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Emergency Management, Emergency Services, & Disaster Spox

COOP kinda day with a unicorn, ARC, and the big DHS IG Pro

Posted on October 22, 2019 by rusnivek

Tuesday morning and we’re talking about national continuity!

To some, it may not be exciting. BUT Continuity of Operations (COOP) is so critical to any organization esp to the resilience of any community post-disaster. So I was STOKED to see that I was invited by the National Continuity Division to be a part of the new FEMA COOP class.

And I was even more stoked to be sitting next to the class unicorn.

You see, if we as educators look outside our normal circles and lean on others from various agencies, there is much to learn. We had fine representation from numerous agencies from across the country.

For my lunch meeting I opted for a mini SMEM meetup with the American Red Cross Keith Robertory (@krobertory). We have been following for YEARS but have never met in real life.

Amazing these social media relationships because in our discussion, we have lots and lots in common. Friends, disasters, the list goes on and on…

Speaking of disasters, look who I found….

Streeeeeeeeeeeeeter! Yeah, we kinda twinsies today.

OK, I better get back to class. COOP/COG time!

Reporting live from C Street….

@rusnivek

Debut the new FEMA COOP course in Illinois

Posted on April 24, 2019 by rusnivek

Pretty excited. Starting tomorrow, we get to deliver the brand new FEMA COOP course.

With all the changes from FCD-2 and other national doctrine (including NIMS) – I am proud to be the first one to bring this course with FEMA Region V.

Totes #excited for Continuity of Operations!

@rusnivek

My Dad started his Neighborhood Watch Program!

Posted on June 27, 2016 by rusnivek

I’m proud of my Dad who setup his Neighborhood Watch Program.

Dad has been planning this for months now and even posted signs to get everyone involved. Because inviting and talking with the entire neighborhood about safety related topics are the key points of the Neighborhood Watch program. Also, my Dad went big – he blocked off the entire cul-de-sac for his event!

Honolulu Fire Station-30 (Engine-30 & Ladder-30) stopped by to share some safety tips and what to do during an emergency.

Ladder-30 showcased their equipment for everyone to see.

Talked about ventilation saws for trench cuts and vertical cuts for fires.

Also talked about extrication tools and generators for car accidents and confined space rescue.

All the kids in the neighborhood got a chance to try out the headsets used for communications in the apparatus.

Honolulu Police stopped by too.

Even a surprise flyby thanks to Honolulu Fire Air-1 Helicopter.

In the end, this kind of neighborhood program is truly the basis of a safer community.

Education, particularly teaching kids during an emergency, how to call 9-1-1 is crucial to a safe community.

My Dad volunteered to do this. Yep, not paid. Just doing his part to keep his neighborhood and community safe. LOVE IT!

There are many other volunteer programs showcased by DHS/FEMA’s awesome Ready.Gov campaign on safety. Just like my Dad, I volunteer too with my community’s Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) aka RH-CERT.

Whether you are a part of your own Neighborhood Watch Program, Community Emergency Response Team (CERT), Volunteers in Police Service (ViPS), Medical Reserve Corp (MRC), Fire Corps, Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (VOADs), etc…all of these civic based programs are so important to the fabric for the safety of our community across this great country.

So proud of my Dad!

@rusnivek

640 Insta -> 1080 Insta #Instagram

Posted on July 7, 2015 by rusnivek

Instagram just announced that it will go from 640×640 picture posts now to 1080 x 1080 picture posts.

This is most likely attributed to mobile hardware improvements since 2010 and camera phones now take excellent pictures. So to meet the new uploads and higher quality standards, Instagram changed their programming to allow users to include more.

So what does all that gobbledygook actually mean for the Instagrammer?

Before you could only post this type of image with marginal clarity (640 resolution).

Now, you can post this with better quality and better clarity (1080 resolution).

Bigger picture at a standard 1080 resolution, better clarity, and a much better story platform for your audience.

Picture border? Still square.

Time is short, so Gram good stuff.

@rusnivek

Building TEMS partnerships at the FBI

Posted on June 28, 2015 by rusnivek

My SA/TEMS Operator friends at the FBI.

So many great assets here to enhance our partnerships with the FBI.

Trust me, I have first-hand experience – I can tell you they are a GREAT crew to work with!

@rusnivek

No complaining-offer solutions-Safety-PIO-SM-14-008

Posted on October 24, 2014 by rusnivek

14-008: No complaining – offer solutions
Agency: Long Beach Fire	Topic(s): Public Perception and Solutions
Date: Fall 2014	Platform: Twitter

Complaining or venting on social media is fairly common. However, as an official agency, public displays of affliction does not portray the best image. Long Beach Fire expressed some displeasure on Twitter when discussing the their pilot program.

After reading this tweet, the public’s perception is that if 9-1-1 is called, no ambulances will respond. This is irresponsible and wrong. (Almost all emergency services have mutual aid agreements or memorandum of understandings in place.)

Positioning your agency as a fear mongerer or the Harbinger of Evil will only further distance yourself from people who would be willing to help your cause. Inform them of dangers, but more importantly, engage them publically on social.

If there is internal displeasure with the new staffing models, be proactive and offer transparent solutions in the tweet. Cite websites that provide industry information. Publically share statistical data that supports changes with current programs. These online tactics will help direct and educate the general public on how to be better informed on other program and possible other options yet unexplored.

Additionally you can rally your constituents behind better initiatives by engaging with them publically via social media. It demonstrates that your department’s community involvement is a key part of a better solution.

As an official account, Twitter’s 140-character limit is really no place to moan/groan.

A more effective tweet could have read:

LBFD resources are maxed out. #Firefighters cannot provide adequate #Paramedic service to our communities. Help us find a solution <insert link here>

By phrasing it this way:

You identify that resources are…well…maxed out.
You use hashtags (#Firefighters and #Paramedic) that will help increase visibility in your tweets.
You stress the importance of providing dedicated service to your community.
You provide a traceable/measureable link that informs and helps bring visibility to this critical situation.

Time is valuable, so tweet good stuff.

@rusnivek

***To download this as a single-page printable format, click this file:

No complaining-offer solutions-Safety-PIO-SM-14-008

Special visitors checking on our preparedness! #NatlPrep #Prepared2014

Posted on September 30, 2014 by rusnivek

It is Tuesday and the final day of 2014 National Preparedness Month.

“Be Disaster Aware, Take Action to Prepare”

National Preparedness Day!!!!

This week’s theme is consistent with FEMA’s National Preparedness Campaign: Practice for an emergency

#30: Flat Stanley & Flat Stella stopped by the fire station to check out our emergency preparedness kits. #NatlPrep #Prepared2014

In honor of National Preparedness Day, we had two special visitors at our fire station. Flat Stanley and Flat Stella stopped by for a quick visit and tour.

They wanted to see if all Firefighters and Paramedics were participating and prepared as part of September’s 2014 National Preparedness Month which was held all month long.

Both Flat Stanley and Flat Stella checked our Emergency Preparedness Kit in Ladder-11.

Flat Stanley asked if we had enough water ready…

Of course we do!

Flat Stella asked to see our emergency contact list as well as my new smoke detector.

As you can see, our emergency contact information is contained in the Vial of Life Program. And smoke detectors are always free from the fire department.

Flat Stanley made sure these were fresh fire extinguishers and they were ready to go.

Both had an awesome chance to take a ride in BFD Ladder-11.

Special thanks to the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Ready.Gov program.

Also thanks to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), FEMA’s Ready.Gov, Ohio Department of Public Safety (ODPS), Ohio Emergency Management Agency (OEMA), and the Trumbull County Emergency Management Agency.

What a month! I’m proud of everyone who participated in National Preparedness Month and extremely happy that everyone is more prepared for any emergency or disaster.

@rusnivek

@rusnivek’s Top-6 Public Safety / PIO social media tip-2 …for free

Posted on November 6, 2013 by rusnivek

@rusnivek’s Top-6 Public Safety / PIO Social Media tips…for free

Again, I need to provide you more public safety social media tips. And since you have very little time in the day to spare, maybe you can read this while going down the elevator. Again, I’ll keep it short.

Here’s part-2 of my top 6 SM tips for public safety professionals / Public Information Officers (PIOs). And yes, it’s still free for you.

@rusnivek Social Media Tip-2: Every post, every avenue, every audience…anytime.

With so many different avenues of social media, one person cannot conceivably keep up with every emerging new program.

Pick a few platforms that work for you and that your audience mainly uses and post. Make it pertinent to your mission, make those posts reflect your organization’s objectives and goals, but most importantly, feed it.

Don’t be such a stickler about posting every day at the same bat time, at same bat place, on the same bat things. Change it up make your audience crave your info and make them check your feed incessantly for information they need.

During an emergency, don’t just decide “Oh now is the time we should start to…”

STOP <SMH> cause you are already dead in the water. #FAIL

So feed it anytime. It only takes a few minutes to feed it. Do it now.

Tip-2: Every post, every avenue, every audience…anytime.

@rusnivek