It was super fun to interview Jody today at the 2016 International Association of Emergency Management Conference.
Emergency Management Officer Jody Hodge from the Jefferson County Emergency Management Agency (Alabama)
Why is Jody so awesome?
Yeah, we talked about preparedness, talked about disaster kits, talked about natural disasters…But to close the interview, he said “Aloha y’all!”
Reporting live from #IAEM16
Third and final day of the Ohio EMA ICS-300 course at Belmont College.
PhotoCredit: @BelmontCollege
Mid morning, we had lots of great discussion for formal demobilization plans as well priority release procedures.
Our class had some serious discussion on cost vs expectations on resources. If you’ve ever been deployed to a disaster, you know exactly what I’m talking about.
Rounding out to the last module, almost test time!
After the class was over, I was able to score a visit to Belmont County 911 dispatch center for our class. So I invited the whole class to attend too!
Special thanks to Mr. Hudak for the tour and detailed explanation on normal operations in their Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) / 911 call center.
Our class then moved over to the Belmont County Emergency Management Agency where our class was given a formal tour of their Emergency Operation Center (EOC).
They just happen to be monitoring Hurricane Matthew – so that made it even better for all participants to see how this EOC can monitor any situation in real time. Thank you Belmont County EMA!
Positions ready…Executive Policy Room ready…ARES Comms center ready…fully operational…who could ask for anything more?!!?!? Even the bonus resources they have were great to see how they could support operations and paint a better picture to increase situational awareness / common operating picture (SA/COP).
Gah, I see this EOC being a great resource for many all hazards partners in public safety.
Great to showcase the efforts of local emergency management professionals and how they pair with Ohio Emergency Management Agency (OEMA).
Special thanks to Glenn Trudo and Belmont College for being such gracious hosts for the OEMA ICS-300 class.
September was busy thanks to National Preparedness Month but October is going to be super fun!
First week, I’ll be teaching ICS in Belmont County (Ohio). Bonus points because I’ll be in a suit on Tuesday!
Second week will be heavy planning/coordination for upcoming IMT OSC Course, PIO Workshop, and PIO Conference. (BTW: Save-the-date – Friday January 20th, 2017).
Third week will be reporting live at the International Association of Emergency Manager’s Annual Conference in Savannah, Georgia. Suit up lads because it’s IAEM baby!
Fourth week, I’ll be back in Marietta, Georgia teaching. Who’s showing the love for Region 4 this month?!? Meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!
I wonder what my Halloween costume will be this year?
Presenting today at the 63rd Annual Wayne County Fire School (Ohio).
And yes, I get to crack the awesome social media jokes on THE Ohio State University campus.
Lots of Firefighters and Paramedics from all over.
Many familiar faces in the audience too!
Event organizers estimate over 100 attendees with numerous vendors on site including Metro LifeFlight, Cleveland Clinic, and MedFlight of Ohio. Helicopters!
Me? I’m just glad to participate.
Yep, that’s a suit.
Also, kudos to a fellow Firefighter WHFD FF Gary Klaus who was named this year’s Fire School Honorary Dean.
Intro music (GNR’s Paradise City) playing for the afternoon session. #excited.
PIO and Social Media skillz in 3…2…1…
“All I’m saying is that starting in Ohio and to the rest of the country, we have the ability to better prepare our peeps for disasters or emergencies.” – K. Sur
We all have outstanding communities in each of our 88 counties in Ohio. When they engage with numerous all-hazards public safety professionals, it becomes a whole community effort in preparedness. In essence, these are core programs that everyone can participate.
When the community gets involved, everyone wins.
So c’mon – get involved in your community.
CERT: Community Emergency Response Team
ViPS: Volunteers in Police Service
MRC: Medical Reserve Corp
VOAD: Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster
Neighborhood Watch Program
Veterans Active in Citizen Corps
Meals on Wheels Association of America
“Don’t Wait. Communicate. Make Your Emergency Plan Today.”
Part of being prepared is taking classes with your local public safety professionals.
Hamilton County EMA Emily Lakamp welcoming class
OEMA Instructor Kevin Sur breaking down PPD-5 and PPD-8 for the ICS-300 class
Training is key as we continue to push preparedness efforts throughout the county and state. Learning about capabilities is key in any disaster response.
Ohio EMA Southwest Regional Supervisor Phil Clayton addressing participants today
This afternoon, in the world of tabletop exercise disaster training, we will likely ruin Central City, decimate Columbiana County, and then trash the State of Columbia. Oh yeah, and of course flood Emerald City too.
“Don’t Wait. Communicate. Make Your Emergency Plan Today.”
Rumor has it that my friend Erica mentioned me in class today at #3CMAAnnual Conference today during her PIO Class.
So alohas to my new peeps!
Welp, you know that kind of class mention deserves some root beer floats!
Cheers everyone – and many mahalos to Creech for the mention.
Yep, I’m not even there!
Photo cred: K. Tunell
More like sliding into 3CMAAnnual’s feed…
August was solid, but September is going to be huge because it’s NATIONAL PREPAREDNESS MONTH!!!!!
First and second week, it’ll all be planning for a gigantic upcoming all-hazards PIO/PAO Conference.
Third week will be spent teaching ICS-300 for Ohio EMA to my friends in the SW part of Ohio. And then on Friday, attending the Ohio PIO Symposium.
Fourth week, I’ll be teaching at Washington DC’s Homeland Security and Emergency Management EOC. Upon return, then presenting at the Wayne County (Ohio) Fire Chief’s Conference on PIO/Social Media.
Fifth week, I’ll be presenting on PIO and cyber at the infrastructure at the statewide infrastructure protection conference in Region-7. Who knows, if I can do it, maybe some tactical training in Alliance too. #pewpew
And ALL month long, I’ll be participating in National Preparedness month activities that you can share with your constituents. If we can better prepare our peeps, we can increase our national level of community resilience.
Thanks to the www.ready.gov program, it is easier than ever to get involved and prepared.
Hope to see you engaging during this important month.
“Don’t Wait. Communicate. Make Your Emergency Plan Today.”
Great class today with the pros from Hamilton County Emergency Management and Homeland Security.
Diverse two classes of participants with spirited discussion on preparedness and resilience.
Great to be teaching in a familiar EOC again.
Speaking of preparedness – Don’t forget that September is just a few short weeks away – National Preparedness Month!!!!!
Don’t forget, because it’s my favorite month.
#NatlPrep
Yesterday, I supported Cleveland Police on the #PrideInTheCLE #ClevelandPride event in Public Square.
Much different from the Republican National Convention.
Lots of families out and about (and enjoying) the new cool fountain in downtown Cleveland.
Everyone was having a great time.
Lots of speculation and talk about public safety not being around to support the LGBT community – all totally false. Public Safety will be there to support any community.
Trust me, lots of public safety was on hand to support our entire community.
Cleveland Police Bomb Squad and K9 teams…
Cleveland EMS…
..even the Cleveland Police bike patrol was out supporting the day’s events.
Lots of areas to cover.
Partnerships with the Cuyahoga County Sheriff’s Department and Cleveland Police Department are key in providing safety for everyone who attended the event.
It was a relatively hot day so I am glad that many of the participants dressed appropriately for the event.
Some not so much.
Fun entertainment and friendly people staying cool out in Public Square.
While waiting around, we had some time for a quick PIO selfie…
Also had time for a few interviews with local media.
Also happy to run into a long time good friend Mark Zinni who is the anchor for the Channel 3 Eyewitness News in Hartford, Connecticut. Great to see him again.
Thanks for the picture Zinni!
Can’t wait to see him again in Cleveland.
While out there, we even made a few new peeps into Junior Police Officers.
Thanks Ken!
We were fortunate enough to do a few live interviews on Periscope from Public Square.
We highlighted the event and gave a status report of the operations using Periscope.
Ever wonder what it’s like to hang with onscene PIOs? Here’s a behind the scenes shot of us doing some live interviews on Periscope.
Thanks for the action shot Zinni!
Trust me, it’s harder than it looks.
Overall, it was great to see so many people out on a Saturday afternoon in Cleveland.
As always, I had a great time working the PIO magic with Jen!
We make a pretty good team huh?
Hope everyone stayed dry while the rain hit.
Great safe event everyone!
Have a great weekend!
Where is @rusnivek? 