I like the mountains…I like the clear blue skies…
Reporting live from the State of Colorado Emergency Operations Center…
I like the mountains…
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Tag Archives: Center
Hiya NASA! #OurJourney
Thanks to NASA and the Houston Space Center on the quick tour today.
Houston, Texas
Shuttle stuff is cool!
Not quite the “all glass cockpit” that we are used to seeing in 2016.
Nurturing science and technology will help explore new frontiers. #NASA #Independence #ourjourney
It really is the perfect backdrop for everyone.
Great examples of how science and technology will help explore new frontiers.
Also, so glad to see Challenger crew is still honored in many parts of the campus, staff, and on the tours. On behalf of everyone from Hawaii, this means so much to all of us.
The NASA family lost seven of its own on the morning of Jan. 28, 1986, when a booster engine failed, causing the Shuttle Challenger to break apart just 73 seconds after launch.
What the deuce?
Truly honored.
“We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard.” – JFK September 12, 1962
New technologies for NHC #NatlPrep #Hurricane
10 years ago, Hurricane Katrina ravaged the gulf states.
However, with the advances in technology, the National Hurricane Center has improved their prediction forecast…aka technology has improved to showcase the areas likely to be hit.
Regardless of your location, please prepare for hurricanes.
Yes, three years ago, I was told “…that will never happen here” and “Stop wasting your time.” Soon after, Hurricane Sandy hit Ohio in 2012.
Know where to go. If you are ordered to evacuate, know the local hurricane evacuation route(s) to take and have a plan for where you can stay. Contact your local emergency management agency for more information.
No matter where you are, please prepare for hurricanes.
Don’t wait. Communicate. Make your emergency plan today.
No one wants to be unprepared.
Spin the wheel for #JuryDuty!
On entering the Justice Center from Lakeside Avenue, look to your immediate left.
Back in the day, this all wood contraption was how the courts choose you for jury duty. Yep – a simple spin of the wheel gets you assigned. C’mon Vanna! Heck, I’m even more impressed that someone hasn’t smashed this thing out of frustration.
In all honesty, it’s really amazing how the judicial system has progressed over the years…esp the random population of the pool. From our initial court briefing, they pull potential jurors from voter registration stats because they feel that those who are responsible to vote truly care about the community.
Since we are stuck indoors all day, the view out from the justice center is quite nice.
I wish Amtrak made more daytime stops in Cleveland.
For those that work downtown, Cuyahoga County has done a ton of work with increasing green space.
And since I know all of you want to know, our courtroom is relatively quiet.
Well, it is almost lunch time.
Reporting live on day four in the Jury box!
#JuryDuty has some spectacular views of downtown Cleveland
Downtown Cleveland has some pretty spectacular views of downtown.
Perfect day to be….inside.
Special thanks to Darren Toms on the historical tour at lunch. So much associated with the court system here in NE Ohio.
Ladies and gents….here’s PIO Pro Darren Toms!
Related to my adventures here on #JuryDuty – apparently, I must have said the right things as I was chosen to serve on a criminal case.
Great to see our appointed judge explain the process in detail. This really helps everyone understand the judicial process and the importance of voir dire or Frenchly-translated to say what is true. Lots of questions by potential jurors today.
Appeals court (I wish I was working in this courtroom)
Shhhhh – I gotta pay attention!
Doing my civic duty and reporting live from green chairs in the Justice Center jury booth…
Final FEMA review of the new social media courses #NDPTC
I popped back-to-back-to-back social media classes last week in Sacramento, California.
Participants from all over the west coast attended. Specifically for Thursday and Friday, FEMA reviewed our new curriculum courses. Yep, straight up evaluation. Not going to lie, I was pretty nervous.
Ongoing for course design, I will make a few more additions/changes before courses are sent to the National Training and Exercise Division (NTED) for certification. Hoping for final approval in November 2015. Hope to hear the magical words “Federally published” as my course is listed in the DHS / FEMA Training catalog. Whoa Nellie!
For the classes? We had great interaction from all participants.
Solid discussions during the breakout sessions included professionals from all Emergency Support Functions (ESFs) as well as experts from the National Weather Service (NWS), Critical Infrastructure, and Volunteer Organizations Active in Disasters (VOADs), etc… Diverse groups make for the best discussions for sure!
As part of our continued efforts in Emergency Management, it is imperative that we address issues from the All-Hazards approach and incorporate the support of our stakeholders in solutions.
With heavy discussion, class participants had a great time engaging with others and using tools/techniques that are specific to the Preparedness, Response, Recovery, and Mitigation Directorates. Obviously, I showcased the importance of a good Public Information Officer (PIO) / Public Affairs Officer (PAO) and how their interaction in the Emergency Operation Center (EOC) or the Joint Information Center/System (JIC/JIS) is imperative to a successful emergency or disaster.
Also, starting to build an online learning library that can be easily accessed from anywhere using the #NDPTC is always good reference. Free. My favorite F-word.
Special mahalos to fellow Instructors Cheryl and MaryJo in the delivery of these courses.
Also the solid smiles from fellow #SMEM Jennifer and Scott was crucial support on this delivery.
Glad to be working with partners like the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), National Domestic Preparedness Consortium (NDPC), and the National Disaster Preparedness Training Center (NDPTC). Truly great to see everyone working collaboratively. Thanks to the Sacramento County Emergency Management for hosting these courses.
Looking forward to the next class at the International Association of Emergency Managers (IAEM) conference in Clark County, Nevada. See you there!
JIS – JIC planning class for Tribal State and local PIOs
A fine day to teach the Ohio Emergency Management Agency’s JIS / JIC Planning for Tribal, State, and Local PIOs (G-291) course in Medina County!
A classic start with The Who.
One of the big points emphasized in this class is the differences between a Joint Information Center (JIC) and a Joint Information System (JIS). Both have merits in daily operations and each have strengths and weaknesses in disaster operations.
Sometimes PIOs don’t understand that a JIC or JIS activation is just like a normal activation. If you can’t figure out the differences between the two, take the class from those who have actually worked a JIC or a JIS.
On Tuesday/Wednesday in the Basic Public Information Officers’ Course (G-290), we talked about training and readiness efforts for any PIO. Go Kits were a hot button topic as everyone’s PIO kit would most likely be different. Resource manuals are great to have, but difficult to keep updated. Just maintaining a PIO contact list is a tedious task.
Much discussion about food in the kit. This was obviously NOT a good example of what you should be eating during an JIC activation.
Prob not the best lunch.
Healthy body = Healthy mind. Period.
As the day progressed, we facilitated several in-depth discussions on teamwork, joint efforts in responses as well as some pre-scripted messages that can be used by everyone. Planning now will reduce the amount of white hair during an incident.
Establish relationships now with local health departments, local and regional hospitals, local Hazardous Materials (HAZMAT) Teams, Special Technical Rescue Teams. Easily rely on your state staff and resources to support your actions. A great wealth of information is available to bring to the table. Just establish that connection before that awkward 0300 hit.
Additionally, tapping into local resources from other Federal Agencies like the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives(ATF), National Weather Service (NWS), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Customs Border Patrol (CBP), National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), etc…so many options to establish relationships!
“Building relationships now can only increase our response effectiveness during a disaster.” – K. Sur
Looking outside government agencies, public and private partnerships can support our safety and response initiatives – so we need to make a concerted effort to make those connections now. Build relationships before a disaster!
Sur and Mo!
So how can you bring all these resources together? Consider these actions to explore in your jurisdiction:
- Train. Train. Train.
- Open discussions with various providers.
- Invite your all-hazards partners to meetings.
- Meet regularly. Maintain contact.
- Take classes together.
- Share resource lists and contacts.
- Support each other during operations.
- Review After Action Reviews / Improvement Plans (AARs/IPs) together.
And if you were wondering, class participants did well on their post-tests.
Psssst…the answer is “C” #not
We had a great time teaching this week. Much thanks to the Medina County Emergency Management Agency and EM Director Christine Fozio for their hospitality. Super fun time.
So much ducking fun (duck face reference)
Special thanks to the Ohio Emergency Management Agency for sponsoring this all-hazards class for our partners in public safety.
(L to R): PIO Instructor Kevin Sur, Medina County Emergency Management Director Christine Fozio, and PIO Instructor Monique Witherspoon.
If you are looking to attend OEMA’s free PIO courses:
- Public Information Officers Awareness course (G-289)
- Basic Public Information Officers’ course (G-290)
- JIS / JIC Planning for Tribal, State, and Local PIOs course (G-291)
**coordinate through OEMA State Training Officer Susan Traylor.
As always, I’m looking forward to the JIC / JIS activation calls. I am excited for these new PIOs to put their new acquired PIO skillz in place. And yes, I said skillz with a Z.
Time is short so do good stuff!
Another brand new social media engagement presentation at FSU
Also had a chance to be one of the first instructors to deliver the new social media engagement presentation for FEMA/NDPTC.
Florida State University uses social media heavily to engage and inform their entire student body, faculty, as well as alumni of events ongoing on campus at Tallahassee.
FSU have a great social media presence. Consider following them @KeepFSUSafe @FSUAlerts @FloridaState #LifeAtFSU
Not only on a computer but from various mobile platforms and public warning systems too! Well done FSU!
A very special thanks to my awesome co-instructor Jennifer aka call sign: “other”.
Such a great adventure! Very proud of the work I’ve been assigned.
Reporting live from FEMA Region-4!
Created and designed and now piloting the new SM
I rolled out my new FEMA presentation for FEMA Region-4 peeps at Florida State University in Tallahassee, FL.
At this time, this course is the semi-final pilot so I’m almost there!
Obvs, I had to incorporate a great preparedness campaign from my friends at the CDC. Have you heard of their preparedness campaign before? It costed the CDC a killer $87 (Get it? I’m so punny).
How about them Zombies?
Classroom activities make it easier for our all-hazards partners to come up with good messaging during preparedness, response, and recovery.
Shared experiences and open discussion amongst public safety providers allows for solid social media solutions to be developed for many common issues.
Participants use various hardware and software platforms to complete each assigned performance-based task. This showcases the spectrum of social media that spans hardware and software differences.
Final will be presented for certification in August in FEMA Region-9 at the State of California Emergency Operations Center located in Sacramento.
So nervous! But seriously, I’m so excited for this project, I can’t even…
All-Hazards participants in today’s class in South Dakota
Here for the class today. Numerous all-hazards responders including US Department of Interior, Bureau of Land and Natural Resources (BLNR), US Forestry Service, FireAttack T-1/2 AHIMTs, local law enforcement, infrastructure, utilities, public safety comms, PIOs, healthcare, Tribal agencies, and Emergency Management professionals from South Dakota.
Nothing gets in the way of good training!
In breaking for lunch just now, participants asked if the fella over there with the hella good hair had any Taylor Swift.
Yes, I’m a very accommodating instructor – no problem!
Reporting live from the EOC…FEMA Region-8 baby!
@rusnivek
Where is @rusnivek? 