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Best Practices
August 22 '08: As Tropical Storm Fay has worked its way across Florida, as much as 30 inches of rain have fallen on parts of the state prompting federal and state officials to declare states of emergency, the Associated Press reported. Online resources for community members have been made available according to One Storm which linked to TropicalStormFay.org sponsored by the Red Cross. August 15 '08: Late in July, the Department of Homeland Security signed an agreement with the ANSI-ASQ National Accreditation Board (ANAB), based in Milwaukee, "to establish and oversee the development and implementation of the accreditation and certification requirements" for the private sector to strengthen its preparedness and resilience, the Suburban Emergency Management Project reported (courtesy of HSDL). Accreditation guidelines have not been announced yet, but participation is voluntary and will be driven by the marketplace. August 8 '08: The National Institute of Standards and Technology announced recently the creation of a new radio communications technology that can extend the range of radio communications for first responders working in buildings, underground and in other similarly difficult areas. The mesh network and breadcrumb system, Computer World reported, uses "relay devices [which] run software that can notify emergency crews when they need to place another of the breadcrumbs along their route to extend the range of communications down a hallway or tunnel." July 29 '08: A Congressionally-mandated study, funded by the Federal Transit Administration and compiled by the Transportation Research Board has looked at the role of mass transportation before, during and after an emergency. Writers of the report said the study's aim was "to explore the capacity of transit systems serving ... locations in times of emergency." July 28 '08: The Naval Academy's Center for Homeland Defense and Security blog (HSDL) announced a new report released by two immigrant communities-focused think tanks looking at the impacts of disaster preparedness in communities where English is not the primary language. In the press release, the Tomas Rivera Policy Institute and the AsianPacific American Legal Center of Southern California wrote that recent disasters in Southern California have shown that "in order to improve disaster awareness among immigrant community members and to help emergency response personnel better serve limited English speaking populations," education and outreach operations must be increased. 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. July 22 '08: In a press release from the Environmental Protection Agency, the federal government announced a new report which examines the health, settlement dynamics and impacts of climate change on communities in the United States - broken down into regions. The report covers areas ranging from population redistribution to local, state, regional and national disaster recovery in the face of increasingly severe weather. Many of the findings suggest increased economic, infrastructural, and societal pressures. July 18 '08: The Disaster Zone blog reported on a new Internet technology which allows blind persons access the web without the expensive technology typically needed. The WebAnywhere alpha release is an open source project which was developed by researchers at the University of Washington. July 11 '08: A new partnership among medical industry stakeholders, federal health agencies and nonprofit organizations have developed the Rx Response program which seeks to continue delivering medicines to patients on the regional, state and local levels during an emergency. The partnership works by partnering with biotechnology manufacturing and distribution companies as well as hospitals and community-located pharmacies to help solve supply chain problems caused by natural or man-made disasters. July 1 '08: In Japan, architect Shuhei Endo has been working on fusing disaster response and recovery capabilities into the design to stadiums, Architectural Record reported in the June 2008 edition. Endo's design incorporates curved lines and open spaces to maximize the space available for large response operations to move into an area also used by sports teams, AR reviewed. Local communities in the US such as Charleston, S.C. have been using stadiums to house displaced people after disasters. Similar uses have been put into place during Hurricane Katrina and during the Southern California wildfires in 2007. June 24 '08: Wired reported on a new social network which allows users to build their own social activist network and then link it to other similar networks. The project, called Change.org was begun by two men in their late twenties, and now boasts up to 2,000 non-profit group now using it, Wired reported. June 20 '08: The First Response Team of America is a privately run organization to help communities respond and recover in the first days after a disaster. On its website, the organization said it helps local, state and federal first responders "by removing the initial obstacles that local emergency and government officials encounter when dealing with a natural or manmade disaster." June 18 '08: Flood waters from the Mississippi River are working their way south to communities in Illinois, Missouri and other states CNN reported. The destruction from the severe storms over the Midwest have caused large-scale evacuations, as well as causing a surge in global food prices. Meanwhile, Reuters reported that fuel costs will likely rise due to damage to corn crops which produce ethanol used as an additive in gasoline. June 11 '08: A new website for minority community disaster preparedness and outreach has launched. The National Resource Center on Advancing Emergency Preparedness for Culturally Diverse Communities' DiversityPreparedness.org is the product of a partnership between Drexel University's School of Public Health's Center for Health Equality and the US Department of Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health. In a press release Dennis Andrulis, the director for Drexel's Center for Health Equality said, "If you strengthen the precontext of a community before a disaster you make sure the effects are less severe after the storm." June 5 '08: In a press release telecommunications company Verizon announced a new public awareness and preparedness push targeting residents in Georgia for the 2008 hurricane season in addition to the company's efforts at strengthening its communications infrastructure. So far in 2008, the company reported more than $80 million in Georgia "to strengthen and enhance its wireless network". June 4 '08: In New York City, the New York Times reported a new federal grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration which will fund "a team of medical experts and bioethicists ... looking to expand the city's donor pool by deploying a 'rapid organ-recovery ambulance' to collect and preserve the organs of people who die of cardiac arrest." If successful, the new program could add as many as 22,000 people to the nation's donor pool. June 3 '08: On its created by the Community Foundation announced it was closing operations after seven years of providing recovery outreach for those surviving families who were affected by the attacks on 9/11 in Washington DC. In conjunction of the fund's closure, the Community Foundation has released a final report to the community, and a disaster recovery process outline. June 2 '08: On their website site the the Muslim community disaster relief group Islamic Relief USA said it had partnered with students from Dartmouth College who volunteered to travel to New Orleans and help the local community with their on-going recovery operations. "For about two weeks during winter break (2007) this past December, 14 Dartmouth College students took the long journey from New Hampshire to Louisiana to do their part in assisting in the aid efforts," the relief group's website read. May 30 '08: Chinese government officials are utilizing grassroots citizen groups to help with disaster recovery efforts in Sichuan province, the Washington Post reported. The groups are using Internet technologies such as chat groups and online social networking to organize themselves. May 29 '08: Members of the Jewish community have established the Secure Community Network to promote information sharing among community stakeholders as well as to establish "national standards for improving security at the local level" the organization's website read. SCN offers its members access to "critical safety and security" information through its Internet portal which includes forums, security awareness programs, model crisis management and rapid response scenarios tailored for the Jewish community. May 28 '08: HLSWatch, while talking about federal officials encouraging a do-it-yourself approach to hurricane preparedness and building on personal preparedness wrote that federal officials are working to alert communities and the private sector through the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS). May 28 '08: Following a disaster which destroys the infrastructure, public/private partnerships should work to rebuild improved, sustainable and resilient solutions, a Matthew Wacman wrote in an article featured in World Changing. "The planning policy would focus on finding sustainable solutions to broken or destroyed systems ... Safety measures and the making of resilient urban systems are very important, yet the scope of disaster-planning could be expanded to include a focus on implementing new solutions that provoke a change in the game entirely." May 27 '08: Reuters has reported Chinese officials rushing to evacuate more than 100,000 people who could be in danger of drowning if more than 35 'quake lakes' caused by landslides after the recent earthquake burst. Chinese state-run news agnecy Xinhua reported a possible evacuation of up to 1.3 million people. May 23 '08: The Associated Press reported state and local officials in California have partnered with more than 300 scientists, first responders and private sector stakeholders to "create a realistic crisis scenario that can be used for preparedness," if the expected "Big One" earthquake were to erupt along the San Andreas Fault. In the press release the US Geological Survey said a response exercise has been planned for November 2008 called "Golden Guardian '08" which will focus on a magnitude 7.8 temblor that lasts four minutes. May 22 '08: In a piece run in the Washington Post, blogger and citizen responder John Solomon wrote that emergency preparedness and disaster response within communities is essential: "The more prepared a population is, the more effective the response to and recovery from a catastrophe will be." To underscore the importance of personal preparedness among our communities, former Under Secretary for Preparedness at DHS George Foresman echoed Solomon's piece on the Security Debrief Blog, "preparedness is not an exclusive responsibility of government agencies. ... Our elected leaders must provide their citizens with clear expectations ... [of] what is expected from them as citizens." May 21 '08: When Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans, company officials at vacuum cleaner company Oreck rushed quickly to respond in order to make sure that company employees would be safe while maintaining continuity of operations. The Denver Post reported that to help restore business operations the company set up a "backup computer system and a call center on the high ground of Colorado. With these communications centers," Oreck was able to restore its operations quickly. May 20 '08: According to PC World dependence on the telecommunications infrastructure in the developing world is growing and that after the recent natural disasters in Myanmar and in China groups like Telecoms Sans Frontiers are rushing to rebuild the communications infrastructure to help with response and recovery operations. May 20 '08: Wired's blog reported Google's announcement of its online personal health information service Google Health. The Associated Press reported that the service seeks to give "users instant electronic access to their health histories ... the service lets users link information from a handful of pharmacies and care providers." May 15 '08: VMware has announced two new management and automation products "designed to streamline disaster recovery and curb virtual server sprawl," NetworkWorld reported. "The bundles," NetworkWorld continued, "include several previously released products built on top of VMware's virtualization software." May 14 '08: Xcel Energy has announced a first-of-its-kind project in Boulder, Colorado to build a Smart Grid City power infrastructure. Planners of the $100 million project said their goal was to create a resilient and flexible power system designed to evolve to daily power needs. Creating smart grids is a next step for federal, state and local officials and infrastructure stakeholders who see a smart, flexible system as a way to build preparedness, resiliency and sustainable best practices into communities. May 13 '08: Boutique strategic advisory firm TD International partnered with employee emergency support services company Assist America to augment the SecureAssist initiative which seeks to provide a "comprehensive program of security and intelligence (to companies and employees who are responding to or are victims of) a multitude of threats ranging from terrorism," political, and socio-economic situations. May 12 '08: After the recent tornadoes which struck Oklahoma over the weekend, one town's residents are considering whether to rebuild their community, the Associated Press reported. Picher, Oklahoma with about 800 residents is also the location of a federal Superfund site - Tar Creek - and local officials said that the storm's destruction was enough for many community members to relocate. May 9 '08: The Katrina Environmental Research and Restoration Network (KERRN) was created to help research ways to prepare for and respond to major environmental disasters. The organization is hosted by Tulane/Xavier Universities' Center for Bioevironmental Research and was begun after Hurricane Katrina ravaged the Gulf Coast in 2005. May 08 '08: According to the New York Times a partnership of telecomm and technology companies have announced a new nationwide wireless Internet network which will provide high-speed data accessibility for laptops and mobile phones using the WiMax platform. The Associated Press reported that network will come after the merger of Sprint/Nextel and Clearwire. May 08 '08: Five days after Cyclone Nargis hit Myanmar, international aid organizations are trying to reach those most affected by the storm while a lack of fuel supplies and local resources is creating another potential problem as the dead begin to pile up, CNN reported. Shortages of relief supplies and resources continues to grow while the military junta in control of the government is restricting access to parts of the country by foreigners, the cable news channel reported. May 07 '08: The Twin Cities Security Partnership (TCSP), was a partnership Target founded with the FBI in 2004. The TCSP brings together community safety agencies at all levels including police, sheriffs, the ATF and even the Secret Service with major employers in the area to build relationships, receive training and share information on potential community security issues. May 07 '08: In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, environmental experts together with federal, state and local government officials worried about the potential devastating environmental effects of the storm which could unleash chemicals, sewage and other pollutants into the flood waters released by the broken levees. The CDC released an announcement saying partnerships were being formed to help prevent widespread damage. Buffalo, NY-based Ecology and Environment, Inc., works to help their federal, state and local partners respond and recovery from such disasters and their impacts on the environment. May 06 '08: Relief aid agencies heading to the affected region's of Myanmar's Irrawady Delta are facing challenges due to the remote location of many villages and the destruction caused by Cyclone Nargis, the New York Times reported. "Bad roads, a lack of cooperation from the country's military government and a breakdown in telecommunications are factors that could hamper relief efforts," the Times reported. May 6 '08: Reuters has reported nearly 22,500 people dead after a massive cyclone hit the Irrawaddy Delta in Myanmar. The New York Times reported that international aid groups and first responders are moving to help send relief supplies to the affected areas as officials in the capital city Yangon have said the death toll is expected to rise. May 5 '08: According to the Associated Press, a new report outlines treatment priorities during a pandemic. The findings in the report were compiled by a partnership of federal and state officials along with experts from the medical and academic communities. "The proposed guidelines are designed to be a blueprint for hospitals" the AP reported. May 2 '08: To help federal, state and local officials respond to emergencies on the water, Resolve Marine Group has developed a national network of professional responders who can handle chemical spills, on-board fires, and natural disasters. In recent past, the group helped local officials in San Francisco when an oil tanker spilled several tens of thousands of gallons into the San Francisco Bay. May 2 '08: Though many businesses and organizations have disaster response and continuity plans in place, there is no national certification standard for those plans, the Conference Board recently announced. However, using statistics gathered from a DHS-funded study, three-quarters of the 302 senior corporate executives surveyed said they had an emergency preparedness plan in place, the group found. May 1 '08: Wired Mag previewed several products which seek to help emergency and disaster response professionals using up-to-date technology. Among the most notable were the portable water filtration devices, and the disaster-reconnaissance trailer. Both technologies are now available on the market for immediate use. May 1 '08: CNN reported seismic experts saying they are puzzled by the continuing earthquakes which now number 344. The continuing activity has prompted Governor Jim Gibbons to ask all residents of the state to be prepared for any emergency, the Insurance Journal reported. Gov. Gibbons has said 72hour kits and a family response plan should be in place. 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 29 '08: According to the Washington Post, at least 200 people were injured when a series of tornadoes ripped through Southeastern Virginia. Governor Time Kaine declared a state of emergency while emergency medical officials in Suffolk at the Sentara Obici Hospital set up an incident command center and triage stations outside after the hospital was mildly injured after the storms. April 28 '08: The Federal Food Safety and Inspection Service's Food Defense & Emergency Response program under the purview of the USDA has released a new food defense plan for warehouses and food distribution centers in the event that the nation's food supply comes under attack from a terrorist or other man-made threat. April 28 '08: The Associated Press' full coverage of the recent earthquake activity in Nevada has shown local and state officials asking residents to prepare for larger, more damaging temblors in the weeks to come. The Nevada Daily Herald reported that insurance industry officials are saying they are receiving more and more calls about how residents can prepare against possible housing damage. April 25 '08: The National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program has released its new 2008 earthquake reduction program that "outlines a cooperative program of earthquake monitoring, research, implementation, education, and outreach activities performed by the NEHRP," the Naval Postgraduate School Center for Homeland Defense and Security reported. April 24 '08: The Network Centric Operations Industry Consortium, an international non-profit which works to integrate existing open standards communications frameworks around the globe, recently announced a new study and key findings of its Network-enabled Emergency Response project. The NEER project had two-key assertions: that every response organization should migrate all communications to IP capability; and that there should be a nation-wide "map-defined electronic registry of all emergency response organizations, their responsibilities and their information routing information." April 23 '08: Honeywell announced in a press release that it would be partnering with Butler University to deploy Honeywell's Instant Alert© emergency notification system. The emergency alert service was announced last summer. April 23 '08: The Quake Catcher Network, a group of seismologists in California, have formed to employ the use of personal laptops connected to the Internet to help monitor seismic activity in the San Francisco Bay and Greater Los Angeles Basin areas, MIT's Technology Review reported. Essentially, the network uses potentially hundreds of connected laptops' built-in motion sensors to measure minute movements over a large area. April 22 '08: In a press release the Institute for Business & Home Safety announced the creation of a new research initiative and facility to test the damage done to personal property and homes cause by natural disasters like hurricanes and tornadoes. The new center will test scenarios on full-scale model homes and construction components using high wind and high water situations. 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 22 '08: In a press release, Illinois Governor Rod J. Blagojevich said efforts to train first responders, school faculty, personnel and school children to confront the dangers of events such as the Columbine High School shooting have resulted in more than 4,500 training sessions. Gov. Blagojevich said, "Schools have enthusiastically embraced the training opportunities and guidance we are offering, and I believe real progress has been made." April 21 '08: Wired reported on a new project partnership between Purdue University, the US Department of Energy and NASA called Project Vulcan which takes carbon emission data and overlays it onto a map of the country. The partnership, which uses the Google Earth and Google Maps technologies presents a way for infrastructure and energy industries to build real-time and situational awareness capabilities into mapping. April 16 '08: Duos Technology has announced a new contract which would increase security and surveillance operations for the Amtrak and CSX Rail System running through Washington DC. In the press release, Duos said the $1 million contract would "expand its existing intelligent video and security sensor system along a segment" of train track running through the capital. April 16 '08: Pennsylvania officials said in a press release in 2007 that photovoltaic solar panels would be used to help provide 4.8 kilowatt hours of power to be used for critical government systems "that protect public health and safety". The solar cells were installed through a partnership with BP's US solar branch and represent a large statewide sustainability campaign spearheaded by Governor Ed Rendell. April 16 '08: State Farm is working to create partnerships among federal, state and local governments with the private sector and individual policy holders which will boost cooperative efforts to prepare for and to respond to natural disasters and emergencies. "The private insurance market - on its own - has insufficient capacity to handle exposures for catastrophic natural disasters and still cover all of its other insurance obligations," State Farm said about its partnerships." 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: In a press release, a new wireless radio network for first responders in the City of San Jose was announced by Harris Stratex. The new $9.1 million radio network will integrate emergency response communications for the city interoperably among fire, police, EMS and other agencies and it will be available for 31 agencies in the Santa Clara County area. April 14 '08: The Associated Press reported earlier that the FCC has released guidelines which outline a national emergency alert system using text messaging. Washington Technology reported that the new plan lacks a federal sponsor and FEMA has declined as well. April 11 '08: 3M has developed a series of technology solutions for the first responder, and homeland security communities. Specifically, 3M has developed nine products which "address the problems that are confronted by local government First Responders on a daily basis and to help prepare these agencies in the event of a catastrophe in their community." April 9 '08: In a press release, Proactive Communications Inc. and Digital Consulting Services announced the completion of a new satellite-based communications network which was built for the Florida National Guard. Officials said the new network would be online for the 2008 hurricane season. April 9 '08: The Safe America Foundation announced late last year that it had merged the American Fire & Rescue and EMS Organization into the Safe America First Responders (SAFR). April 9 '08: In a press release, Baxter Healthcare announced a series of new grants targeting communities in crisis in the US and globally. The donations, totaling $53 million are "focused on increasing access to healthcare, helping developing nations and countries in crisis, and addressing another critical community needs." April 3 '08: A new report released by the Mercatus Center at George Mason University has looked into the ways in which the private sector is able to augment, and in some salient cases, improve upon the overall federal response to a disaster. The report highlights the mechanics behind the private sector's ability to help communities recover from a disaster and the ways in which the public sector can augment those capabilities. April 1 '08: In a press release, Northeast Utility announced it would begin to use the RecoverGuard disaster management and recovery software and database build by Continuity Software. Officials at Northeast Utility said they were looking to incorporate a solution which could link databases using Unix and Windows servers with databases ranging from Oracle, Microsoft SQL and Sybase.q March 31 '08: This year's FIRST Conference in Vancouver, British Columbia in June will focus on how businesses, government, organizations and communities can begin to address the challenges and security implications of an ever-interconnected world through the Internet. In a conference PDF, organizers said the event would target "making security a global issues with responsibilities shared globally [with] a proactive global response" to "asymmetric threats" such as terrorism and computer hacking. March 31 '08: In a press release, AT&T announced it has jointed a global consortium of telecommunications companies to help build a new high bandwidth fiber optic submarine cable called the Trans-Pacific Express to deliver Internet, voice and data communications to the United States, South Korea, Japan and China. March 31 '08: The Software Engineering Institute at Carnegie Mellon and the Financial Services Technology Consortium have announced the release of the CERT (R) Resiliency Engineering Framework a press release announced. The software provides a roadmap for organizations and businesses "to establish, manage and evaluate operational resiliency which encompasses both security and business continuity." March 28 '08: The Associated Press reported in Arkansas that recent flooding - which could be the worst the state has seen in 100 years - has left 35 counties under a state of emergency. One death has been reported as well. The heavy flooding also has devastated the winter wheat crops Reuters reported. March 27 '08: National Public Radio reported on one Colorado town's water emergency after medical officials found the drinking supply to be contaminated with salmonella bacteria. Alamosa City officials are now responding to the emergency by flushing pipes with chlorine the Los Angeles Times reported. Officials said that it might take weeks to clean the water. March 26 '08: In a press release, Envisage has announced that it will partner with the South Carolina Criminal Justice Academy to provide the company's Acadis Readiness Suite to help automate the statewide management of the academy's training, certification, employment and officer records. March 26 '08: Innovative Biosensors has announced a new bio-monitoring technology partnership with Universal Detection Technology to develop a new early-warning monitoring which will "protect people from bioterrorism and other infectious health threats," a press release reported. March 24 '08: In a press release the American Chemistry Council's Chemical Information Technology Center (ChemITC) said it had "facilitated the participation of 10 chemical companies" during the Cyber Storm II cyber security response drill. According to officials, the industry IT group helped to coordinate existing response and recovery plans as well as technology resiliency communications processes. 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 20 '08: Continuity Central reported on a new study produced by Ernst & Young in collaboration with Oxford Analytica which interviewed more than 70 insurance industry analysts globally "to identify emerging trends and uncertainties driving the performance of the global insurance sector over the next five years." March 19 '08: The Center for Infectious Disease Research & Policy at the University of Minnesota (CIDRAP), reported that a recent pandemic response exercise conducted by the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta was the fourth in a series of similar exercises begun in January 2007. March 18 '08: The Eagle Tribune in North Andover, Massachusetts reported on the local community's new emergency management command center and website which officials say will help to distribute greater preparedness awareness among the community. March 17 '08: The Department of Transportation has released a first phase report researching the effects climate change on the Gulf Coast's infrastructure, Environmental News Network reported. The multi-year study and its subsequent findings is a collaboration between the DoT's Center for Climate Change and Environmental Forecasting and the US Geological Survey. March 17 '08: City and police officials in Atlanta are working to restore order to the downtown area after a tornado smashed through several neighborhoods CNN reported. The storm's 130 mph winds "slammed into skyscrapers as well as landmarks like the CNN Center and the Georgia Dome ... Dozens of streets remained blocked Monday as cleanup crews gathered debris and downed limbs and trees, piling it on sidewalks or in dumpsters positioned on cordoned-off roads," the cable news channel reported. March 14 '08: The medical technology provider Welch Allyn announced recently it had developed a new wireless bedside data solution to transfer electronic medical records to a central database a press release announced. The new solution allows medical personnel to transfer records remotely and quickly and gives other personnel immediate access to that information. March 13 '08: In New Orleans, one community almost completely destroyed by Hurricane Katrina is rebuilding by utilizing a needs-based approach through an online database originally used for sales, NPR reported. The website, Salesforce.com is an online leader in software as a service, customer relationship management and business application delivery services, but because it can pair needs to capabilities, Broadmoor neighborhood resident Hal Rourk has turned it into a recovery tool. March 13 '08: The Washington Post reported a Northern Virginia nonprofit which is working to connect family members, resources and those needing resources during a disaster. Stargazer.org was developed by Arthur Bushkin and the website "uses Web- and cellphone-based tools to connect users of handheld devices with colleagues and relatives." March 12 '08: Information Week has reported new recovery management software upgrades from CA. Some of those new upgrades include disaster recovery products as well. March 12 '08: To help respond to oil and chemical pollution disasters, two Canadian companies have created a new partnership which will establish emergency response equipment depots around the world as well as allow personnel access to pre-existing training centers, a press release announced. The Swire Group and Lamor Corporation partnership will be able to handle Tier I - Tier III oil spills. March 12 '08: The Associated Press reported a new study released by the National Academies which found that "Climate change will affect transportation primarily through increases in several types of weather and climate extremes," and that federal, state and local governments should "incorporate climate change into their long-term capital improvement plans ... and emergency response plans." March 11 '08: The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has announced the completion of the Tsunami Warning System after the deployment of the last two tsunami detection buoys in the South Pacific. March 11 '08: In a press release, the plastic company Konarka has announced the development of a new solar cell energy technology which is applied using an inkjet printer. Inhabitat.com reported that the technology is as flexible and is inexpensive. March 11 '08: The technical and management services company Proxtronics, based in Springfield, VA has developed a Mobile Transportation Radiation Monitoring System (MOTRAMS) which measures and establishes baseline radiation levels along roadways, railways, waterways and within communities. March 10 '08: Texas A&M University's Home Station blog which covers topics related to homeland security (HLS) reported that San Diego County has released an after action report covering the 2007 wildfires. 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: A new water-cleaning technology has been developed by the Vestergaard Frandsen Group, Scientific American reported. The LifeStraw is about the size of a regular straw and has the capability to kill nearly 100 percent of all bacteria and viruses using a halogenated resin. 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 7 '08: Law enforcement agencies across the country are beginning to share and exchange information and data through a new federal network called the National Data Exchange System, the Washington Post reported. N-Dex, as the system is called, is a way for local and state law enforcement agencies to share information with their federal counterparts and remove many of the "top-down" roadblocks facing earlier attempts to share information and communicate, PoliceOne.com reported. March 6 '08: Sometimes during disasters, those who are responding may not have all the transportation resources they need to make sure that the affected communities can be reached. The Christian Appalachian Project has developed a partnership with the rental car company Enterprise to provide cars and rental vans on short notice. March 6 '08: In a press release, a new partnership has been announced between Honeywell and Baltimore Gas & Electric which will work toward helping the utility company respond to peak energy demands during the summer months and to help reduce the risk of rolling blackouts. Through the Demand Response Infrastructure, customers are given the option to have programmable thermostats or air conditioner load control switches installed in their homes to reduce "energy consumption and costs." March 5, 2008: The Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University will be hosting an online emergency evacuation seminar with a focus on major cities in the country March 5. At the webinar will be several emergency managers - the event will be moderated by the Kennedy School's Program on Emergency Preparedness and Crisis Management. March 4 '08: HSDailyWire.com reported that new trends in security and biometric technology will help to push greater expediency at airports in the future with "Automatic biometric systems [that] will eventually replace the often laborious system of repeated manual passport and security checks." According to Atlanta, Georgia-based airline IT solutions provider SITA, "trusted" travelers who have their biometric information inside a database maintained by security "will simply pass through an automated gate which will instantly verify their identity and security risk," HSDaily wrote. 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 29 '08: Continuity Central has reported a new development from IBM that allows a 3-D virtualization of a business environment. According to the company's press release the new solution can bring in "real-time data from different facilities into a 3-D environment to visualize hot spots, data flow, server utilization and more to better monitor and manage the entire IT platform." February 29 '08: The House Foreign Affairs Committee approved legislation recently which would create "standby groups of civilian specialists with diverse skills" who would be called upon to help respond to domestic and international crises, a press release from the Friends Committee on National Legislation announced. February 28 '08: In a press release, the notification system developer Cooper Notification announced that it will be touring the nation's colleges and universities to demonstrate its messaging technology to faculty, students and local emergency response personnel. February 28 '08: The St. Louis Business Journal reported that the rental car company Enterprise has partnered with Washington University to provide hybrid cars for hourly use on a 24-hour basis. The WeCar program has been targeted to students and faculty who need may need transportation quickly or for a family emergency. February 28 '08: Reuters has reported the formation of a new coalition of several major US city water utilities who are working "to improve research into the impacts of climate change on water utilities, develop strategies for adapting to climate change," and to help conserve water consumption, the coalition's press release said. The Water Utility Climate Alliance was formed by the Cities of New York, Seattle, Portland, Oregon, San Francisco, Denver, the San Diego County Water Authority, Southern Nevada Water Authority, and the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California which combined serve more than 36 million people. February 27 '08: Core77.com's Design Blog has posted a new handheld windpower generation device which also has solar power functionality. The HYmini by Miniwiz can store enough energy to power PDAs, cellphones, iPods, digital cameras, or any other device which uses a 5 volt powering. February 27 '08: The Miami Herald reported that a major power outage which hit Southern Florida "disrupted life in nearly every imaginable way," after what the Sun-Sentinel reported was a nuclear power plant shutdown which triggered a chain reaction that left more than 1 million people without power. February 27 '08: ContinuityCentral.com reported that virtualization software company VMWare has developed a new disaster recovery solution for businesses called the Site Recovery Manager. The SRM will enable organizations "to deliver centralized management of recovery plans, automate the recovery process and enable dramatically improved testing of recovery plans." February 26 '08: The Washington Post reported that DHS will be working with two area companies to make sure the federal agency itself is prepared to handle a disaster and to ensure a continuity of operations. The companies, ICF International and its partner Lockstep Consulting "will help the department identify its mission-critical functions. The plan also will incorporate daily business functions," the Post reported. February 26 '08: Ameriqual, makers of meals-ready-to-eat, has developed the APack self-heating emergency meal. The APack has a long shelf-life - up to three years, and can be ready to eat in under 10 minutes, the company's product website read. The company also contracts with the Department of Defense to provide MREs to American military personnel, the Evansville Courier & Press reported. February 26 '08: During the 2007 hurricane season wireless telecomm companies operating in the Gulf Coast deployed communications resiliency solutions to ensure a sustainable information infrastructure. Sprint was no different and has employed a variety of solutions through their Emergency Response Team to make sure that first responders and community stakeholders are able to share information before, during and after an event. February 22 '08: The City of Yuma, Arizona activated the Regional Communication System (YRCS) in 2007 as a way to "develop a shared public safety radio environment." The YRCS is a partnership that uses a P25 700/800 MHz trunked radio system with about 1,200 current users who include the Cocopah Indian Tribe, the US Army Yuma Proving Ground, and the local county and regional law enforcement, fire and EMS services. February 22 '08: A new nanotechnology application which coasts pure silica with an active material could be used to purify water, Nanowerk reported according to a new report out in the recent International Journal of Nanotechnology. February 21 '08: United Press International reported that Raytheon's Integrated Defense Systems has developed and will deploy an SUV-mounted radiation detection system that will be used by the Department of Homeland Security's Domestic Nuclear Detection Office, a press release read. February 21 '08: The Associated Press reported that Google has partnered with the Cleveland Clinic in a pilot project to create a patients' medical records profile which can be accessed online by doctors looking to view persons' medical history. February 21 '08: Reuters reported that a new report released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has found that many states in the are more prepared for a public health emergency or biological attack "but still lacked trained staff and specialized facilities." February 20 '08: In the Financial Times, John Podesta from the Center for American Progress wrote that the US military will have five "key areas" to confront when facing the challenges posed by climate change. In many cases, Podesta wrote, the Pentagon will be the world's most capable first responder when helping affected communities afflicted by disasters. February 20 '08: A new report has been released by ESRI which outlines the dynamics of pushing geographically-based information to a user during a crisis. Parting from the traditional pull of information, having incoming data allows "the user to make better and more informed decisions." February 19 '08: Sprint's Nextel Direct Connect push-to-talk service customers can now communicate using Motorola's MOTOBRIDGE IP solution, Washington Technology reported. "The new connectivity means that now any of the 20 million Direct Connect users can communicate with users of other radio systems, either on a day-to-day basis or during an emergency," WashTech reported. February 19 '08: In a press release the Harris Corporation announced a new land mobile radio that provides interoperable communications capability for federal agencies needing to talk to first responders on a secure link. The new multiband radios can provide "multi-agency communications across multiple frequency bands," including VHF and UHF. 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 15 '08: The American Chemistry Council has published the Responsible Care Management System which outlines the ways in which railroad companies can work to cover "community awareness and emergency response, security, distribution, employee health and safety, pollution prevention, process safety and product stewardship," Earth 911 reported. February 14 '08: Georgia Tech has partnered with Austin, Texas-based company Stellar Micro Devices to develop a new anthrax-killing technology which is able to effectively kill the spores in hours, as opposed to the 26 months is took to clean the Brentwood postal facility outside of Washington D.C. in 2001 at a total coast of $130 million, a GATech news story reported. February 14 '08: HSDailyWire.com reported that Ahura Scientific has released a new handheld chemical ID device which "allows first responders to analyze" compounds in the field. The device, called the TruDefender FT is three pounds and uses Fourier-Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, the company's press release said. February 14 '08: Corporate Lodging Consultants provides first responders a place to stay when a disaster strikes by working with local, state and federal emergency management officials. Through its Emergency Lodging Assistance program, the company can provide "lodging reimbursement for pre-qualified individuals from designated disaster areas," the company's website said. The ELA program is funded through FEMA and administered by CLC. 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 13 '08: International IT consulting and resource management company EDS has been participating in several case studies involving the cities of Anaheim, California and Montreal, Quebec among others. Specifically, EDS helped the municipalities to increase their ability to respond to disasters, streamline information sharing among stakeholders, and to integrate computer aided dispatch systems and launch virtual emergency management solutions. February 13 '08: In Miami-Dade County, Florida emergency management officials told Government Computer News back in 2004 that they were operating their response operations based on 25-year-old technology. To help the county with a more modernized telecommunications solution, Basking Ridge, New Jersey-based Avaya helped install a voice over IP community response solution. February 12 '08: Seven Seas Water, based in St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands has developed a specialized water delivery and desalinization process for the tropics in addition to donating $20 million to finding ways of making clean water cheaper and more available to areas which typically have little water to use. February 12 '08: GreenTechMedia.com reported that eSolar has developed a competitive, renewable and scalable power generation technology by using solar thermal mirrors which can be portable, easy to set up and are resistant to earthquakes and other natural disasters. February 12 '08: Purdue University and the state of Indiana have partnered to develop a radiation detection technology which could be put into regular cell phones. In a press release, the university said that the technology would "use a network of cell phones to detect and track radiation to help prevent terrorist attacks with radiological 'dirty bombs' and nuclear weapons." February 11 '08: Miami Dade College will join the local Miami wireless emergency network system (WENS) Campus Technology reported. The Miami-Dade County network's capability is provided by Inspiron Logistics and it will allow officials to use a multi-media platform to release information, announcements and alerts to students, faculty and staff at the college. February 7 '08: RAE Systems was selected to deploy a wireless AreaRAE toxic gas and radiation sensor network during the TOPOFF 4 exercises held in Guam and Oregon last October, a press release announced. February 7 '08: The Economist has reported on new capacitor technology which can allow security and military personnel to store more energy for longer amounts of time without the use of conventional batteries. The new technology has also been demonstrated in cars giving one prototype 150 mph fuel efficiency. February 7 '08: In the Kansas City Star Deborah Smithey, the President of the Missouri Midwives Association said that communities should incorporate midwives into local emergency response plans because of their specific training "in homes and out-of-hospital settings." February 6 '08: On its official blog, Google has announced a series of five initiatives, including one that will locate and respond to areas around the globe where infectious disease and pandemic have arisen. The Predict and Prevent program will work to pinpoint locations of disease as well as identify resources, manpower, information and data which can respond, mitigate current or prevent additional outbreaks. February 6 '08: A press release announced by the American Society of Civil Engineers has outlined a new partnership with the International Association of Emergency Managers through a memorandum of cooperation to address the nation's infrastructure security challenges in light of last year's I-35W bridge collapse in Minneapolis which killed thirteen people. February 5 '08: A new report has been released by the UK-based Oxford Group, which works to find sustainable solutions to security questions facing the UK and the rest of the world. The new report outlines the potential challenges law enforcement agencies will face in the coming years if changes in the climate begin to stress resources among communities in both the developed and developing world. February 5 '08: Announced in a press release, state and local government information and disaster officials will be able to attend a webinar hosted by CIBER that will teach "how to effectively coordinate emergency management activities across multiple government agencies." On hand to deliver the webinar will be AJ Briding, Certified Emergency Manager and Jerry Snees, USMC (Ret.), Office of Emergency Preparedness for the City of New Orleans. February 5 '08: Entrepreneur.com hosted a piece by Visa Senior Vice President of Commercial Solutions Darren Parslow who wrote, "Purchasing cards help enable city, county, and state agencies to procure emergency supplies and services not only quickly, but under conditions when even basic infrastructure such as power grids, telecommunications networks, and banking systems are disrupted and suppliers are without power or have been destroyed." 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. February 4 '08: A press release from December '07 announced a new partnership between UTC Power and Windham Community Memorial Hospital in Windham, Connecticut to install an "ultra clean, on-site power, cooling and heating" system which can operate at 90 percent efficiency. February 1 '08: To help communities who have been affected by disasters or other crises, Honeywell has partnered with Operation USA. The partnership's focus is to "rapidly and expertly [provide] on-the-ground aid by sending vital life-saving supplies and cash grants to assist communities in rebuilding." 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 31 '08: For the upcoming Super Bowl XLII in Glendale, Arizona, Allied Defense Group Inc. will be providing the surveillance solution through its subsidiary, NS Microwave, a press release announced. |