Tag Archives: Service

The BEAST in Chicago

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Some days, I get to see cool things….

Because of the work we will be doing with the US Secret Service, got to be up close and personal with the Beast.

This is the US Presidential limo that takes POTUS around.

As you can probably tell, it’s a bit more fortified than other limos….and protected from stuff.

Additionally, they brought a few support vehicles too. All the prep for the upcoming National Special Security Event (NSSE) with the 2024 Democratic National Convention here in Chicago.

Proud to work close with the US Secret Service in these upcoming events.

@rusnivek

3 reasons why you should have a family communications plan #NPM2020 #NatlPrep

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Final day of the first week of the 2020 National Preparedness Month. So to close this week out, we are going to talk about your family communications plan…aka comms plan.

No, not that kinda plan.

An essential part of your emergency plan is the easy family communications plan.

WAIT…did you say “I already have their phone numbers in my cell phone. Why do I need anything else?”

<eye roll>

Your memory isn’t that great. You are human. And it’s been proven that during a crisis/duress, your critical skills and ability to recount precise information sucks.

This is precisely why you need a family communications plan.

Technology has proven to fail and fail at critical times in a crisis or disaster. While your cell phone is a critical piece of equipment, there are times where you lose your phone.

Yeah, I know all of you Apple Watch users have used the find my phone feature.

Regularly, we find evacuees after a storm, they report that they do not have good reception or adequate data service for their phones. This renders their phone useless when trying to communicate essential information to loved ones.

And we all know when we lose power to our phones that most definitely eliminate all critical phone numbers, emails, etc…

So three solid reasons why you want to consider having a hard copy family communications plan ready in case of an emergency.

Need some help? Here’s an easy template provided by our Ready.Gov campaign

Click to access Family_Comm_Plan_508_20150820.pdf

 

Easy peasy right?

Do the right thing for the safety of your family.

Reporting live and closing out the first week of the 2020 National Preparedness Month!

@rusnivek

How I find out the latest deets on stuff #NatlPrep

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Since this is only the second day of 2020 National Preparedness month, we needed to focus in on your plans before, during, and after an emergency.

On the regular, I get TONS of calls/inquiries from people trying to figure out what’s going on. Many of our friends/families can glean this same info I get from the mass notification systems already in place.

The City of Chicago (IL) Office of Emergency Management and Communications (OEMC) has an easy system called NotifyChicago.

By inputting your information and particular way to be contacted, you can get the most up-to-date information about any part of the city. This includes warnings, hazards, and of course major street closures due to riots, protests, or other weird things that happen in Chicago. Choosing to be notified via text message ensures that no matter where you are, you can be alerted to dangers in your area 24/7. Subscribe for free here: https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/depts/oem/provdrs/alertchicago/svcs/notifychicago.html

At the county level, DuPage County (IL) Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management (OHSEM) uses the Smart911 system which is a mass notification system to alert anyone on issues at the county level.

This could include severe weather, road closures, as well as critical information for anyone living/working in the area. You can sign up here: https://www.smart911.com/

From the region:

I rely heavily on our partners from the National Weather Service. While not the primary way, I think their social media work on Twitter is excellent and pull lots of info from them using the alert feature (notifications on) function on Twitter.

Consider following Mike Bardou and the crew from the NWS Chicago or follow your own local NWS office for immediate weather info. There are 122 Weather Forecasting Offices across our great nation.

More details can be found here: https://www.weather.gov/srh/nwsoffices

And finally, with the amount of info and the onslaught of information being pushed to our mobile devices, it’s good to know that IF it’s too much, you can always unsubscribe to any these services.

IF you have family in other parts of the country, consider subscribing to their area notifications. Doesn’t hurt to help a loved one out as they maybe be too busy, sleeping, or incapable of understanding the severity of their situation. More on that tomorrow.

Keep it safe during this first week of National Preparedness Month by making your plan!

@rusnivek

DuPage County partners w/ OHSEM to lead the way with Outdoor Weather Event & Planning TableTop Exercise

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As our office continues to work the magic for all of our partners in public safety, today we continue to rollout the new Event Ready Weather Decision toolkit that helps any agency with critical command decisions.

Our office has worked closely with the National Weather Service Chicago in developing this process.

And of course to pair with the class, we have a Outdoor Event Planning TableTop to help concrete the points to all participating agencies.

Not only developing, but making sure that the information is compliant….

…like HSEEP compliant TableTop exercise compliant.

That’s right – welcome to the #EmergencyManagement pros!

Success? Does it work? Hellz yeah it works! Just ask Lombard’s PIO Avis Meade who used this planning guide for their 2019 Lilac Parade.

Their actions based on NWS Chicago data and critical command decisions likely saved lives as severe weather rolled into the area with an exposed and completely vulnerable population.

Let me say that again, the planning and preparedness efforts from everyone in Lombard saved lives.

Let me translate that for you (think FEMA Core Capability): Sharing good info (Intelligence and Information Sharing), working closely with local, county, and state partnerships (Operational Coordination), and known trusted information (Public Information and Warning)

Decisions made in advance with partnerships with the local National Weather Service can save lives?!?!? YES IT CAN!

In Emergency Management, our decisions are collaborative and based on a combination of historical data and past industry practice. This is what Emergency Management is all about. Repeat after me: Planning and Coordination. Planning and Coordination.Planning and Coordination.Planning and Coordination.

I am proud to be a small part of many agencies doing the right thing for communities across this county and this great country.

Me? You know, I’m always willing to serve.

@rusnivek

Fugly little thing messing up weather today #Groundhogs day

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PIO message –

Friendly reminder: REAL weather predictions should be based from real science (like our professionals from the National Weather Service @)…not a fugly little fat groundhog on one-single day.

C’mon peeps! Common sense right?!?

@rusnivek

 

NHC update on #Hurricane #Irma 09-04-17 at 0500

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Despite the plethora of bad information being spread around, here’s the official track of Hurricane Irma.

Information from NHC and is current as of 09-04-17 at 0500.

Please plan accordingly.

@rusnivek

 

What you need to know about this Monday’s Solar Eclipse

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Are you checking out the solar eclipse?

Here’s another great quick video with numerous tips on safety for viewing the upcoming solar eclipse with one of my favorite NWS-Sacramento Meteorologist Brooke Bingaman.

Keep it safe while viewing the solar eclipse!

@rusnivek