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Public/Private Partnership
July 24 '08: Last year, organizers from America's Emergency Network (AEN) announced a new public/private partnership providing a suite of communications technologies for the general public and state, local and federal emergency response officials and government agencies. AEN provides a website containing video feeds and bulletins issued by OEMs and other government agencies in addition to AEN-TV (for emergency response and government agencies) as well the radio based AlertFM warning system. June 6 '08: During the ReadyCommunities Partnership Buffalo Symposium and planning session, members of the city, local and regional governments partnered with their business and community counterparts to plan and design a pilot project to help the community respond and recover from a disaster in the first 72 hours of a crisis. Through leveraging community resources, attendees developed several key points during the symposium which was opened by Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown. June 4 '08: First responders, local officials and community stakeholders will gather in Buffalo, New York today to discuss the upcoming Buffalo pilot program during a planning session and symposium with the ReadyCommunities Partnership working with symposium co-chairman Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown. Building on the Niagara's key location for commerce and security for both American and Canadian governments, RCP and Mayor Brown's office will work to design a pilot project planned for later this year. May 20 '08: The Community and Regional Resilience Initiative (CARRI) is a federally-funded program under the Southeast Region Research Initiative and led by Oak Ridge National Laboratory which seeks to build partnerships among stakeholders to increase resiliency in all sectors so that in the event of a natural or man-made disaster, a community will have the necessary means to respond and recover quickly. Currently, CARRI organizers have worked with three communities in the Southeast to "enrich the knowledge bases available to other communities," according to Corporate Research Fellow Thomas J. Wilbanks from Oak Ridge. May 15 '08: The House Committee on Homeland Security recently held a hearing to discuss partnerships with the private sector to improve disaster response, and infrastructure resiliency, Homeland Security Watch wrote. The hearing, entitled "Partnering with the Private Sector to Secure Critical Infrastructure: Has the Department of Homeland Security Abandoned the Resiliency-based Approach?" is part of a month-long series of hearings dedicated to resiliency. April 30 '08: The Associated Press reported federal officials from the US Coast Guard asking private boat owners for their participation in helping to prevent a terrorist attack from small boats, similar to the 2000 attacks in Yemen. According to the National Marine Manufactures Association, there are currently 18 million small boats in US waters, the AP reported. April 30 '08: Members of US and Mexican federal, state and local emergency response agencies and government officials have announced a partnership targeting cross-border disaster preparedness training and response. The disaster training is conducted through the US-Mexiao Border 2012 Program which has joined multiple US and Mexican federal agencies together. April 22 '08: The Naval Postgraduate School Center for Homeland Defense and Security has posted the new 2008 - 2013 FEMA Strategic Plans which were announced recently. The five-year plan outlines the goals and missions of the federal agency in working with federal, state, local and private sector stakeholders and officials to respond, prepare and recover from national, natural and man-made emergencies through five state goals. April 15 '08: The University of New Hampshire has partnered with the state's Department of Safety with the support of the US Department of Justice to develop Project54. The stated goal of Project54 is to help integrate communications technology which was developed without extensibility or integration in mind. Project54's CATlab has out-rigged more than 913 police cruisers in New Hampshire and helped to demonstrate a new digital television communications capability in Las Vegas with Harris Corporation and LG. April 15 '08: In a press release, a partnership was announced between LG USA and the Harris Corporation to deliver the MPH "in-band mobile" digital technology solution which will allow information to be sent to first responders and the general public through the digital spectrum and even when users are traveling at high speeds and using hand-held PDAs. April 14 '08: A new report released by the American Water Works Association in partnership with DHS focuses on the best practices which will help to secure the nation's critical water infrastructure, Washington Technology reported. March 28 '08: In a press release the DC Safetyautomobile emergency preparedness kit company has announced a new partnership with luxury auto maker DiMora Motorcar to provide first aid and emergency response mobile kits for the Natalia SLS 2 sedan. March 24 '08: The Star Bulletin reported a partnership of 12 hospitals across Hawaii which participated in a mock bioterror response drill. The exercise, conducted in partnership by the state's Department of Health and the Healthcare Association of Hawaii simulated exposure to anthrax and was meant to simulate the activation of the Strategic National Stockpile, a press release read. (Additional reading here, and here.) March 19 '08: The Naples Daily News reported that local emergency response officials recently employed the help of local high school students at a nearby college when conducting an emergency response exercise simulating a crash. "The exercise," the Naples Daily News reported, "are also giving ... Lee County School District's three comprehensive high schools - a front row sear to the careers they've been training for in their schools' career academies." March 13 '08 Duos Technologies announced in February that it had partnered with Baptist Health Enterprises to upgrade the hospital system's security and surveillance network, a press release announced. Baptist Health is the largest non-proft healthcare provider in the state. March 10 '08: The Homeland Security Watch blog has reported that the National Cyber Security Division of DHS is planning a second national cyber exercise called Cyber Storm II which will partner public, private and international agencies and organizations. March 10 '08: The Chicago Sun-Times reported a new program begun by Mayor Richard Daley to link the city's public schools' 4500 surveillance cameras into a network which can be accessed by police and first responders. The addition of the public schools' cameras will augment the existing 10,000 public and private cameras already being monitored by the city's law enforcement agencies. March 7 '08: The Navy has partnered with Northrop Grumman to build the Law Enforcement Information Exchange, also known as LInx, the Washington Post reported. The system currently joins more than 400 law enforcement agencies together. Linx is also used by 100 police agencies in the National Capital Region. March 6 '08: The Washington Post reported local law enforcement agencies around the country are linking their resources together through an online database allowing them to partner and share information. The technology, called Coplink was developed by Knowledge Computing Corporation and has been used by law enforcement agencies in Missouri who decided to pool their resources and federal grants to use the information-sharing network. March 4 '08: A new technology has been developed by an Australian company which derives energy from ceramic cells that can also double as mini-power stations, Reuters reported. The company, Ceramic Fuel Cells Unlimited has just signed a large contract with the Dutch energy firm Nuon to install the cells into Dutch homes by the end of 2009. March 3 '08: Wi4Net has announced a new partnership with the City of Milwaukee to install wireless surveillance cameras and a network monitoring facility, a press release announced. Along with the partnership is Pivot3 Inc., makers of high capacity and high definition digital storage. March 3 '08: Washington Technology reported that L-3 subsidiary MPRI Inc. will partner with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to help train federal agency "with preparedness training and simulation exercises to cope with a wide range of hazards, including acts of bioterrorism and pandemic outbreaks," WashTech reported. February 19 '08: Wyoming officials have announced a new statewide interoperable communications system which will link first responders, emergency management and government officials together, the Torrington Telegram Online reported. The system is called Wyolink and it will be 80 to 85 percent complete by March this year. Eventually, officials said the system will be linked to other states' systems. February 13 '08: Several community-based avian flu pandemic preparedness sites have partnered to form a new family-targeted avian pandemic preparedness website called GetPandemicReady.org. The GetPandemicReady site was begun by the Get Pandemic Ready Team (GPR Team) and the website is hosted byNez Perce County in Idaho. February 11 '08: The InfraGard public/private partnership was developed by the FBI and it pairs private sector infrastructure stakeholders with federal officials to share information and protect the nation's resources. InfraGard "is an association of businesses, academic institutions, state and local law enforcement agencies, and other participants dedicated to sharing information and intelligence to prvent hostile acts against the United States," the website said. February 4 '08: The Sacramento Bee reported a consortium of technologies companies who have partnered with the City of Sacramento to install a wireless Internet infrastructure. Construction will begin will be done by May and includes a consortium of Azulstar (formally Ottawa Wireless), Cisco Systems, Intel and SeaKay, wireless industry publication Unstrung.com reported. February 4 '08: The Chesapeake Innovation Center in Anne Arundel County, Maryland has been helping businesses develop strategic homeland security-related models and focus. Recently two new companies, MGB Ltd. Spearhead Innovations which develops handheld container inspection devices and in-container detection technology, and OnLine LinkUp which builds "affinity networking websites" have joined. January 31 '08: A collaborative project is practicing professional health care providers in South Carolina "for bioterrorism and public health emergency event recognition and response." The group is called the Disaster Preparedness and Response Training Network and it is funded through a $3.5 million federal grant from the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response in the Department of Health and Human Services. January 29 '08: In San Francisco last October, the city announced a new secure web-based information-sharing portal for first responders and community stakeholders, a press release announced. Working with Collaborative Fusion, a consulting, technology, first response and homeland security firm, the city has developed the www.HelpBayArea.org. January 18 '08: The New York Interfaith Disaster Services was established in 2003 after the attacks on 9/11. The 501(c)(3)'s mission is to provide "disaster readiness, response and recovery services for New York City." NYDIS' mission in disaster recovery includes "all phases of a disaster life cycle, including sustained advocacy, mitigation education, preparedness training, disaster planning, and recovery programs." January 15 '08: Hope Coalition America is an organization working to help mitigate the economic damages caused to families and organizations after a disaster happens. On their website, the organization said it also "serves as a resource network of companies, including banking, financial services, and insurance as well as government social service and emergency relief organizations that mobilize to respond to disasters." January 9 '08: In a press release Kentucky state officials announced a public/private partnership which would join members of the retail and pharmacy industries to help promote disaster and emergency preparedness education through brochure distribution. About 250,000 brochures were sent out to families with accompanying information at the state's family preparedness website. January 8 '08: The makers of the Hexayurt, a portable and quick-setup emergency shelter have been working on the Disastr.org emergency evacuation plan for cities and communities using a peer-to-peer resource allocation process which would provide sheltering for potentially hundreds of thousands of people. The value of having portable emergency shelters using scant resources was evident when the company participated in the 2006 Strong Angel III exercise, the New York Times reported. January 3 '08 In December, the New York Times ran a story covering companies and organizations' participation in working to help communities respond to disasters in the immediate aftermath. At the heart, experts told the Times that "managers and executives need to collaborate with outsiders like local officials and charities, ideally on a continuing basis, and not only in the midst of a crisis." January 2 '08 The New York City's Office of Emergency Management has begun an online community business resource tool to help during a response to a disaster. The Private Asset and Logistics Management System (PALMS) is a private sector registry resource designed to enhance the Citywide Asset and Logistics Management System (CALMS). December 17 '07: U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff will deliver the keynote address at next week’s National Congress for Secure Communities, a two-day forum dedicated to leveraging public/private partnerships for disaster preparedness and response at the community level. December 10 '07: A partnership of response and technology organizations has announced a new initiative to "improve interoperable, inter-organizational communications and information sharing for emergency preparedness, response and recovery," a press release announced. The Core Services Initiative is being pushed by the COMCARE Emergency Response Alliance, the Open Geospatial Consortium, Inc.,, the National Emergency Number Association, and the National Association of State Fire Marshals. COMCARE Director Steve Cooper said the initiative would work to develop "Core Services" of "shared information technology services 'in the middle'". December 10 '07: iBerkshires.com reported that Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick has announced a new Statewide Communications and Interoperability Plan to link first responders. The program was developed by state officials working with interoperable public safety company Science Applications International Corp.. More than 200 participants from state and local agencies helped to identify key areas for development during 22 focus groups. December 5 '07: The Medical University of South Carolina, a National Congress partner, announced in a press release earlier this fall, that they would begin a five-year study on the effects of disasters on mental health through a federal grant totaling $3.89 million from the National Institutes of Health. The study would coincide with the creation of the National Center for Disaster Mental Health Research with the cooperation of Dartmouth Medical School, the University of Michigan, Yale University and the University of Oklahoma. November 29 '07: In a press release, the Small Business Administration and Nationwide Insurance have announced a new set of disaster preparedness guides which will be available to small business owners. The announcement will be made next week in Washington D.C., the press release said. Officials from both organizations said that the guides will be in digital and physical form. November 16 '07: The Federal Communications Commission has announced a new push to link rural hospitals to urban doctors through the Internet, WBBM AM 780 reported. "Speaking in Chicago, FCC Chairman Kevin Martin outlined the $400 million Rural Health Care pilot program which he says will link 6,000 hospitals, clinics and research facilities in 43 states." November 14 '07: According to Science Daily, a new report released by the peer-reviewed International Journal of Emergency Management, has said that "an increase in the complexity of disasters [has made] it more difficult to manage a response" between local and state communities and the private sector. The report found, "It will be the responsibility of citizens and local government officials to work together to adapt the programmes [sic] to their communities' preparedness needs." November 12, 2007 In a press release from Princeton University, computer scientists have announced a new architecture "that enables the secure transmission of crucial rescue information to first responders during events such as natural disasters, fires or terrorist attacks." According to a story in NetworkWorld, the new framework allows first responders to exchange sensitive information on a "as-needed basis". November 9 '07: Local police officers in Athens County, Ohio and the City of Columbus will begin to train for real-life response situations using virtual technology developed by Ohio University's School of Telecommunications and Game Research and Immersive Design (GRID), the Athens News reported. The new virtual training technology was developed through local homeland security grants totaling $702,000. November 8 '07: In Los Lunas, New Mexico, first responders will begin to use WiFi to communicate interoperably using the one of the largest wireless communications system of its type in North America, a press release has announced. The network was established by Vivato Networks which was recently acquired byCatcher Holdings Inc.. Responders will use laptop and mobile devices developed by Catcher. November 1 '07: According to Government Technology, a new set of two multi-language preparedness guides in New York are working to elevate the level of children's preparedness in the city through a partnership between New York's local government organizations and the city's department of education, a press release read. October 31 '07: WTAE TV 4 in Pittsburgh has reported that the University of Pittsburgh's Center for National Preparedness has been working on a new online information and resource collaborative tool called the Dynamic Discrete Disaster Decision Simulation System much like the Essential Public Network, although Pitt's resource is targeted toward the local community. October 26 '07: Last year the United Nations established the "United Nations Platform for Space-based Information for Disaster Management and Emergency Response" (UN SPIDER) to facilitate international response to disasters using satellite technology. In a press release, UN officials said that using satellite technology, developing nations and communities in remote areas would have greater access to sensitive real-time information while international relief organizations would have greater situational awareness. October 24 '07: Information sharing and situational awareness company, NC4 has announced, a new partnership with the Department of Homeland Security to provide "a trusted secure platform for the rapid dissemination of intelligence data at the (Controlled Unclassified Information) CUI level to 10,000 users" which will include public and private sector recipients on the federal, state, local and tribal levels. October 17 '07: According to a press release, the Metropolitan Exposition Recreation Commission (MERC) with the Red Cross' Oregon Trail Chapter to develop a first-of-its-kind mega-shleter "agreement of its kind in Oregon that provides response and coordination of services and operations during major emergency and disaster relief efforts." October 16 '07: In the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, one of the salient problems facing those residents along the Gulf Coast was their ability to prove who they were to be able to receive the necessary services for recovery after the storm. Identity theft was rampant, and today is a growing problem for many people and corporations. In a press release today, a new initiative has been launched which partners industry, government, and academic organizations together "to develop and promote standards for identity credentials." October 10 '07: The White House released a fact sheet on Tuesday detailing the new National Strategy for Homeland Security. The NSHS provides a "national" and not a "federal" outline for how state, local and tribal communities should prepare for and respond to national emergencies. This new version of the NSHS is an update to 2002 version and "complements both the National Security Strategy ... and the National Strategy for Combating Terrorism," the Bush administration said. October 2 '07: In Vermont, the Rutherland Herald ran a story from the Associated Press about a new satellite phone system which is being planned for the rural parts of the state to help emergency response officials. The $1 billion system is expected to go online next year and will help "fill in the gaps in radio and cell phone communications." October 1 '07: Volunteers, members of the Lehigh County Emergency Response Team and the Allentown Health Bureau in Allentown, Pennsylvania were on-hand at the local Wegmans Food Markets over the weekend, passing out emergency preparedness information and locally-produced emergency preparedness DVD's, the Morning Call reported. September 28 '07: In the aftermath of disasters and emergencies, many communities must find ways to recover without the help of state or federal assistance for the first 72 hours. To support response operations, businesses within that community can provide valuable assistance - with existing resources in the location of the recovery process - through cooperation with local, state and federal emergency responders and first responders. One of the ways to help coordinate such resources and information is through a network much like the Essential Public Network, launched today by the Corporate Crisis Response Officers Association. September 26 '07: The Associated Press reported that more than 2,700 financial institutions will participate in a cyber pandemic preparedness drill under the aegis of the U.S. Department of Treasury. The drill, which began at the beginning of the week, "is scheduled to run for three weeks," and will cover topics such as absenteeism, the transfer of money and the economic infrastructure's security during a bird flu outbreak. September 25 '07: A new report released by Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick's administration has outlined several steps the state can take to improve its homeland security operations, and response and recovery outreach to local business and residential communities the Boston Herald reported. September 24 '07: The Philadelphia Inquirer reported over the weekend that Drexel University, the National Resource Center Advancing Emergency Preparedness for Culturally Diverse Communities, and the Office of Minority Health at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services have partnered to release a new report looking at minority populations' preparedness and the ways in which those communities can become more involved in their larger state, regional and national preparedness programs. September 21 '07: Congressional Quarterly reported several pilot programs developed and organized by the Corporate Crisis Response Officers Association - a partner with the National Congress for Secure Communities - which are using existing relationships between businesses to help federal, state and local governments respond to disasters. September 19 '07: Government Technology News reported a partnership in San Jose, California which is partnering the local police department with an Internet map mashup startup to provide maps for community residents so they know if crimes have occurred in their area. September 17 '07: The Press Telegram in Long Beach, California reported that the Red Cross has partnered with local business leaders to promote greater business preparedness - specifically earthquake preparedness. September 14 '07: In Walnut Creek, California local city officials are partnering with the Red Cross and the Church of Latter Day Saints to hold an emergency preparedness fair at the Heather Farm Community Center, the Contra Costa Times reported. The fair was being held this week to commemorate the 6th anniversary of the attacks on 9/11. September 13 '07: In Elmira Township, Michigan a local amateur radio group is hosting emergency preparedness classes and expos to help educate the local community on ways to prepare and develop strategies to mitigate disasters, the Gaylord Herald Times reported. The radio group, called the Northern Michigan Amateur Radio Emergency Services Group will host the classes for free. September 13 '07: At Cantigny Park in Wheaton, Illinois,, an emergency preparedness expo, hosted by the McCormick Tribune Foundation will work to help raise emergency preparedness issues for the local community, the Hindsdale, IL Suburban News reported. About 13 booths will display demonstrations and information on how to protect and prepare families. September 12 '07: PC World reported that several Internet tech firms have partnered with computer users to search for the missing adventurer Steve Fossett, who disappeared last week when scouting speed trial locations in the Nevadan desert last week. The companies cooperating to look for Fossett are Google Earth, Amazon.com's Mechanical Turk and GeoEye. September 12 '07: More than 35 federal, state and local agencies and 200 to 300 officials, responders and community volunteers participated in a mock train derailment/chemical spill disaster exercise in Portage, Wisconsin in cooperation with Canadian Pacific Railroad the Portage Daily Register reported. September 11 '07: PC World reported that a new consortium of security vendors "is trying to make it easier for emergency personnel to identify themselves at the scene of the disaster." The group, called Tiers of Trust, first will focus on local and state response offices, with the hopes of creating a "nationwide ID system that will prevent the logistical snafus that first responders experienced during" the attacks on 9/11. September 11 '07: In New York City, on the six anniversary of the terrorist attacks in Washington D.C., New York the crashed Flight 93 in Pennsylvania, area hospitals and health organizations are working to incorporate best practices and lessons learned through collaborative symposia and conferences, the New York Sun reported. Among those held, the New York Downtown Hospital is holding its fifth annual emergency preparedness symposium. September 10 '07: In Louisiana, state and local emergency officials have additional help during disasters through a partnership between veterinarians, university health representatives and first responders. The Louisiana State Animal Response Team has published an emergency preparedness manual for pet owners and has held summits focusing on best practices for the veterinarian community. September 5 '07: In late August when Hurricane Dean plowed through the Caribbean Sea, response officials in the Cayman Islands worked with the Red Cross and telecomm company WestTel to provide communications capabilities before, during and after the storm, Cayman Net News reported. September 4 '07: A Department of Homeland Security press release announced the beginning of the fourth annual National Preparedness Month. More than 1,700 federal, state and local governments and private organizations, businesses and religious groups are participating in the month-long campaign. August 30 '07: The Financial Services Information Sharing and Analysis Center, a consortium of the nation's largest financial services designed to share timely information about emergencies and disasters, has chosen Message One's AlertFind notification system to help spread alert messaging, ByteandSwtich.com reported. August 29 '07: In a press release, chemical and railroad industry experts announced training programs for California first responders through a partnership called Transportation Community Awareness and Emergency Response. TRANSCAER, started in 1986, is a partnership designed to teach best practices to those responding to chemical and railroad disasters. August 28 '07: The New York Times reported one insurance company helping to protect its clients' assets from wildfires in Western states by deploying fire prevention crews to spray houses with retardant. AIG Insurance "has deployed a crew to Idaho as part of its Wildfire Protection Unit for high-end clients who are willing to pay what the company says is an average of $10,000 annually for homeowner's insurance." August 22 '07: Inhabitat reported that in the aftermath of the 2007 Peru Earthquake which has already claimed 500 people, the architecture group Architecture for Humanity has begun to look for donations to help response and recovery efforts for more stable and safer buildings in the affected communities. August 16 '07: In a press release some of the largest healthcare organizations in the U.S. announced the formation of a new cooperative effort and partnership to help "the continued delivery of medicines during a severe public health emergency." The new partnership is called RxResponse and represents cooperation among private sector organizations and the federal government's Health and Human Services Department. August 15 '07: In a press release, Jewish Hospital officials in Louisville, KY announced and internal preparedness exercise in July which "was able to integrate multiple software platforms," to help create an overall efficient situational awareness and response. The Operation Rapid Response "demonstrated synergies in advanced technologies," like the iMapData software from ChoicePoint and Tridium's Niagara Framework©. August 14 '07: The Mid Hudson News reported that a group of four New York State colleges, Ulster, Rockland, Orange and Sullivan Community College have partnered to form the Hudson Valley Domestic Preparedness Community College Consortium which will allow for collaborative learning for people looking to receive an education in emergency planning, fire protection technology, emergency management and medical services among other disciplines. August 13 '07: On August 14 at the Middle Country Public Library on Long Island, New York, the Contingency Planning Exchange will host the Catastrophe Readiness Fair. The event seeks to help teach businesses how to respond and prepare for disasters. The fair anticipates September's National Preparedness Month the Long Island Business News reported. August 9 '07: The U.S. Coast Guard will participate in a mock emergency exercise on St. Thomas, U.S.V.I with Norwegian Cruise Lines today the Coast Guard News reported. The one-day exercise is a full-scale operation officials said. August 8 '07: August 7 was National Night Out and the Henry Daily Herald in Georgia reported local law enforcement efforts to engage the community "to learn how they can take a more active role in keeping their communities safe, while developing better relationships with the law enforcement community." August 7 '07: A local radio station in Santa Clara, California reported on a partnership that the school district is forming to prepare students for emergencies as they begin to head back to school. Through a press release, the district announced the creation of the 12 Months of Preparedness which will focus each month on a different disaster and the ways to prepare for it. August 6 '07: When the I-35W bridge collapsed into the Mississippi River in Minneapolis last week, regular citizens at the scene began taking videos and photos of the disaster and then posting that information and media to internet sharing sites, blogs and community groups. The Boston Herald reported that emergency officials in Minneapolis have taken that information and are using it - actively cooperating with citizens who recorded the media. August 1 '07: Texas businesses and state/local governments are working together to help bolster overall preparedness efforts since Hurricanes Rita and Katrina in 2005. Under direction from the state's Division of Emergency Management, response officers from retailers and government officials are "conducting mock drills alongside" each other, the Houston Chronicle's story appearing in My San Antonio.com reported. July 31 '07: In Florida, a new state response center's grand opening was coupled with calls from Governor Charles Crist to the community to be prepared for emergencies, the Insurance Journal reported. The "Get a Plan Day" program focuses on ways families can prepare for emergencies by making kits complete with water, batteries, first aid supplies and disaster planning guidelines. July 27 '07: In Kentucky, the Jewish Hospital Medical Center South in Built County has been working with tech company FacilityOne© to develop situational awareness software to help resource and man-power management during a disaster, the Courier Journal in Louisville reported. July 25 '07: The Grand Island News Independent in Nebraska reported that the surrounding community will be host to an emergency preparedness forum delivered by Sam's Club through a program the company has begun to raise awareness about community preparedness. July 25 '07: In the United Kingdom, a partnership between academia, the scientific community and local emergency response organizations is working to "explore the interface between physical and social science approaches to managing disaster risk and uncertainty." The partnership, called the Science and POlice Interfaces for Disaster Reduction, or SPIDER Network, was founded in 2006 and is primarily focused on disaster mitigation research. July 19 '07: After more than a year of planning, the "nation's critical infrastructure sectors still fall short on providing incentives to private owners to assess vulnerabilities and risks," Washington Technology reported according to a new GAO report (see report link below at bottom of article). The report encourages public/private partnerships to help develop security measures for the country's critical infrastructure as a way of speeding-up the process. July 16 '07: The Rutland Herald in Vermont reported that to help senior citizens after a disaster the Vermont Center for Independent Living (VCIL) has been holding community hearings built around providing information about disaster preparedness after a state-wide storm in April which left about 50,000 without power. July 13 '07: The Disaster Mitigation Planning Assistance website was begun as a cooperative effort between the National Endowment for the Humanities and a database resource called Hypatia to help museums, libraries, historical societies and archives prepare for disasters. July 12 '07: As the world's populations move toward urban areas, more than 60 percent of all people by 2030 will live in cities, the Rockefeller Foundation reported. To build more sustainable and prepared cities, the foundation sponsored the Urban Summit along with the Center for Sustainable Urban Development, and the Earth Institute at Columbia University. Issues discussed included ways to increase the health and response mechanisms inside urban areas to help people face challenges such as droughts, disasters and emergencies, and changes to climate. July 6 '07: SavannahNow.com reported that the Minor League Baseball team the Savannah Sand Gnats are partnering with the Department of Homeland Security and the Boy Scouts of America for the fourth annual "Ready Night" to teach emergency preparedness in the community. July 3 '07: In East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana, members of the local community have partnered with the Office of Homeland Security & Emergency Preparedness and the Telecommunications for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Inc. to help deaf and blind residents with emergency preparedness through a training event, the The Advocate reported. June 29 '07: The Canadian Centre for Emergency Preparedness is hosting the June 28 '07: In El Paso, Texas, on June 28 a partnership between the city's mayor office, academia and the business community is partnering to hold an emergency preparedness seminar designed to help small businesses in the area, develop business continuity plans, the El Paso Times reported. June 27 '07: In Central Florida, a federal Homeland Security grant totaling almost $1 million will go toward training the LYNX busline employees to help train them to spot potential terrorists and criminals, the Orlando Sentinel reported. June 27 '07: When hurricanes threaten Texas coastal communities, evacuations are slowed when motorists run out of gas, only to find that fuel supplies are limited along the designated evacuation routes. To help mitigate gas shortages, Texas Governor Rick Perry implemented a Task Force on Evacuation, Transportation, and Logistics which was developed with the partnership of oil companies Shell, Citgo, Chevron, Valero, ConocoPhilips, Exxon Mobil and Marathon, the Associated Press reported. June 25 07: The IndyStar.com website reported that a suburb of Indianapolis, Beech Grove, has been working to build a city-wide WiFi network which will have a public safety portal and a public access network. The new network will be the second to be installed in the Indianapolis metro area, IndyStar reported. June 20 '07: A press release from the National Emergency Number Association announced a partnership designed to help maintain hearing impaired technology. The new partnership will target populations with emergency call services using the 9-1-1 centers equipped with the Positron Public Safety Systems technology. June 19 '07: A large partnership of federal, state governments, public health officials in Hawaii, Yale University's School of Medicine, and the University of Hawaii Manoa have announced a continual medical education course for public health officials online, the Honolulu Advertiser reported. The course, Pacific Emergency Management, Preparedness and Response Information Network and Training Services is the first of its kind in the U.S. June 19 '07: In the Seattle metro area at the end of the week, telecom Qwest will partner with National Emergency Number Association for the Connect for Safety Initiative to help raise 9-1-1 call service awareness and best practices for families in the area, a press release announced. June 18 '07: The Corporation for National & Community Service has announced that it will increase its disaster response and preparedness efforts in the Gulf Coast area as well as other parts of the country through greater cooperation with state and local governments. In its press release, the agency said it will "develop common objectives and measurable targets to make the national service enterprise even more effective in its disaster preparedness and response work." June 12 '07: Members of the private sector, local and state governments, and medical officials and experts are gathered in Washington DC for the Healthier America Summit. According to a press release in addition to general health issues, participants are working to find ways to increase community pandemic preparedness. June 8 '07: Reuters reported that IBM has released pandemic prediction software which will be donated to public health officials to help predict and mitigate any possible international health emergency. The software, called Spatiotemporal Epidemiological Modeler or STEM will be available to more than 20 health agencies worldwide. June 4 '07: In what is a first of its kind, Boeing has announced a partnership with the FBI to place staff analysts at a Seattle FBI Fusion Center intelligence sharing office "to set an example of how private owners of critical infrastructure can get involved in such centers to generate and receive criminal and anti-terrorism intelligence," Washington Technology News reported. June 4 '07: Government Technology News reported that New York Governor Elliot Spitzer has announced the creation of two new web-based emergency alert systems for residents of his state. One of the systems, NY-DELIVER, will leverage public/private assets and operations while NY-ALERT will work to handle weather related emergencies, a New York State Emergency Management Office press release read. June 1 '07: New American Media, which focuses on minotiry-based issues in the U.S., reported that California electric company Pacific Gas & Electric recently partnered with the ethnic journalist community in San Francisco to hold a roundtable discussion about ways to increase the public education on energy conservation, climate change and the ways in which it will affect those communities' first response. May 31 '07: The Homeland Security Watch blog has posted an article about the public/private partnership between the Canadian Defense Department's R&D agency and Battelle "to produce a schematic illustrating a 'preliminary analysis on the economic impact of a nuclear weapon event in Vancouver.'" May 31 '07: If a terrorist group were to strike the Los Angeles metro area, about half of the residents in the city would not follow mandatory evacuation orders issued by local officials, the Los Angeles Times reported. The findings were based on a poll conducted by the city's Department of Health Services and it was to be released on May 31. May 30 '07: The main information-sharing network for the Department of Homeland Security, the Homeland Security Information Network, needs more focus and cooperation from the private sector if it is to success as an efficient and reliable source of intelligence, security experts told Washington Technology reported. May 25 '07: In Philadelphia, city officials said they are hoping a public/private partnership to introduce a city-wide wireless internet network is one step closer to realization with the approval of a 15-square mile testing zone, Information Week reported. If the testing zone is successful, city officials will begin working to construct the larger 135-square mile WiFi network. May 22 '07: Dartmouth College has announced the release of a new virtual training tool for first responders which focuses on chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear and explosive emergencies. The new computer-based tool has more than 16 hours of training material and is the first course in the college's Interactive Media Laboratory's Virtual Terrorism Response Academy. May 22 '07: Consolidated Edison Inc. and the Department of Homeland Security will partner in a $39.3 million federally funded project dubbed "Project Hydra" to increase the resiliency of New York City's electric grid by installing new superconducter power lines to help prevent blackouts caused by power surges, the Associated Press reported. May 21 '07: Community Emergency Response Teams have been forming in the Manatee area in Florida to prepare for the summer heat, fire season and hurricane season, the Sarasota Herald-Tribune report via LexisNexis. Art Wessan, a CERT volunteer in University Park told the paper the members of his community "are the firs responders in the event of a cataclysmic event that has 911 overwhelmed like a (Hurricane) Katrina situation." May 21 '07: On Tuesday, May 22 the Ford Motor Company and Michigan State University will participate in a disaster preparedness and response competition to test the car company's ability to address emergency situations, an MSU press release announced. May 15 '07: World mayors gathered in New York City for a climate change conference focusing on ways that world's largest cities could work to prepare and respond to rising global temperatures, the Associated Press reported. The conference was hosted by NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg. May 10 '07: About one-third of Americans are not ready to respond to a disaster according to a new poll released by the American Public Health Association, the Center for Infectious Disease Research & Policy reported. In the poll most said that they knew they were not prepared enough. May 8 '07: The Associated Press reported that after the recent tanker crash in California which destroyed a major overpass in the San Francisco metro area, online mapping engineers quickly worked to revise their software to re-route people away from the site of the accident - a move toward quicker updating that could also help first responders and emergency personnel. May 3 '07: South Carolina Department of Health officials, along with Catawba Indian Nation tribal officials and Logical Images have partnered to introduce new telemedicine technology which will help 65 rural state hospitals as well as urban area medical centers, share visual information through a system called VisualDx, designed for remote information sharing and diagnosis, a press release announced. May 3 '07: In Terre Haute, Indiana, local city, medical, hospital and state officials have partnered to underwrite and film a pandemic preparedness video which will be put into DVD format for circulation throughout the state, the Tribune Star reported. Officials told the Star that after several discussions, a pandemic preparedness film would be the best way to reach a large audience. May 2 '07: Northrop Grumman Corp. and the Fire Department of New York participated in a wireless communications network exercise at 7 World Trade Center recently to test new information-sharing technologies, the Associated Press reported. During the exercise, officials tested their ability to send video surveillance to remote locations for situational awareness and real-time field evaluations. May 1 '07: Federal officials from the U.S. Department of Personnel Management are working with Geospatial Experts to map critical infrastructure through the Critical Infrastructure Protection Seminar. April 27 '07: Kentucky Department of Homeland Security officials have partnered with Wolf Creek Dam construction engineers in the southern part of the state to install a warning system to alert the 17,500 residents in the four counties under the dam in case of an accidental water release from Lake Cumberland due to construction, ComputerWorld reported. April 26 '07: Seismologists, state and local officials and other officials in California are considering a new plan for short earthquake alert systems which would send out a warning 10 to 20 seconds after the epicenter releases its first wave to outlying areas, the San Jose Mercury News reported. April 25 '07: The Huntsville Stars baseball team will partner with the Boy Scouts of American and the Department of Homeland Security on May 19, to help spread information about community involvement and preparedness. April 25 '07: CNET reported that the Federal Communications Commission will announce rules for a new spectrum auction soon so that guidelines can be issued to help rural locales, and small businesses gain access to the available broadband spectrum. The spectrum's availability comes as the federal government moves television from analogue into digital. April 20 '07: Government Technology reported that San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom and the Fritz Institute will partner to coalesce public and private sector leaders' skills to increase the city's emergency preparedness and response capabilities through the Bay Area Preparedness Initiative. April 16 '07: A new community-based elementary school preparedness program, developed by Symetra Financial and the National Brokerage Consortium with help from the Department of Homeland Security's National Office of Citizen Corps, will be launched with the goal of helping elementary school students, faculty and administrators a press release announced. April 13 '07: Severe weather experts, state and local government officials and emergency response personnel were on-hand in Baltimore for the 22nd Annual Severe Storms Awareness Conference, a local NBC affiliate, WBAL reported. April 12 '07: In East Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, the Post Gazette reported that local Quaker Valley school nurse Darcy Yeloushan has been working with here counterparts on the state level to prepare the school and the surrounding area for a flu pandemic by developing a response plan. April 11 '07: Members of the University of Massachusetts' Medical Response Corps will participate in an emergency response drill with the cooperation of community and local health and government leaders, the Daily Collegian reported. The exercises will coincide with other similar drills in Western Massachusetts. April 11 '07: WiFi-Planet reported that in Richmond, Virginia emergency response service officials have been working with the communications technology company InMotion to create seamless wireless communications and data-transfer networks to help with response operations. April 10 '07: The National Fire Protection Association has released a new guide to help disabled persons safely evacuate an area in case of a fire. The NFPA Emergency Evacuation Planning Guide "was developed with input from the disability community to provide general information," to help during a fire emergency. April 5 '07: In Maryland this month, more than 50 organizations have participated in emergency preparedness training sessions designed to raise awareness about the special needs community and how families of members of those communities can prepare for disasters. A Center for Disability and Special Needs Preparedness press release announced. April 4 '07: A federally-funded report compiled by the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center's Center for Biodiversity found that a local Pennsylvania community-based civic engagement plan designed to prepare the community for pandemic response was the most effective route to mitigating an outbreak of disease, the Tribune Review reported. April 2 '07: According to a new report released by the Government Accountability Office, the Emergency Alert System's primary actors - the media and the federal government - need to find a way to improve and integrate the system to help it become more effective in alerting the public during times of national emergency. March 30 '07: The nation's first state health information network soon will go online in Delaware, Government Health IT reported. The network will link the state's health and hospital officials together so that they can share data, toxicology results, X-rays, and other health-related information. March 30 '07: Funding from the National Science Foundation will go to help a joint project designed to simulate the spread of infectious diseases through the use of the TeraGrid, Carolina Newswire reported. The grid, the world's largest cyber-infrastructure, will be monitored by RTI International and the Virginia Biometrics Institute at Virginia Tech. March 27 '07: Colorado officials said they have recently begun to use several types of visual mapping technology along with web-based location tracking software to create a "mashup" application which can locate specific events and also give accurate weather forecasts for the area to help responders adequately adjust, FCW.com reported. March 23 '07: The Associated Press reported that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta have partnered withe General Motor Corp.'s OnStar service to help improve response times to automobile accidents. On Wednesday, General Motors announced "a partnership with federal health officials to create guidelines ... for the use of real-time crash data to help emergency services." March 21 '07: Medical specialists at the Johns Hopkins University have developed new free medical disaster response software for hospital officials to help calculate "the impact of such crises as a flu epidemic, bioterrorist attack, flood or plane crash," the JHU Gazette reported. March 20 '07: The Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Port of New Orleans have entered into an agreement whose goal would be to mitigate the impact of any future hurricane along the Gulf Coast, a FEMA press release announced. About $50,000 in federal funding was earmarked for the project. March 19 '07: The state of Michigan and the federal government are cooperating in an exercise to test the state's ability to mobilize volunteers "in the event of a federal public heath emergency," a press release from the Michigan Department of Community Health. Among those participating in the exercise: the Office of Public Health Preparedness and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. March 16 '07: IBM and Brownville, Texas have announced a partnership to employ new wireless communications technology to boost the city agencies' capabilities, Telecommunications Magazine reported. The $4 million agreement will target the development of WiMax-WiFi capabilities. March 12 '07: The office of Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell issued a press release announcing the week of March 11 - 17 as "Weather Emergency Preparedness Week," to help state, local, and county officials "test plans and procedure for response to severe weather conditions." March 6 '07: Arizona lawmakers voted recently to create a citizen responder corps much like the National Guard, but with the mission to help local and state first responders during a natural or man-made disaster, the Yuma Sun reported. March 5 '07: Tribal members from the Confederated Salish-Kootenai and Blackfoot tribes have been taking an 18-month course to train for hazmat disaster response, the Daily Interlake reported. The 24-member crew, called the Hazardous Action Workers Keeping Safe (HAWKS) "will be specialists on how to handle hazardous materials and what to do in the event of "agro-terrorism", the Daily reported. March 5 '07: School officials at the University of California at Berkley have announced a new disaster communications system called the People Locator to help inform students, faculty and employees of the university The Daily Californian reported. February 27 '07: The Brandenton Herald reported recent efforts in the Lakewood Ranch area near Sarasota to organize community members to be prepared for disasters. Joan Robbins, a retired nurse who moved to the area in 2004 with her husband, has been credited with organizing the community's emergency preparedness committee and for mobilizing the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) training. February 22 '07: During a national or regional emergency, power will remain unavailable to residents for long periods of time. In addition to no electricity, general services such as telephone services would prevent people from calling emergency management officials. Cell phones would work only as long as they can hold a charge and so American Legion members in Palisades, California have volunteered to set up an amateur radio station to help with disaster communications for the community, the Palisadean Post reported. February 21 '07: In Burton, Michigan, students at Faith High School are working with local firefighters to train for the Student Emergency Response Team certificate in the hopes that they will be able to help first responders in the event of a disaster that affects their schools, the Flint Journal reported via LexisNexis. February 19 '07: In Bothell, Washington, the city council has announced a community-wide plan that will target every household to develop a broad foundational level of emergency response a press release announced. The plan, called "Operation: Every House Prepared," will begin March 3 with the city delivering 15,000 emergency preparedness informational packets to citizens in the City of Bothell, and the Snohomish County Fire Protection District #10 households. February 19 '07: 14 students from Smithsburg High School in Washington County, Maryland participated in a Community Emergency Response Team training seminar sponsored by the local volunteer fire department, the Herald-Mail reported. In addition to the high school students, members of a local Boy Scout troop participated. February 19 '07: According to federal guidelines issued earlier this month, the focus of pandemic response should rely on the local level with state and local community organizations working to install a chain of command and communication to help keep communities running. The Episcopal Church announced their pandemic preparedness and response plans for all dioceses and parishes recently. February 15 '07: In Palm Beach County, Florida, a group of hospitals, medical responder agencies and non profit organizations have been working to share information, training experience and resources to help prepare for a medical, natural or man made disaster, the Palm Beach Post reported. February 14 '07: In 2006 about 115 organizations, government agencies and members of the private sector participated in Cyber Storm which tested the government and industry's ability to respond and communicate during a simulated cyberterrorist attack. InfoWorld reported that a new Cyber Storm is being planned for 2008 and will include outside industries such as the chemical and nuclear energy industries. February 8 '07: In Nevada, several 4-H groups have developed a pilot plan that helps to train community children in emergency preparedness, the Nevada Appeal News reported. The program, called the Community Readiness Network, was begun in several western states through the support of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Department of Homeland Security and 4-H. February 7 '07: A new Internet emergency preparedness and response information clearinghouse has been developed for school administrators and educators with a focus on school safety, eSchool News reported. The New School Actions for Emergencies Center (SAFE) is a joint project of the eSchool News publication and the International Society for Technology in Education. February 5 '07: A Dallas Morning News story reported in the Journal of Emergency Medical Services via LexisNexis found high school students in the Dallas area were helping first responders by learning to use and operate ham radios. The amateur radio club begun at Rowlett High School pairs the students with adult sponsors who teach the kids about the technology, how to communicate and the uses of the radios. January 31 '07: From 1811 to 1812, three massive earthquakes struck along the New Madrid Seismic Zone in Missouri causing massive damage to villages and towns in an area hundreds of miles in diameter. To raise earthquake awareness in the area on the upcoming anniversary of the quakes on February 7, Disaster News reported local and state emergency management agencies and seismologists urging people to prepare themselves for another large temblor. January 29 '07: Working with school administrators, faculty, students, the local police departments, campus law enforcement and emergency response experts, Humboldt State University ran a mock disaster scenario to test the community's and school's disaster preparedness, the Times Standard reported. The day-long exercise was overseen by former FEMA Director James Lee Witt's |