Disaster Preparedness Daily News

Posts Tagged ‘disaster preparation’

Every year in the U.S., unplanned emergencies occur. Floods, fires, hurricanes and the like cost businesses and industry in terms of lives and dollars. Knowing what to do in an emergency is crucial for every business to maintain operations and preserve a productive workforce.

Every year in the U.S., unplanned emergencies occur. Floods, fires, hurricanes and the like cost businesses and industry in terms of lives and dollars. Knowing what to do in an emergency is crucial for every business to maintain operations and preserve a productive workforce.

In its continuing goal of providing valuable workplace health and safety training, Mastery Technologies, Inc., announces the release of a new safety course, Emergency Preparedness. The interactive training - with video produced by Minneapolis-based Comprehensive Loss Management, Inc., a leader in custom safety training courseware and video services - is available on the Web, Intranet, or CD. Read the rest of this entry »

Weather monitoring is critical to optimizing disaster preparedness as shown in this case study based on a State of Arizona HazMat training exercise.
Weather can be both a cause of natural disasters and a hazard in responding to them. A State of Arizona HazMat training exercise illustrates how weather monitoring is pertinent to optimizing disaster preparedness. Consider how your agency measures up in this department by reading “Lessons Learned from a HazMat Exercise,” the white paper just released from Columbia Weather Systems, Inc.

This case study details how specific weather parameters effect disaster response and recovery and how emergency managers can optimize their investment in weather monitoring technology. It provides tips for incorporating weather factors into disaster plans and decision aids to improve responder safety.

CWS manufactures the Orion and Capricorn weather stations which are used by hundreds of public safety agencies to monitor weather and disseminate information for disaster preparedness and emergency management. CWS weather stations include fixed-mount, vehicle-mount, and portable configurations with powerful display and software options for simultaneous weather data display at all echelons of command.

The white paper can be viewed and downloaded at
http://www.columbiaweather.com/ArizonaExercise.html.

The Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) will evaluate a Biennial Emergency Preparedness Exercise at the Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant. The exercise, which will be held during the week of October 19, will test Maryland’s ability to respond to an emergency at the nuclear facility.

“These drills are held every other year to test government’s ability to protect public health and safety,” said Patricia Arcuri, Acting Regional Administrator for FEMA Region III. “We will evaluate state and local emergency response capabilities within the 10-mile emergency-planning zone of the nuclear facility.”

Within 90 days, FEMA will send their evaluation to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for use in licensing decisions. The final report will be available to the public about 120 days after the exercise.

FEMA will present preliminary findings of the exercise in a public meeting at 12:00 p.m. on October 27 at the Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant Joint Information Center, 100 Skipjack Road, Prince Frederick, Md. Scheduled speakers include representatives from FEMA, NRC, and the state of Maryland.

FEMA’s mission is to support our citizens and first responders to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain, and improve our capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from, and mitigate all hazards. Region III covers Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia.