Disasters « Jeff Braun's Emergency Management Blog

Free Online Symposium – Community Recovery from Disaster

16 03 2011

Given the recent catastrophe in Japan, this is a most timely event. Lots of quality speakers including Chuck Wemple from the Houston-Galveston Area Council who will be presenting an article on economic issues in post disaster recovery based on his experiences in Texas. Information about this free event is below.

The Public Entity Risk Institute will present its first 2011 online symposium, Community Recovery from Disaster, March 21-25, 2011. The symposium will bring to practitioners and public officials practical information about the latest research and lessons learned about the economic, social, physical, institutional and interdisciplinary dimensions of disaster recovery. These dimensions were explored in depth by top researchers in the field at the recent Theory of Recovery Workshop sponsored by PERI and funded by the National Science Foundation. This online symposium will investigate how these dimensions of disaster recovery could affect your community, and offer lessons that will help you prepare.

Each day of the symposium, registered participants will be able to log in and read the papers and post comments on the material presented and pose questions to the authors or other participants. Provided as a public service, PERI Virtual Symposium Programs are free and open to anyone with Internet access (registration required). Each morning, participants who enroll in the Symposium will be emailed a link to the papers being presented that day.

This symposium program will be moderated by Dr. Laurie A. Johnson. Laurie Johnson is Principal of Laurie Johnson Consulting and a senior science advisor to Lexington and Chartis Insurance companies. She has over 20 years of professional experience in urban planning, risk management, and disaster recovery management, and has studied most of the world’s recent, major urban disasters, including the Chile (2010), Sichuan China (2008), Kobe Japan (1995) and Northridge (1994) earthquakes, Hurricane Katrina (2005) and the 2004 Florida storms, and the World Trade Center disaster. In 2006, she was a lead author of the recovery plan for the City of New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina and coauthored the book, Clear as Mud: Planning for the Rebuilding of New Orleans, published in April 2010.

The following experts have been invited to contribute Issues and Ideas Papers:

	**Charles Eadie, Principal Associate, Hamilton Swift & Associates, will present a paper on the physical dimensions of disaster recovery.
	**Dr. Rick Sylves, professor and senior research scientist at the Institute for Crisis, Disaster, and Risk Management, Department of Engineering Management, University of Delaware, will present a paper on the institutional dimensions of disaster recovery.
	**Chuck Wemple, Economic Development Program Manager of the Houston-Galveston Area Council and manager of the Gulf Coast Economic Development District, will present an article on economic issues in post disaster recovery based on his experiences in Texas.
	**Dr. Rob Olshansky, professor in the Department of Urban and Regional Planning, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, will co-author the symposium introduction and synthesis paper with the moderator.
	**Dr. Liesel A. Ritchie, assistant director for research at the Natural Hazards Center, will present on the social dimension of disaster recovery.

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Tags: earthquake, Emergency Management, Hurricanes, PERI, Recovery
Categories : Disasters, Earthquakes, Emergency Management, Flooding, Hurricanes, Ike, PERI, Recovery, State of Texas

Functional Needs Support Services (FNSS)

6 03 2011

In November of 2010, I had the opportunity to hear Craig Fugate, FEMA Administrator, speak at the IAEM Conference in San Antonio. He really focused on one message more than all others——–the concept of the emergency management doing a better job of serving individuals with disabilities during disasters. Very pointedly, he impressed on all that were in attendance that FEMA would be working to change the guidance and standards for sheltering those Americans with disabilities.

He spoke to the attendees of the development of the Guidance on Planning for Integration of Functional Needs Support Services (FNSS) in General Population Shelters. A Texas-based organization, Baptist Child & Family Services (BCFS), was contracted by FEMA to put together this important Guidance.

In a general sense, FNSS planning guidance will provide standards for the sheltering of those with disabilities; in the past, those with disabilities were treated differently— as a separate population group. Fugate noted that treating individuals differently was a direct violation of the American with Disabilities (ADA) Act. The guidance will ensure that those with functional and access needs will receive equitable and adequate care in shelters during disasters.

The following article was published on the Texas Emergency Management Online recently; specifically 2011, Volume 58, No 3. It is written by Kari Tatro, Executive Director of BCFS’ Emergency Services Division. It is very timely. It provides more background on FNSS; and it explains the steps being taken by Chief Nim Kidd and the Texas Division of Emergency Management to ensure compliance with the new Guidance. Please take the time to read the article.

Our communities are changing. Many individuals with disabilities are living independently. People with chronic illnesses are living longer. And the fastest growing age group in the United States is 85 years of age and older. Emergency managers have a legal, as well as an ethical, obligation to put plans in place to meet the needs of all members of their communities during disasters. FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate is leading this charge.

More than a year ago, FEMA tapped Texas’ own BCFS to develop a nationwide Guidance on Planning for Integration of Functional Needs Support Services (FNSS) in General Populations Shelters. This guide is based on existing law and applies to all general population sheltering plans. At its core is an effort to help state and local sheltering operations understand what planning is necessary to comply with federal key non-discrimination concepts and equality statutes.

Persons who may require FNSS in general population shelters include children, the elderly, adults with physical, sensory, mental health, cognitive and/or intellectual disabilities affecting their ability to function independently without assistance. It includes women in late stages of pregnancy, and people needing bariatric services. The list is not intended to be limited to these populations, and could include non-English speaking individuals, the homeless, persons from different cultures, and those with pharmacological dependency.

While the Fair Housing Act and the American with Disabilities Act have been on the books for years, it’s a fact that individuals who fit the above descriptions have not always received the same treatment as others during sheltering operations.

The FEMA guidance clarifies requirements for providing FNSS in general population shelters, ensuring that all individuals in the community, with or without disabilities, have equal access to services in disasters. Complying with this directive requires strategic planning and coordination among state agencies, local governments and community partners.

The Texas Division of Emergency Management is working toward this goal along with BCFS, State Mass Care, the Department of State Health Services, the Department of Aging and Disabilities Services, the Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services, the Texas Governor’s Committee on People with Disabilities, the Texas Department of Licensing Regulation, the American Red Cross, several local Emergency Management Coordinators, as well as other state and voluntary agencies.

This work group will lead the effort to ensure that the state and local jurisdictions will be in compliance with the new FEMA guidance, and that they have tools to assist this process. During the Texas Emergency Management Conference, BCFS will present a workshop providing a brief overview of the guidance describing those planning considerations that will need to be addressed in local jurisdiction general population shelter plans. Additionally, the workshop will present the findings of the TDEM FNSS stakeholder group, including recommendations and tools to support local government in the integration of FNSS into their shelter plans. Jurisdictions should plan to attend one of the workshops in order to ascertain the State of Texas recommendations for the Federal Guidance Implementation.

If your jurisdiction would like more information about FNSS or how BCFS can assist you in effectively and efficiently adopting and implementing recently released federal requirements, please contact us at 1-800-830-2246 or www.bcfs.net/emergencyservices.

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Tags: BCFS, Disasters, FNSS, Nim Kidd, State of Texas, TDEM
Categories : BCFS, Disasters, Emergency Management, FNSS, Nim Kidd, Shelters, State of Texas, TDEM

2011 Texas Legislative Session – March 2nd

2 03 2011

Below you will find a listing of Emergency Management related bills as of March 2, 2011. Information about thirty-three bills is shown below.

The 82nd Texas Legislature will be in session 140 days. The first day of the session was Tuesday, January 11, 2011 and the last day of the session is Monday, May 30, 2011. The last day to file regular bills be Friday, March 11, 2011. Governor Perry has until June 19th to review bills passed by the State Legislature. He can sign a bill to authorize new law, or he can let a bill become law without signing, or he can veto a bill.

HB 1 – (Pitts) Relating to General Appropriations. Among other things, this bill would reduce expenditures for 9-1-1 Network by 27%; reduce by 48% disaster funding to state and local agencies when the Governor finds the demands on funds regularly appropriated are insufficient to respond to a particular disaster; reduce by Criminal Justice grants by 55%, impacting the number of grants awarded from an estimated 900 in FY 2011 to approximately 520 each fiscal year of the 2012-13 biennium; and eliminate funding for the Flood Control Dam Grant Program which provides operations and maintenance, structural repair, and rehabilitation needs to flood control dams across the State.

HB 614 - (Hopson) Relating to allowing health care providers to provide services across state lines in catastrophic circumstances

HB 803 – (Bonnen) Relating to the penalty for failure to make a timely installment payment of ad valorem taxes on property in a disaster area. SB 432 is identical

HB 805 – (Callegari) Relating the requirement that certain water service providers ensure emergency operations during an extended power outage

HB 837 – (Taylor, Van) Relating to the authority of peace officers to request thumbprints during motor vehicle stops

HB 993 – (Rodriguez, E.) Relating to the closure of a road or highway by certain firefighters

HB 1030 – (Miller) Relating to the powers and duties of certain emergency services districts

HB 1075 – (Anderson) Relating to the consolidation of certain alert system into a single statewide alert system and to the addition of other factors that will prompt an alert under the consolidated system

HB 1092 – (Christian) Relating to the exemption from certain construction requirements for volunteer fire departments in certain counties

HB 1125 – (Burnam) Relating to a study regarding the odorization of natural gas transported in gathering and transmission lines located in populated areas

HB 1147 – (Smith) Relating to notice by a governmental entity regarding certain geospatial data products. SB 442 is identical

HB 1174 – (Workman) Relating to the expiration of a county burn ban

HB 1217 – (Miles) Relating to a residential tenant’s right to vacate a dwelling and avoid liability for rent following the declaration of a state of disaster; providing a civil penalty

HB 1319 – (Laubenberg) Relating to the calculation and reporting of water usage and conservation by municipalities and water utilities

HB 1354 – (Davis, S.) Relating to liability of certain certified municipal inspector for services rendered during an emergency or disaster

HB 1379 – (Anchia) Relating to the purchasing of a firearm from the county by an honorably retired law enforcement officer

HB 1476 - (Riddle) Relating to the grounds for revocation of an emergency medical services personnel certification

HB 1561 - (Orr) Relating to the authority of a municipality to implement a photographic traffic signal enforcement system and impose civil penalties

HB 1619 – (Orr) Relating to emergency services districts

HB 1711 – (Davis, John) Relating to disaster remediation contracts; providing penalties

HB 1750 – (Darby) Relating to the authority of the Texas Department of Transportation to lease and contract for the operation of rolling stock during certain emergencies

HB 1765 – (Miller, Sid) Relating to an emergency public service messaging network. Identical to SB 971

HB 1791 – (Kleinschmidt) Relating to emergency services districts

HB 1861 – (Anchia) Relating to the continuation and functions of the Commission on State Emergency Communications

HB 1878 – (Miller, Doug) Relating to emergency service districts. Identical to SB 917

HB 1911 – (Bonnen) Relating to the liability of certain persons for damages arising from training exercises to prepare the persons to respond to certain emergencies

HB 1917 – (Schwertner) Relating to the removal of appointed emergency services commissioners by a commissioners court

HB 1986 – (Turner) Relating to the authority of the Public Utility Commission of Texas to ensure the Electric Reliability Council of Texas has adequate reserve power to prevent blackout conditions

SB 106 – (Davis, Wendy) Relating to condemnation of municipal property for, and municipal regulation of, pipeline operations

SB 389 – (Williams) Relating to emergency preparedness during an extended power outage of a water service provider with at lease 250 connections

SB 418 - (Williams) Relating to the carrying of concealed handguns by certain persons attending a school board meeting

SB 617 - (Rodriguez) Relating a manifest system to record the transportation of certain liquid wastes

SB 917 – (Wentworth) Relating to emergency service districts

SB 969 – (Nelson) Relating to the establishment of the Public Health Funding and Policy Advisory Committee with the Department of State Health Services

For a PDF listing: billreport 3-02-11

If you know of other bills that I may have missed, please leave me a comment and let me know! Thanks to those of you who have contacted me and made suggestions.

Also, please consider subscribing to this blog to receive the legislative information directly.

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Tags: Communications, Emergency Management, Fire, Police, Power Outage, Public Health Emergency, Schools, State of Texas
Categories : Communications, Disasters, Emergency Management, Fire, Law Enforcement, Legislation, Police, Power Outages, Public Health Emergency, Schools, State of Texas

2011 Texas Legislative Session – February 26th

26 02 2011

Below you will find a listing of Emergency Management related bills as of February 26, 2011.

The 82nd Texas Legislature will be in session 140 days. The first day of the session was Tuesday, January 11, 2011 and the last day of the session is Monday, May 30, 2011. The last day to file regular bills be Friday, March 11, 2011. Governor Perry has until June 19th to review bills passed by the State Legislature. He can sign a bill to authorize new law, or he can let a bill become law without signing, or he can veto a bill.