Emergency Preparedness News articles from November 2005

Emergency Preparedness News archives from November 2005

When the walls came tumblin'.(Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita, 2005)(Brief Article)
November 8, 2005... WHEN THE WALLS CAME TUMBLIN' down in New Orleans as Hurricane Katrina flood waters breached the levees, it was not due to overtopping in a few locations, as initially depicted in the media. "Literally dozens" of breaches occurred along many...

Pandemic flu strategy unveiled; critics blast funding for state/local systems.
November 8, 2005... The Bush Administration's $7.1 billion National Strategy for Pandemic Influenza is too little too late, and continues to overburden state and local public health systems weakened by federal budget cuts, according to critics on Capitol Hill and...

'Dozens of breaches' in Orleans levees prompt call for flood safety policy shift.(Brief Article)
November 8, 2005... Engineers assessing the failure of New Orleans levees during the onslaught of Hurricane Katrina are urging Congress to enact a National Levee Inspection and Safety Program and more stringent preservation of coastal wetlands to avoid a repeat of...

Mayors shine spotlight on failures exposed by gulf storm response.
November 8, 2005... City leaders have provided DHS Secretary Michael Chertoff with plenty of ideas on how to avoid repeating the Katrina response and recovery debacle, and they intend to make sure that the department follows up. "Our message to him was that what...

Chertoff tells congress he's ready to make changes in light of Katrina.
November 8, 2005... Better planning to meet survivors' needs and a robust communications system capable of taking the hit of a major disaster are among top priorities outlined recently by DHS Secretary Michael Chertoff before the House Select Committee on...

Handheld acoustic inspection device provides convenience, safety.
November 8, 2005... When a terrorist threat on Oct. 18 prompted Baltimore to shut down its traffic tunnels and conduct a search of the vehicles in those tunnels, Product Acoustic Signature System was the device likely put to work by the city's fire department. ...

DHS certified responder training to expand nationwide next year.(Brief Article)
November 8, 2005... DHS will make its certified responder training more accessible next year by allowing colleges and universities, public safety academies, and other facilities to deliver the department's standardized courses. During phase one of the...

Immuneregen Biosciences.(Viprovex drug development for pulmonary anthrax )(Brief Article)
November 8, 2005... IMMUNEREGEN BIOSCIENCES, Scottsdale, Ariz., will be working closely with Hyperion Biotechnology, San Antonio, Tex., to test the effectiveness of Viprovex to treat and prevent pulmonary anthrax sickness. Tests will take place at Brooks City-Base...

FEMA.(Grants & Contracts)(Federal Emergency Management Agency)(United Methodist Committee)(Brief Article)
November 8, 2005... FEMA will award a $66 million grant to the United Methodist Committee on Relief and the National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster to create a nationwide system of 3,000 case managers to assist Hurricane Katrina survivors who have the...

DHS and the environmental protection agency.(Grants & Contracts)
November 8, 2005... DHS AND THE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY have awarded a $10 million grant to Michigan State University to establish a Center for Advancing Microbial Risk Assessment. The center's mission will be to develop models and tools that can reduce or...

DHS.(Department of Homeland Security grants for public health services)(Brief Article)
November 8, 2005... DHS has awarded the American College of Emergency Physicians a $1 million grant to increase the preparedness of community health providers to respond to and recover from mass casualty events, especially terrorist acts using weapons of mass...

National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.(Grants & Contracts)
November 8, 2005... NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES has awarded $47 million in grants, contracts, and interagency agreements to colleges, universities, and private research organizations under its research program on Medical Countermeasures...

Department of Defense.(Grants & Contracts)
November 8, 2005... DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE has awarded Genencor International, Inc., Palo Alto, Calif., a $2 million contract to develop an enzyme-based universal decontamination solution targeting chemical and biological warfare agents, including protein-based...

COMCARE: new look, more info.
November 8, 2005... COMCARE, the non-profit alliance of public and private organizations with a mission to create a national interoperable emergency communications and information network, has launched a newly improved Website with more information and resources...

Early warning = lives saved.(Briefly Noted)
November 8, 2005... The lack of an early warning system was the primary culprit in the deaths of 220,000 people in last December's catastrophic Indian Ocean tsunami, according to the results of an eight-month investigation by the American Society of Civil...

TRIA found economical.(Briefly Noted)
November 8, 2005... The Terrorism Risk Insurance Act, which will expire next month unless renewed by Congress, provides an effective mechanism for sharing the financial risks faced by businesses due to terrorism, according to the RAND Center for Terrorism Risk...

Strategizing maritme security.(Maritime Security management plans)(Brief Article)
November 8, 2005... DHS and the Departments of Defense and State have completed eight plans to implement the National Strategy for Maritime Security. The plans were created by a team representing more than 20 government agencies formed to improve government and...

CSI Canada.(Canada Border Services Agency)(Brief Article)
November 8, 2005... Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Robert Bonner and Canada Border Services Agency President Alain Jolicoeur have signed a Container Security Initiative partnership agreement "to extend our mutual zones of security outward to foreign...

Small business preparedness.(Briefly Noted)
November 8, 2005... DHS has joined forces with The Advertising Council to launch new public service announcements touting the affordability and ease of small-business continuity planning. Small businesses represent more than 99 percent of all employers, according...

Anti-terrorism vs. privacy.(Briefly Noted)
November 8, 2005... Two revelations of Department of Justice privacy violations in the name of anti-terrorism underscore the need for Patriot Act reform, according to the American Civil Liberties Union. "No one should be above the law, not even our nation's law...

Rail workers report security lapses; union supports compliance standards.
November 8, 2005... More than half of rail workers surveyed by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters report observing running trains or equipment left unattended in rail yards or along rights of way, according to "High Alert: Workers Warn of Security Gaps on...

Step up to security.
November 8, 2005... The Government Accountability Office is calling on TSA to complete its passenger rail risk assessment so that the private sector can develop a consistent approach for analyzing risk and allocating resources accordingly. Contact: Cathleen...

Calendar.(Calendar)
November 8, 2005... Nov. 12-16: 53rd Annual International Association of Emergency Managers Conference, Phoenix. Sessions and exhibits covering the latest issues for first responders, emergency managers, and private sector security professionals, including...

Year-end madness.(Slants & Trends)
November 22, 2005... YEAR-END MADNESS is going to mean more for members of Congress this year than baking cookies, hanging holly, and snagging the snazziest 2005 model left on the car lot. When the Senate and House adjourned for their Thanksgiving break on Nov. 18,...

Patriot act reauthorization at impasse; legislators blame Bush Administration.(Slants & Trends)
November 22, 2005... A bipartisan group of House-Senate conferees are accusing the Bush Administration of scuttling a compromise on Patriot Act reauthorization, setting up a dramatic race to produce a bill before provisions expire at the end of the year. Sen....

FEMA long-term housing plans cited as cruel to evacuees and unrealistic.(Slants & Trends)(Brief Article)
November 22, 2005... A seemingly well-intentioned FEMA policy to get 53,000 Katrina/Rita evacuee families into long-term housing by Dec. 1 has drawn fire from housing advocates and the rental industry for imposing a cruel deadline with no backup support to help...

Securing their families' safety boosts responders' focus for facing disaster.(EPN Special Report: Backing Up the Heroes on Their Home Front)
November 22, 2005... Family safety is a vital concern for first responders separated from their own spouses and children while aiding others in crisis situations, according to first-hand accounts from emergency professionals at a recent Washington D.C.-area...

Bipartisan bill would provide perks to attract volunteer first responders.(EPN Special Report: Backing Up the Heroes on Their Home Front)
November 22, 2005... Property tax rebates and other compensation to local volunteer firefighters and emergency medical responders will be tax-exempt if bipartisan legislation introduced by Sens. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) and Gordon Smith (R-Ore.) is approved. Rep....

Katrina contracts.
November 22, 2005... KATRINA CONTRACTS. Acting FEMA Director David Paulison has not kept his word to reopen four major contracts for Hurricane Katrina and Rita relief work for competitive bidding, according to the leadership of the Senate Homeland Security and...

Teachers assist hurricane survivors; Louisiana schools avoid brain drain.
November 22, 2005... Many public schools in Louisiana were closed in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, worrying Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Babineaux Blanco and state school officials that unemployed teachers would permanently move out of the area. To help avoid a...

NIST releases its final report on World Trade Center collapse.(National Institute of Standards and Technology)(Brief Article)
November 22, 2005... The National Institute of Standards and Technology has released its final report on its investigation of the collapse of the World Trade Center towers. In 42 companion reports, NIST details: * How the aircraft impacts and subsequent fires...

DHS, union file personnel appeals.
November 22, 2005... The Department of Homeland Security has appealed an August ruling by U.S. District Judge Rosemary Collyer that blocked implementation of the department's new personnel system because it does not ensure employees' collective bargaining rights...

A crisis efficiency evaluation system.(Responder resources)
November 22, 2005... A Crisis Efficiency Evaluation System that analyzes congestion in public health clinics for mass dispensing and vaccinations is available to be downloaded for free from the University of Maryland's A. James Clark School of Engineering. The...

Planning for decontamination wastewater: a guide for utilities.(Responder resources)
November 22, 2005... Planning for Decontamination Wastewater: A Guide for Utilities is available from the National Association of Clean Water Agencies through a cooperative agreement with the Environmental Protection Agency to advise utility managers on protecting...

FEMA's Mitigation & Insurance Update.(Responder resources)
November 22, 2005... FEMA's Mitigation & Insurance Update Web site provides the latest information on both ongoing recovery operations in the Gulf of Mexico and long-term mitigation efforts. The site is designed to serve both the responders and the survivors...

The American Waterworks Association.(Responder resources)
November 22, 2005... The American Waterworks Association estimates that costs to repair and replace public drinking water infrastructure damaged by Hurricane Katrina will top $2.25 billion. AWWA compiled a report assessing treatment plants, storage pumping, and...

Patterns of Global Terrorism 1985-2004.(Responder resources)
November 22, 2005... Patterns of Global Terrorism 1985-2004 contains the text of the State Department's annual Patterns of Global Terrorism reports, together with introductory overviews and summaries, plus additional government documents, profiles of international...

"Environmental risks to children's health: hurricane and flood disasters".(Responder resources)
November 22, 2005... "Environmental Risks to Children's Health: Hurricane and Flood Disasters"--guidance for caregivers on protecting children in hurricane-impacted areas from the environmental hazards left behind by the storms. Contact: Eryn Witcher, EPA, (202)...

The National Resources Defense Council.(Responder resources)
November 22, 2005... The National Resources Defense Council has tested airborne mold levels in New Orleans and concluded that they pose serious health risk to residents and workers, both indoors and out. Neither EPA nor any other federal agency is monitoring mold...

"Guidelines to improve airport preparedness against chemical and biological terrorism".(Responder resources)
November 22, 2005... "Guidelines to Improve Airport Preparedness Against Chemical and Biological Terrorism" is a 100-page document funded by DHS and developed by a joint team of researchers from Sandia National Laboratories and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory...

The Environmental Protection Agency.(Responder resources)
November 22, 2005... The Environmental Protection Agency has released more sampling results from its ongoing efforts to track environmental dangers in the wake of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita: * www.epa.gov/katrina/superfund.html--general information about...

21st-century emergency alert.
November 22, 2005... 21st-CENTURY EMERGENCY ALERT. The Federal Communications Commission has issued a First Report and Order requiring providers of digital broadcast and cable television, digital audio broadcasting, satellite radio, and direct broadcast satellite...

Risk by the numbers.(terrorism risk assessment method report)(Brief Article)
November 22, 2005... RISK BY THE NUMBERS. The RAND Corp. has published a report introducing a new terrorism risk assessment method that the group claims will help DHS to allocate funds where they can most effectively reduce risk, rather than simply spending money...

Informed, yet still unprepared.(Brief Article)
November 22, 2005... INFORMED, YET STILL UNPREPARED. A survey by American Family Safety has found that although 85 percent of Americans are concerned about family members in an emergency situation, only 13 percent have an emergency kit with essential supplies....

Feed ban enforcement found weak.(cattle feed testing program)(Brief Article)
November 22, 2005... FEED BAN ENFORCEMENT FOUND WEAK. The Food and Drug Administration must exercise more stringent oversight of its feed ban testing program to ensure its effectiveness at guarding against bovine spongiform encephalopathy, the Government...

Screening sufficient, say truckers.
November 22, 2005... SCREENING SUFFICIENT, SAY TRUCKERS. The American Trucking Associations is calling on Congress and DHS to back off a requirement that commercial truckers carry passports when moving between the United States and Canada or Mexico. The DHS Western...

NFL pat down order deters terror, but stadiums aren't prime target, says pro.
November 22, 2005... National Football League Commissioner Paul Tagliabue was wise to declare at the start of football season that all attendees of professional games would be subject to pat downs, according to Ira Somerson, a security management consultant and...