and regional preparedness. For more information about the class, contact Senior Program Coordinator Frank Veneziale at the National Transit Institute at (732) 932-1700 ext. 251. Registration is available at http://www.connectingcommunities.net. Rapid Response Training Multi-Agency Response to Avian Influenza in the United States This free, one-day conference, Nov. 28 in Richmond, will help participants to: Identify the potential for human health problems associated with cases of highly pathogenic avian influenza in poultry Learn how to minimize the spread of further human infection Provide guidance to individuals to protect responders against infection and minimize the risk of viral re-assortment Provide guidance to multi-disciplinary rapid response teams The Virginia departments of Health, Agriculture and Consumer Services, Game and Inland Fisheries, Environmental Quality, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture are sponsoring the class. To register, contact Dr. Catherine McManus at (804) 864-8133 or catherine.mcmanus@vdh.virginia.gov. The deadline to register is Nov. 26. Homeland Security Planning for Campus Executives Individuals who do not have experience in security planning and are responsible for their campus's homeland security plan will have the opportunity to learn from individuals who do have planning experience. Developed for DHS, the workshop provides a basic overview of homeland security planning and provides useful resources and tools. The class is Nov. 30 at the Virginia Beach Convention Center. Course registration is limited to two applicants per college or university; class size is limited to 50. Qualifying registrants will receive lunch, snacks and a one-night stay at the Virginia Beach Double Tree Hotel on Nov. 29. The city of Virginia Beach Office of Emergency Management and VDEM are sponsoring the workshop. Registration is available at http://www.vaemergency.com/train/calendar_course.cfm?id=97.
Subscribe to EM Update	View EM Update Archives
EM Update is the best way to communicate best practices and to get a heads up on issues that might affect you. Articles include case studies, cost/resource-saving local programs, examples of partnerships and regional cooperation and recognition of emergency managers who receive awards and honors in the field. Please don't hesitate to contact the editor whenever you have a project that might benefit localities or want to highlight an important issue concerning Virginia's emergency response community. Contact Jolie Shank at (804) 897-6510 or by e-mail at pio@vdem.virginia.gov.
Produced by the Virginia Department of Emergency Management 10501 Trade Court, Richmond, Virginia 23236