Act ASAP

This conversation with Morrie Goodman was released on May 18th, 2021, as part of the Conversations On Family Urban Disaster Planning summit.

We are discussing where and how you will be able to find information on currently ongoing emergencies and disasters.

Our featured expert is Morrie Goodman, who is the Vice President of Crisis Communications at James Lee Witt Associates LLC.

Goodman’s resume includes prior leadership roles in the federal government. He was director of Strategic Communications and Emergency Information at the Federal Emergency Management Agency from January 1993 to November 1998. At FEMA, he managed crisis communications for some of the nation's worst disasters.

Morrie Goodman also was appointed as NASA's assistant administrator for public affairs on Oct. 26, 2009. In this role, Goodman directs internal and external communications for NASA and served as a senior advisor to the agency’s leadership.

For his work in disaster communications, Goodman has won several awards, including the Federal Technology Leadership Award and top honors from the Public Relations Society of America. The latter award was for his development of innovative communications, including live television programming and newsletters, intended to keep disaster victims informed in the immediate aftermath of and recovery from disasters.

In our interview, we discuss:

1.      Local resources for you to gather immediate information.

2.      Disaster planning techniques.

3.      Evacuation planning.

38m 31s

Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan

Comprehensive emergency management is defined as the preparation for and the carrying out of all emergency functions necessary to mitigate, prepare for, respond to, and recover from emergencies and disasters caused by all hazards, whether natural, technological, or human-caused.

Source: https://www.usf.edu/administrative-services/emergency-management/planning/cemp.aspx

All Government agencies, municipalities, and major corporations have a CEMP.

The CEMP can be built from the Threat and Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment (THIRA)

The Threat and Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment (THIRA) process help communities understand the normal set of risks it faces. By identifying and prioritizing those threats, a community can then make smarter decisions. Leaders need to manage the risks through

Appropriate planning

Mitigation strategies

Developing needed capabilities

Source: https://dps.mn.gov/divisions/hsem/homeland-security/Pages/threat-hazard-risk-assess.aspx

The THIRA is Federally Mandated by Presidential Policy Directive 8, for grantees who receive Homeland Security Grant Program (HSGP) and Emergency Management Performance Grant (EMPG) awards.

Both documents the CEMP and THIRA are public records, and you can get a copy through your County Office of Emergency Management.

Keep in mind you might face some hesitation from the person you are speaking with. These are not normally asked for by the public. I was once denied a copy of my county CEMP. The operator cited national security as the reason it will not be disseminated. I stepped up to her boss and got a copy.

Till next time

“Be Safe”

The following interview was conducted on 17 May 2021 as part of the Conversations on Family Urban Disaster Planning Summit.

Our first speaker of the series is James Lee Witt.

James Lee was appointed as the FEMA Director by President Clinton. James Lee is perhaps best known for the credit he received for turning FEMA from an unsuccessful bureaucratic agency to an internationally acclaimed all-hazards disaster management agency.

He currently serves as senior advisor to fortune 500 companies and government leaders around the world.

This interview is enlightening, engaging, and entertaining. We will all probably learn something.

Length: 45m 14s

Word of the Week for October the 11th, 2021 is: Three

Break out your Disaster planning notebook and write this down.

"The Rule of Threes"

Three seconds of panic or indecision

Three minutes without air to breath

Three hours without shelter

Three days without water

Three weeks without food

Three months without companionship

What does the word three have in common with each of these events?

They will kill you.

Think about that.

"The trouble is, you think you have time." - Buddha

Many people I speak with are anxious about having the conversation about preparing for emergencies and disasters with their children, family, and loved ones.

Do you love them? 

Do you want to protect them? 

Have the conversation with them.

My vision is to protect our children from the natural disasters and emergencies that will come into their lives. My mission is to train every parent living in an at-risk-community so they can protect their children from the natural disasters and emergencies that will come into their lives.

This is the audio extract of the live Be the Hero Challenge video. 37 minutes long.

A brief overview of the Emergency Action Planning process, Risk Management and Sheltering.

Access to the Be The Hero Challange can be found here: Https://www.betheherochallenge.com

How healthy is it to live in a world of 24/7 manufactured fear?

Photo by Ulrik De Wachter from FreeImages

California is haveing the biggest wildfires on record. And insurers are threatening to leave because it is costing them money.

This can have big implications for the California housing market.