, 2018 Volume 3, Issue 17

Region II Individual

and Community

Preparedness Bulletin

National Preparedness Month (NPM) is just a few weeks way, but it’s never too soon to start planning! We can each take small steps to prepare our communities.

What can you do to help your family, friends, neighbors, co-workers, students, employees, customers or congregation be better prepared? Don’t wait until September, take action now! To help get you started, below is a list of resources you can use to help prepare your community:

Spread NPM awareness by using these social media toolkits. Sign up for preparedness text messages by texting PREPARE to 43362 (4FEMA) to

receive preparedness tips (msg/data rates apply). Download the FEMA app and share it for disaster resources, safety tips, and weather alerts. Share these public service announcements and instructional videos with friends and family. Share this bulletin with anyone you think should better prepare! Learn and teach how to make an emergency plan. Sign up for local alerts and warnings and make sure those around you are signed up as well. Learn your evacuation zone and work together to make an evacuation plan. Use these graphics to make and practice your plan. Complete an Emergency Financial First Aid Kit (EFFAK) with your family or business. Learn and tell others about flood insurance. Learn and teach basic life saving skills! Get involved! Join a CERT program in your area or other community based program. Learn and teach about FEMA’s Until Help Arrives initiative. Complete the FEMA Region II Individual and Community Preparedness activities.

These are just some of the examples of what we can do today ahead of September. National Preparedness Month comes only once a year, but our need to prepare for disasters is every day! Follow any of these links and start preparing for NPM now. Share these resources with your loved ones, colleagues, and people around you to start preparing your community.

Have You Started Preparing for NPM?

Serving New Jersey, New York, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands

23days until

National Preparedness Month

August 9

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These resources are also available in Spanish. There is preparedness information from Ready.gov available in 12 languages other than English, which you can find here. Estos recursos para el Mes Nacional de Preparación también estan disponibles en español

Then and Now

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Then and Now

FEMA’s vision is a prepared and resilient nation. 4

Coming Soon to Region II

Exercise Design Course

When: October 22 – 25, 2018 at 9:00 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.

Where: Clinton First Aid and Rescue Squad,

48 Old Highway 22 Clinton, NJ 08809

What: FEMA Region II will be conducting training for

emergency exercise design and evaluation. The course is a 4 day program which focuses on the design phase of the Homeland Security Exercise and Evaluation Program (HSEEP). Skills learned during this program will enable jurisdictions to conduct NIMS required exercises. The course will conclude with students conducting tabletop and functional exercises in a group environment. Pre-registration is required and seating is limited, go to https://hseepclinton2018.eventbrite.com.

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Important Deadlines

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September is National Preparedness Month

National Preparedness Month (NPM) provides an opportunity to remind us that we all must prepare ourselves and our families throughout the year. This NPM will focus on planning, with an overarching theme: Disasters Happen. Prepare Now. Learn How. Take time to learn lifesaving skills − such as CPR and first aid, check your insurance policies and coverage for the hazards you may face, such as flood, earthquakes, and tornados. Make sure to consider the costs associated with disasters and save for an emergency. Also, know how to take practical safety steps like shutting off water and gas. The devastating hurricanes and wildfires of 2017 reminded the nation of the importance of preparing for disasters. Often, we will be the first ones in our communities to take action after a disaster strikes and before first responders arrive, so it is important to prepare in advance to help yourself and your community. 2018 Weekly Themes

Week 1: Sept 1-8 Make and Practice Your Plan Week 2: Sept 9-15* Learn Life Saving Skills (*September 15 is a National Day of Action)

Week 3: Sept 16-22 Check Your Insurance Coverage Week 4: Sept 23-29 Save For an Emergency

Planning Considerations: Complex Coordinated Terrorist Attacks

FEMA has released a guide to aid community partners in planning and preparing for complex coordinated terrorist attack scenarios. The guide highlights the unique characteristics of complex coordinated terrorist attacks, identifies potential challenges, and discusses a six-step planning process. It also provides information on identifying the capabilities necessary to respond to attacks using the Threat and Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment. To download a copy of "Planning Considerations: Complex Coordinated Terrorist Attacks," visit https://www.fema.gov/plan.

FEMA Podcast: Disaster Planning

On this week's episode of the FEMA Podcast, Josh Dozor, FEMA's Director of the Planning and Exercise Division, discusses how FEMA and its partners plan for a variety of disaster and emergency scenarios. From hurricanes to space weather or tornadoes to Ebola -- this episode of the FEMA podcast is all about disaster planning. For more information, visit www.fema.gov/podcast.

FEMA News

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National Flood Insurance Program Marks 50th Anniversary

Congress created the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) on August 1, 1968, to provide federally backed flood insurance in communities that voluntarily adopt and enforce floodplain management ordinances which meet the minimum NFIP requirements. In the last 50 years of the NFIP, the program has supported 2.3 million policyholders impacted by flood damage paying more than $64 billion dollars in flood claims losses. Insured survivors recover faster and more fully after a flood than uninsured survivors. The NFIP provides the primary source of flood insurance in the United States for homeowners, renters, and businesses. Today, the NFIP manages flood risk for more than 22,000 participating communities by providing insurance and protecting the natural and beneficial functions of floodplains through land use and development requirements. The program supports more than 5 million flood insurance policies, insuring more than $1.2 trillion in assets. The NFIP thanks the state, local, tribal, and territorial governments as well as

insurance and floodplain management partners and many others for their partnership and assistance in servicing the nation. Through the decades, the NFIP has met its humanitarian mission to save life and property through these partnerships and will continue to manage, inform, and insure flood risk. For more information visit www.fema.gov/nfip50; to learn more about flood insurance, visit www.floodsmart.gov.

VOICES Resiliency Symposium

Sunday, September 9th, 2018 Join for a day of clinically informed presentations from leading researchers and clinicians working in the field of trauma. Topics include multi-generational impacts of trauma; research and new techniques in treatment of PTSD and anxiety; giving voice to victims' families; vicarious and shared trauma; mindfulness practice; and supporting children, families and communities following tragedy. The daylong symposium is intended for mental health professionals, victims' services, emergency managers, law enforcement, and community stakeholders. Victims' families, survivors, and responders are invited to attend free of charge. Feel free to forward the information to those who may be interested in attending. Click here to view the agenda and to register.

17th Annual Day of Remembrance Information Forum

Monday, September 10th, 2018 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. ET @ Marriot Downtown Hotel NYC Join the Annual Information Forum, a daylong program with insightful presentations and panel discussions designed to promote healing and resilience. The event provides an opportunity for 9/11 families, survivors, responders and those who continue to support them to gather in advance of the anniversary. VOICES will host this annual event with the support of the Centers for Disease Control and the Feal Good Foundation. The event is free for 9/11 families, survivors, responders, their extended family members and WTC Health Program service providers. Click here to view the agenda and to register.

Other News

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2018 Disaster Education Symposium

On Wednesday, September 12th, 2018, the Uniformed Services University National Center for Disaster Medicine and Public Health is hosting the 2018 Disaster Education Symposium. Learn about current and future education initiatives in disaster medicine and public health education and enjoy the opportunity to network with your colleagues at this free one-day event. Register today!

2018 International Conference on Emerging Infectious Diseases

CDC's 2018 International Conference on Emerging Infectious Diseases (ICEID) is happening August 26th-29th, 2018 in Atlanta, GA. The conference brings together more than 1,500 public health professionals from around the world to encourage the exchange of the latest information on issues affecting the emergence, spread, and control of infectious diseases. This year's conference includes a plenary session on One Health. Registration closes soon.

Annual AHEPP Conference

The Association of Healthcare Emergency Preparedness Professionals (AHEPP) is hosting their annual conference in November. Registration and a preview of sessions are now available. Check out the ASPR TRACIE session on Wednesday, November 7th, 2018 from 12:45pm-1:45pm.

DHS Campus Resilience

Just in time for hurricane season, the CR Program released a hurricane Exercise Starter Kit. The CR Program’s Exercise Starter Kits are self-conducted tabletop exercises (TTX) and provide IHEs with a set of scalable tools and documents to develop a TTX that can be tailored to match pressing threats and hazards, while validating specific emergency plans, protocols, and procedures already in place. This fall, the CR Program will host its third Regional Tabletop Exercise for IHEs in Edmond, Oklahoma at the University of Central Oklahoma. The exercise will focus on a tornado during a large campus event. Registration is now open, please register here.

Earth EX 2018: An All-Sector Worldwide Exercise

Earth EX invites you to take part in the first worldwide severe power outage exercise. Anyone, any group, or any nation can join this exercise. It requires no preparation. It costs nothing. It works in any time zone and you can begin anytime on August 22.

This event gives organizations a chance to test executive and operational decisions. It will help individuals, families, and community groups with basic preparations and planning. Take the time to learn, share information, and improve your plans. Learn more or register for Earth EX 2018 at: https://eiscouncil.org/EarthEx.aspx.

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Emergency Preparedness Tips

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Preparedness Resources:

Emergency Response Resources: Personal Protective Equipment This web page provides a list of resources about personal protective equipment for emergency responders. Categories are Respirators, Protective Clothing, Skin Exposures, Eye Protection, and Hearing Protection.

Center for Disease Control (CDC) Resources The CDC offers resources for clinicians, communicators, laboratorians, emergency planners and responders, and disaster relief volunteers to prepare them to respond to a public health emergency. Included in this section are free educational materials that are suitable for printing and sharing in various languages, including flyers, posters, stickers, and PSAs. Click here to access the resources.

Hurricane Season for Healthcare & Response Professional It’s that time of the year again. If you’re a health care professional helping at an emergency site, here’s information that will help you care for survivors. If you’re working as a response or cleanup worker after a hurricane, here’s information to help you prepare and stay safe.

Natural Disasters and Severe Weather You can take steps now to help you prepare for an emergency and cope if a public health emergency, such as a natural disaster, act of terrorism, or disease outbreaks happens. There are step-by-step actions to help you prepare before an emergency. For information about specific types of disasters, ranging from inclement weather to tornadoes, go here.

Health and Safety Concerns for All Disasters For information on health and safety concerns for all disasters, including animals and insects, food and water, carbon monoxide, illness and injury prevention, power outages, safe clean-up, and more, go here.

Food, Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Information for Use For food, water, sanitation, and hygiene information for use before and after a disaster or emergency, go here.

Disaster Resources CDC provides educational materials about a variety of topics ranging from health-related illnesses to carbon monoxide poisoning. They are separated by topic or language, PSAs for disasters, resources for emergency health professionals, and social media. Go here to access these free resources that are suitable for printing and sharing.

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FEMA Emergency Management Institute

Course Description: The Advanced Public Information Officer Course provides participants the knowledge and skills to establish, manage and work within a joint information center (JIC) through multimedia lectures and individual and group activities. The training allows participants the opportunity to apply advanced public information skills during a multi-day functional exercise (FE) designed to test the participants’ abilities to analyze, coordinate, process and create information in a fast-paced, realistic environment. Course dates will during the following sessions: the November 2018 Session, and the February 2019 Session.

FEMA EMI hosts a series of “One Link, One Bridge, Many Voices” e-Forums every Wednesday from 3-4 p.m. ET. EMI e-Forums are 1-hour, moderated webinars where EMI and the emergency management community gather to discuss matters of interest related to emergency management and national preparedness. The sessions facilitate a panel discussion with our whole-community partners - your peers - sharing their experiences in an informal exchange of ideas. EMI e-Forums are free of charge and available to anyone who wishes to participate. August EMI e-Forums:

August 15th: Planning for Complexity: Leading Emergency Management in a Constantly Evolving and Complex Environment

August 22nd: Texas A&M Engineering Extension Service (TEEX): Bigger than just the National Emergency Response and Recovery Training Center (NERRTC)

August 29th: NIMS Training 2018: What to expect after 100.c

Participation link here. Conference call-in: 800-320-4330, PIN 107622. Questions here.

National Seminar and Tabletop Exercise for Education Institutions

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) invite you to the 2018 National Seminar and Tabletop Exercise for Institutions of Higher Education (NTTX) on September 24th -25th, 2018 at the UTSA Student Union. This two-day event will include workshop sessions, a tabletop exercise and an after-action

review session on preparing participants to respond to a campus emergency. Because emergency planning involves a team of individuals from across an institution, we recommend a team of five (5) to seven (7) senior leaders representing various functions attend from each institution. Participants also include representatives from federal departments and agencies. Register here, or learn more about the National Seminar and Tabletop Exercise for Institutions of Higher Education Series.

Educational/Training Opportunities

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Russian Government Activity Against Infrastructure Briefings

As a follow-up to the popular Combating Ransomware series, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will host another series of unclassified, virtual awareness briefings—this time on Russian government cyber activity against critical infrastructure. Briefings will be offered Monday, July 30th, 2018 and Wednesday, August 1st, 2018 from 1:00 – 2:30 p.m. ET. Content is the same for each session. View the event flier.

Building Communities for the Resiliency of Future Generations August 15th, 2018 at 12:00 – 1:00 p.m. ET Join this HHS Partnership Center webinar titled “Prevention in Practice: Building Communities that Strengthen the Resiliency of Future Generations” to hear faith and community presenters share strategies to strengthen young people to resist pressure and temptation to begin using drugs and alcohol.

Webinars

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Medical Marijuana: An Overview of the NJ Program

August 23rd, 2018 at 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. ET This webinar is designed to provide an overview of New Jersey’s Medicinal Marijuana Program. It includes physician and patient requirements for participation, qualifying medical conditions, and how patients obtain approval to purchase medicinal marijuana. It also has a brief introduction to the types and forms of medicinal marijuana and the locations of New Jersey’s Alternative Treatment Centers (ATC). To register, click here.

Prescription Drug and Heroin Epidemic: A Public Health Response

This one-hour webinar examines the history behind the U.S. opiate crisis and current epidemiology, including variations by region and state. The second half of the presentation describes some of the evidence-based efforts available for treating opiate use disorders, and efforts being implemented to prevent future use. It concludes with promising examples being implemented in other countries and a discussion of some of the barriers associated with implementing similar approaches in the U.S.

Combating Human Trafficking: The Role of Fire and EMS

In partnership with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Fire Administration, this 58-minute webinar helps emergency medical services and fire personnel identify indicators of potential human-trafficking victims and situations, and notify appropriate authorities for further investigation. Speakers discuss how to define human trafficking, and identify potential trafficking reporting options.

Disaster Preparedness for Older Adults with Dementia

This 57-minute webinar, titled “Disaster Preparedness for Community-Dwelling Older Adults with Dementia and Caregivers: Key Design Elements and Lessons Learned from a Health System Pilot” provides a brief overview of risk factors impacting older adults’ and family caregivers’ preparation and response to a natural disaster. Characteristics of recent disasters in Northern and Southern California are summarized to highlight the vulnerabilities of older adults living in areas affected by wildfires and weather emergencies. Speakers describe the design, implementation, and evaluation of a pilot program on disaster preparedness conducted at the VA Palo Alto Healthcare System. The webinar is part of the National Alzheimer’s and Dementia Resource Center series sponsored by the Administration for Community Living.

Let's Get Ready: Planning Together for Emergencies

This 44-minute webinar demonstrates how preparing for emergencies is something that families and child care providers can do together. It covers some emergency preparedness considerations for child care providers, explores activities to prepare for and offer comfort after emergencies, discusses how to help children remember important information, and details how to create a family emergency kit and plan.

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Defending Against Illicit Cryptocurrency Mining Activity The popularity of cryptocurrency, a form of digital currency, is rising; Bitcoin, Litecoin, Monero, Ethereum, and Ripple are just a few types of the cryptocurrencies available. Though cryptocurrency is a common topic of conversation, many people lack a basic understanding of cryptocurrency and the risks associated with it. This lack of awareness is contributing to the rise of individuals and organizations falling victim to illicit cryptocurrency mining activity. Read more here.

Firefighter Burnout

Are firefighters who show symptoms of burnout less likely to follow safety procedures? A team of researchers recently set out to learn if burnout impacted a firefighter’s ability to follow required safe work practices, care for and safely use personal protective equipment, and communicate and report safety concerns. The team also wanted to assess the direct effects that work stress and work-family conflict have on burnout. Study results clearly showed that burnout leads to diminished safety behaviors. It should be considered a legitimate safety concern within the fire service.

The Realities of IT Modernization

IT modernization is everywhere in government. It comes up in meetings. You've read about initiatives. But how many of us actually know how it affects our jobs? In our new guide, we go beyond the buzz of IT modernization to understand how it directly impacts you, the government employee. Download the guide here.

Disability Inclusion and Disaster Risk: Sendai Framework

This 121-page document provides guidelines that aim to assist in the design and delivery of disability inclusive disaster risk reduction (DRR) under the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030. The guidelines draw on examples of tested tools and approaches that can be used to further disability inclusion in DRR. Suggestions for how organizations for people with disabilities can contribute under the Sendai Framework are also included.

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