Virginia Department of Emergency Management, EM UPDATE, Issued Biweekly for the Virginia Emergency Management Community

Jan. 28, 2009

Emergency Action Plan Annex template available
VDEM’s Preparedness Division has created a Emergency Action Plan Annex planning template for local governments. Although dam owners are responsible for making emergency action plans and emergency preparedness plans in the event of dam failure, local governments need to develop compatible plans to warn and evacuate the public in the event of dam failure.

The template offers dam safety regulations, realms of responsibility, classifications and emergency stages, and a place to record local dam registries and contact information. This template can assist localities with the planning process; localities should review and modify all items to fit their specific needs.

The template is available at http://www.vdem.state.va.us/library/plans/local_eop.cfm.

National Exercise Simulation Center opens
FEMA has opened the new National Exercise Simulation Center to support joint planning, training and exercising at the federal, regional, state and local levels. The NESC is designed to be a scalable, flexible simulation center to accommodate a wide range of services, including executive briefings, unique training events, simulations, and Master Control Cell and National Simulation Cell exercises.

The NESC will serve as a central point of all-hazard emergency preparedness and will:

  • Provide 24-hour support for federal, state and local exercises throughout the nation and internationally, such as Radiological Emergency Preparedness Program exercises and the National Level Exercise 2009.
  • Provide a forum for interagency planners to test all-hazard plans by providing realistic scenarios so that partners can identify gaps and solutions.
  • Provide technical modeling and simulation tools that help planners to better visualize potential scenarios.

The NESC helps to fulfill the 2006 Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act, which called for the establishment of a coordination center that uses live, virtual and constructive simulations. More information is available at http://www.fema.gov/.

Report cites communication failures during Katrina
The Public Affairs Research Council of Louisiana has released a report that examines some of the recovery misconceptions state and local officials continue to face more than three years after hurricanes Katrina and Rita hit the Gulf States. “GulfGov Reports: Three Years after Katrina and Rita, Challenges Remain” presents several misconceptions, such as:

  • Misconception: With so much federal money involved, massive fraud and misuse of funds were inevitable in Louisiana and Mississippi.
    Reality: There have been instances of fraud and abuse, but not to the degree feared by many, and federal, state and local authorities have been aggressive in their efforts both to prevent fraud and to prosecute it.
  • Misconception: Disasters of this scale devastate state revenues.
    Reality: There is an initial loss of revenue before recovery work begins, but then revenues increase sharply.

The report cites a lack of communication among local, state and federal levels of government as the source for the delay in response efforts, as well as the reason why so many rumors have emerged.

The Public Affairs Research Council of Louisiana is a private, nonprofit research organization that focuses public attention on public issues in Louisiana through independent research.

The full report is available at http://www.la-par.org.

Twenty Virginia localities now StormReady
The National Weather Service recognized Bedford County and the city of Williamsburg in its "StormReady" program, adding the localities to its list of more than 1,325 qualified localities in the United States, Puerto Rico and Guam. In the Commonwealth, these localities join the StormReady counties of Arlington, Campbell, Chesterfield, Fairfax, Gloucester, Greene, Loudoun, Page and Prince William and the cities of Chesapeake, Danville, Hampton, Newport News, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Richmond and Virginia Beach. The city of Norfolk is StormReady as well as TsunamiReady. The voluntary program encourages emergency planners to develop severe weather and flood response plans that meet standards set forth by the NWS and state and local emergency managers. The standards include establishing a 24-hour warning point or emergency operations center, conducting community outreach seminars, developing response plans that include exercises, and training weather spotters.

Visit the StormReady site at http://www.stormready.noaa.gov/.

Training…

Creating Vigilant, Prepared and Resilient Communities for Homeland Security
Mar. 23-24 in Disputanta, Va.
Mar. 26-27 in Lynchburg, Va.
This free, two-day course will address the strategies and skills necessary to build prepared communities through classroom discussion, problem-based learning, hands-on activities and practical demonstrations. The training, sponsored by the Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services, is open to government, private sector and nonprofit personnel.

Online registration is available online at http://www.dcjs.virginia.gov/trainingEvents/.

IS-800.b group training materials available
Group training materials for the Emergency Management Institute’s IS-800.b, “National Response Framework: An Introduction,” are now available online at http://training.fema.gov/emiweb/is/is800b.asp. In addition, group training final exams for IS-100.a, IS-200.a and IS-800.b are available from EMI’s Independent Study Office at (301) 447-1200. OpScan answer sheets and delivery processing forms are available at http://training.fema.gov.

Downloadable materials for IS 700.a will be available in the future.


All three classes are available online at http://training.fema.gov/is.

Conferences…

National Radiological Preparedness Conference
April 20-23, at the Norfolk Marriott Waterside

The 19th annual National Radiological Preparedness Conference will provide radiological emergency planners and responders an opportunity to share best practices, solutions and innovations. In addition to 26 conference sessions, the National REP will offer three pre-conference workshops and a night out at the Nauticus Museum.

Online registration is available at http://www.nationalrep.org.
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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