Mar. 26, 2009
VEMC offers in-service credits
The 2009 Virginia Emergency Management Conference has been approved by the Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services for Law Enforcement In-Service Credits to qualified attendees. Law Enforcement personnel can receive 14 hours of Career Development/Elective credits plus an additional 1.5 hours of Legal credit if they attend the conference's Legal Track. Attendees wishing to receive credit can pick up a DCJS PIC-3 form at the conference Information Desk.
This year's VEMC is March 31 – April 3 at the Hampton Roads Convention Center. Registration is available at http://www.vemaweb.org/.
Virginia’s Hurricane Preparedness Sales Tax Holiday
All Virginians should take steps to prepare their families for any emergency by getting an emergency supply kit, making an emergency plan and staying informed about the hazards that could affect their area. Detailed instructions for getting ready for emergencies are online at http://www.ReadyVirginia.gov.
The General Assembly established an annual sales tax holiday to ease the cost of creating an emergency supply kit. From May 25 through May 31, the purchase of certain items is exempt from the Commonwealth’s sales and use taxes. Customers may use manufacturer’s coupons to lower the price of an item so that it will qualify for the $60 or $1,000 price cap.
Items include bottled water, flashlights, battery-powered radios, batteries and first aid kits. The entire list of tax-free items is available at http://www.tax.virginia.gov/site.cfm?alias=HurricanePreparednessEquipmentHoliday.
2009 Virginia Emergency Response Team Exercises
This year’s VERTEX will address the Commonwealth’s response to a human-caused emergency. VERTEX began March 21 with a tabletop exercise, and it will continue May 21 with a full-scale exercise. VERTEX allows response personnel from state and local governments and volunteer groups to role-play their emergency operations functions in order to review and practice the skills needed during an actual emergency.
The Virginia General Assembly mandates VERTEX to occur annually. Last year, VERTEX consisted of a series of eight exercises.
Emergency Watershed Protection Program available to landowners
The U.S. Department of Agriculture has announced that $145 million is available through the Natural Resource Conservation Service’s Emergency Watershed Protection Program. This program allows the NRCS to purchase qualified easements on any floodplain lands that have been impaired within the last 12 months or that have a history of repeated flooding (i.e., flooded at least two times during the past 10 years). The EWPP lets a landowner sell to the NRCS a permanent conservation easement that provides the NRCS with the full authority to restore and enhance the floodplain’s functions and values.
The sign-up period ends March 27. More details and sign-up information are available at http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/programs/ewp/Floodplain/index.html.
Campus CERT Train-the-Trainer
The Campus CERT Train-the-Trainer Course will be offered May 19-21 on the Virginia Commonwealth University campus. Campus CERT builds upon the basic Community Emergency Response Team curriculum and includes information and guidelines for teaching and implementing CERT in the unique context of the campus community. Topics include program planning, funding sources, recruiting, training, supervision, team member retention and legal concerns, with a variety of hands-on practical exercises.
This course is for anyone who might be called upon to train or lead campus CERT teams, or who might teach CERT as a college course. Graduates of Campus or Teen CERT Train-the-Trainer courses are qualified to teach the basic classroom CERT curriculum.
Prior to attending, applicants are expected to complete IS 100, 200, 700, 800 and Basic CERT training. Online versions of these classes are available at http://training.fema.gov/IS/crslist.asp.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Michigan State University’s School of Criminal Justice, the Institute for Infrastructure and Information Assurance at James Madison University, Northern Virginia Community College, VCU and VDEM are presenting the class. Details and registration are available online at http://www.vaemergency.com/train/calendar_course.cfm?id=90. The deadline for registration is May 4.
Conferences...
Virginia Hazmat conference
The Virginia Hazardous Materials Conference and Expo, “HazMat Synergy: Working Smarter during Tough Times” is set for Oct. 19-21. The conference will provide workshop content that can be applied to the annual training hours required of hazardous materials response personnel. In addition, conference planners will not raise the price of registration and offer individual scholarships to cover member’s costs to attend and grants for hazmat teams to send their members.
The Virginia Association of Hazardous Materials Response Specialists and VDEM co-sponsor the annual conference. For more information, visit http://www.virginiahazmat.org/index.cfm.
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.
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by the Virginia Department of Emergency Management
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