Sometimes, I get to meet a new friend…Cooper!
Hello there.
Just trying to make friends out here.
A new friend
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Author Archives: rusnivek
Friday helmet safety checks!
It’s Friday, so who knows what’s in store for the weekend. So it’s prob a good time to check our equipment and see if everything is working.
Early on, one of the issues my staff brought up to me was that our helmets were expired. So I did some checking around and found that yes, indeed, they were all past expiration.
Did some research on about 15 different helmets for our work with DOE and other partner agencies.
I sought concurrence with safety standards, fit, weight, comfort, and of course coolness. Our team settled on this one.
Glad to make sure everyone is back within regulation.
Reporting live from the office…
Day-3 of ICS-300 here at Argonne
Starting off the third day of ICS-300: Intermediate ICS with our partners from across the state.
We are fortunate to have the IEMA-OHS Region-4 Regional Coordinator Jason L. pop in and reinforce the partnerships between state and Federal partners here in Illinois.
Man, I knew Jason before he got hired at Cook County EMRS. While I did not work at the state during his time, I am glad that he has solid relationships with many partners. As you know, Region-4 has the biggest population density of any regions in Illinois.
During day-3, we talk a ton about resources, assets, personal, accountability, etc….so one of the outstanding resources we have is our communications teams. First person that comes to mind is my good friend John Nebl.
I knew John before I moved to Illinois decades ago.
As usual, John brings the heat when it comes to radios and IntraOperability.
John was also able to muster up the regional communications assets that we would be pinging on the first outsets of any cell/network crisis.
The fact, that these resources are located in DuPage County is an incredible help. Cell networks, radio caches, phone banks, immediate patching and connectivity….man this team does it all!
Admittedly, I knew of this team as I worked at DuPage County OHSEM back in the day and I am very well aware of the efforts and skills of all these COM-Ls and COM-Ts.
Outstanding to have them onsite with us and a great partnership effort to learn about resources/apparatus that would be used during any disaster/emergency.
Proud to bring our senior staff out too. It’s all about concreting the collaborative efforts BEFORE a disaster. And if we can utilize shared resources from the State’s STR assets, all the better.
Thanks again to our partners from IEMA-OHS and DuPage County OHSEM.
Reporting live from the shadows of the UCP and RapComm-4…
Day-2 of ICS-300
Starting off the second day with lots of convos on IAPs and critical forms that are needed for those onscene.
BTW-if you are looking for a link with all the FEMA ICS forms, you can find the most up-to-date ones here: https://training.fema.gov/icsresource/icsforms.asp.
IEMA-OHS Region-2 SDS Steve B. background from the wildfire community is outstanding and is a great example of how flexible the ICS system is all about.
We talked about specialized resources and the importance of putting supervisors in positions with background to handle the resources correctly.
We also briefed out on several scenarios that we could be put into with our public safety partners.
Sometimes, it’s awkward to pretend and use fictitious scenarios, but all the ESSD scenarios from FEMA are from real world incidents.
Yes, it’s Central City, but the State of Columbiana is always in trouble.
At the end of the day, just gotta make sure the markers are up for a fun Thursday surprise for everyone.
Always seems easy, but teaching days make for long days.
I am thankful for my staff to support these initiatives I’ve laid out to better position us for success.
Reporting live from the AHJ…
Debut ICS-300: Intermediate ICS course here at Argonne
First times the charm!
Welcome to the first ICS-300 class here at Argonne!
Introductions by our Division Director Mike P.
Proud to have participants from across the state attending. And for the first time at Argonne, we are super excited to see participants from local, county, state, and Federal agencies here.
That truly speaks to the collaborative nature of safety efforts for everyone.
Also happy to see IEMA-OHS Region-3 Regional Coordinator Lisa with us this morning too.
IEMA-OHS Region-3 covers all the greater Chicagoland suburbs and towns, but they do border Argonne so we mainly work closely with Region-4 and Region-3.
Proud to have Maria P. on my staff with me as we are fully capable and vetted to teach ICS classes.
And yes, if you were wondering, I’ve known Lisa and Maria well before I worked for the state.
Day-1 and we’re already putting everyone to work as we try to get everyone on the same page and same S.M.A.R.T. objectives.
Sometimes, these classes get drab esp if we only lecture so we almost immediately get everyone doing group work to foster more ideas.
This all-hazards approach to planning and solutions make it easier to digest the materials esp the tedious ones.
Proud to bring these courses to Argonne and proud of the partnerships many have already build here. I see fit to continue to empower all of our bestest partners in safety.
Look, I’ve only been here for 5 months, but the plans are starting to come together. #ArgonneEM
Reporting live from the Argonne Analytic Cell/EOC2…
The USSS has been pretty busy…
I see my friends at the USSS have been pretty busy in NYC thwarting a cyber threat.
Folks-just remember, if you see something, say something.
With all the activities of the UN in NYC, this kind of disruptions would have easily caused some serious issues. Not only politics, but the safety of millions could have been affected.
My neighbor Robin always says that it takes a village. And in this case, if it looks odd, I would encourage you to err on the side of caution.
Reporting live from my faraday cage…
Painting crosswalks?
If you ever wondered how the city paints the crosswalks in the third largest city in the US, here you go.
In the busy parts of the city, you can’t shut down roads for days, but you can paint really really fast!
Shout out to all the public works pros out there who are trying their hardest to keep up with the 24/7 demands.
Reporting live from the heart of Chicago…
Robots in the neighborhood
We are starting to see more of these autonomous robots delivering food and items in the neighborhood.
While a cool piece of technology and innovation, I think there are more broad implications that we could capitalize on…esp during a disaster/emergency.
While we can’t rely totally on resources like this, we could take the position to send it and if it does yield any results, that was better than previous.
But the COORDINATION of assets like this will be critical to manage and prioritize esp in a disaster/emergency.
Looking forward to deploying out safety resources like this soon.
Reporting live from the robot filled streets in Chicago…
Friday night lights?
Just another Friday night in Chicago.
While I get that it’s Friday, I would recommend you stay safe and do all the good things.
Warm weather usually means higher call volumes and increased safety hazards and risks.
Make good decisions.
Reporting live tonight from the street…
Providing more HAZMAT safety and nuke trainings
My outstanding Emergency Management staff presenting on HAZMAT and nuclear hazards.
Just another day-in-the-life of our Emergency Management…
Reporting live from our security training room…
Where is @rusnivek? 