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Emergency Management, Emergency Services, & Disaster Spox

Building new relationships on a Tuesday #NatlPrep

Posted on September 29, 2015 by rusnivek

The last Tuesday in the 2015 National Preparedness Month!

Today, look to building new relationships.

Normally, we don’t look outside the realm of daily public safety. It’s easy to talk to Fire/EMS, Law Enforcement, or Public Works Professionals. However, new discussion needs to happen between individuals who can support our mission goals or some unmet needs.

Faith-based organizations are great groups to explore new activities to support your community. In varying degrees, faith-based organizations have the capabilities to support disaster response and recovery operations with food, shelter, and supportive measures. But again, the key is to open discussions BEFORE a disaster so you can evaluate their capability.

Additionally, talk to your local politicians…esp if they are an active part of your Community Emergency Response Team (CERT). These civic-minded individuals have most likely gone through additional preparedness training and can be a great resource for anyone.

Trust me, these are the kinds of people you want to be in close contact with before, during, or after an emergency/disaster.

Don’t wait. Communicate. Make your emergency plan today.

Get to know some new local peeps!

Tuesday is here – so get prepared by clicking here.

@rusnivek

Apps away~! #NatlPrep #free #app #tech

Posted on September 28, 2015 by rusnivek

Final week of 2015 National Preparedness Month!

Don’t freak out, still lots of things to do like download a bunch of free apps for your smart phone!

Here’s an example of a good app from the State of North Carolina Emergency Management Agency’s ReadyNC.

The ReadyNC app It talks about numerous preparedness activities as well as what to do after an emergency. Download it here.

FEMA’s got a great app that you can use to reference great info on disasters and preparedness.

Additionally you can check out their new Disaster Reporter feature, Social Hub, and get free vetted weather alerts. Download it here.

Easy way to inform others? Get out there and present/share your preparedness efforts with all your partners in public safety.

You know the phrase: An ounce of prevention/preparedness can save…..

Don’t wait. Communicate. Make your emergency plan today.

Download a bunch of free apps today!.

Get your Mundays over by clicking here!

@rusnivek

PIOs at the Ohio_PIO Symposium – in Columbus! #OHIOPIO

Posted on September 25, 2015 by rusnivek

Reporting live from Columbus…

(From L to R): Howson Staub, Sur, Bosso, and Pollack.

Let the shenanigans begin!

@rusnivek

Teaching the brand new DHS/FEMA Basic Public Information Officer Course

Posted on September 12, 2015 by rusnivek

Awwww yeah! This past week, I got a chance to teach part of the brand new DHS/FEMA G0290: Basic Public Information Officer Course!

Formerly known as G-290 course, this is the new FEMA Basic Public Information Officer course taught across the country for all public safety and emergency management professionals.

Thanks again to the Kentucky Emergency Management Agency and KESC for allowing me the opportunity. Also, special thanks to the ever fashionable Mike from NIOA.

Shakas because we are reporting live from Kentucky…

@rusnivek

Friday talks with Ohio EMA leadership

Posted on August 22, 2015 by rusnivek

It was great to spend some time with Ohio EMA leadership yesterday.

Discussion on community resilience, task force deployments, Presidential Declarations, key initiatives, outreach, training, EMAC deployments, stakeholder engagement, public information officer, Emergency Management visibility, social media, Public Assistance, SBA loans, documentation and reimbursements, FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate, Public and Private partnerships…heck-we even touched on the buzz words for 2015: Climate change and Cyber.

For sure, lots of notes!

It is so great to hear OEMA Executive Director Sima Merick passionate about all facets of Emergency Management.

Also got a chance to hang with my Ohio EMA Training and Education peeps Lisa and Susan too. Solid discussion about the upcoming Mass Fatalities course (G-386), PIO Courses (G-290), JIC/JIS Courses (G-291), Intermediate Incident Command courses (ICS-300), and the Recovery from Disasters Course (G-270.4).

Lots of good free stuff upcoming from Ohio EMA!

BTW-If you did a double take on that first picture, yes sir Sur, #AlohaFridays are made for an Aloha shirt. Period. Also a historical note, Hawaii became the 50th state on August 21, 1959.

Don’t worry peeps, look closely as I had my Ohio pin on.

Have a great weekend!

@rusnivek

Drive drunk and you will be arrested!

Posted on August 17, 2015 by rusnivek

Too many needless MVAs this weekend.

For the sake of all Public Safety and your family who loves you, please DO NOT DRINK AND DRIVE!

And feel free to continually share safety messages like this often.

@rusnivek

Reporting live as I sink into the mud!

Posted on August 2, 2015 by rusnivek

Shoes! SHOES PEOPLE!

I can’t wait for all those expensive heels to get stuck in the mud…and no one likes a pair of muddy dress pants and fancy black wingtips. C’mon!

Reporters: Please dress appropriately when covering a story.

PIO/PAOs: Please dress appropriately when arriving on scene.

@rusnivek

Are you violating Facebook’s Terms of Service? Safety-PIO-SM-15-004

Posted on July 31, 2015 by rusnivek

15-004: Are you violating Facebook’s Terms of Service?
Agency: Various public safety agencies	Topic(s): Facebook organization page
Date: 07-31-15	Platform: Facebook

Facebook has a wide audience and many public safety agencies have taken to Facebook to promote their efforts. However, many agencies have created the wrong type of account on Facebook.

By creating your agency’s page as a person on Facebook, you are violating Facebook’s terms of service. And if you are going to ask, Facebook administration has the right to immediately delete everything. Yikes.

By registering your agency as an ORGANIZATIONAL PAGE, you can take advantage of Facebook’s analytics. This information is incredibly valuable as you evaluate who, what, at what time, and most importantly the how and why they are searching/visiting your agency’s organizational page.

Facebook readily asks if you know people and displays their basic account information. Facebook’s goal is to increase your networks by showcasing people that are similar to you. If you happen to see one of your neighboring public safety agencies who may have incorrectly registered a Facebook personal account, take the time to inform them on changing their account from a personal page to an organizational page.

Likes? As an organization, can I like other pages? Yes, as an organizational page, you can like other agencies too. Through Facebook likes, you can showcase to your trusted network of similar public safety agencies.

Remember, social media is about how you can amplify your networks and positively engage your constituents. We are constantly strengthening our relationships with similar groups – all in the name of safety.

Look, we all need to be good stewards of our public safety brand. All Emergency Support Functions (ESFs) need to constantly support each other and help agencies who need some social media guidance.

By double checking your agency and your partner agencies.

You can be compliant with Facebook’s Terms of Service agreement.
You can ascertain detailed visitor demographics free from Facebook’s organizational analytical information.

Time is valuable, so post good stuff.

@rusnivek

To download the one-pager, click on the link here: Safety-PIO-SM-15-004-PersonalOrOrganizationalOnFacebook

Press credentials discussed

Posted on July 22, 2015 by rusnivek

We talked a little about press credentials last week in our Ohio Emergency Management Agency (OEMA) Basic Public Information Officer (PIO) class. Here’s an example of Chicago’s press creds.

(Some of you may remember Erin Kennedy from WKYC 3 here in Cleveland).

PIO Pro Tip: Build trusted relationships w/ the media prior to an incident.

@rusnivek

JIS – JIC planning class for Tribal State and local PIOs

Posted on July 17, 2015 by rusnivek

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!

@rusnivek