In this episode we tag along with professional rattlesnake wrangler Lou Fraser, and state park ranger Kerrie Launey. Fraser shows us the kind of habitat in which rattlesnakes can be found, and educates us on their some of their behavior and some of the mistakes people make that lead to bites, all while catching four of the venomous reptiles. Meanwhile, California park ranger Launey tells us about snakes in parks and what you can expect, and she gives us tips for avoiding an unwanted encounter, and what to do in the event you are bitten. 

We also have a video that accompanies this podcast at the link below. you'll also find a really cool (and creepy) slideshow.

INSIDE LOOK: Rattlesnake Awareness, Warm Weather Tips and Backyard Pool Safety (VIDEO)

Snakes Slither Into Summer (oesnews.com)

Lou Fraser's Rattlesnake Removal USA

Rattlesnakes in California (CA Dept. of Fish and Wildlife)

Rattlesnake Safety (California Department of Parks and Recreation)

In this episode we tag along with professional rattlesnake wrangler Lou Fraser, and state park ranger Kerrie Launey. Fraser shows us the kind of habitat in which rattlesnakes can be found, and educates us on their some of their behavior and some of the mistakes people make that lead to bites, all while catching four of the venomous reptiles. Meanwhile, California park ranger Launey tells us about snakes in parks and what you can expect, and she gives us tips for avoiding an unwanted encounter, and what to do in the event you are bitten. 

We also have a video that accompanies this podcast at the link below. you'll also find a really cool (and creepy) slideshow.

INSIDE LOOK: Rattlesnake Awareness, Warm Weather Tips and Backyard Pool Safety (VIDEO)

Snakes Slither Into Summer (oesnews.com)

Lou Fraser's Rattlesnake Removal USA

Rattlesnakes in California (CA Dept. of Fish and Wildlife)

Rattlesnake Safety (California Department of Parks and Recreation)

In this episode (#46) we take you to Super Thursday, a sort of “final exam day” for students attending the California Specialized Training Institute (CSTI) Hazmat Specialist course. We talk with Alex Cabassa, Cal OES Assistant Director, and CSTI Superintendent about the uniqueness of the course, its hands-on approach and the facility in which it takes place.  We also talk with Jim Tate, CSTI Emergency Management Coordinator Instructor-2. He talks about the training itself and what students learn and how important it is.  There is a companion video for this podcast which can be found at oesnews.com after Thursday, June 7, 2018.

Under the reorganization of Cal OES, CSTI has evolved into a statewide enterprise with responsibility for supporting training, exercises and education in wide variety of areas including but not limited to; emergency management, public safety, homeland security, hazardous materials, disaster recovery and crisis communications. CSTI is no longer just defined by the San Luis Obispo campus you may be familiar with, but is being developed into a more holistic resource to support your needs whether you are a government, non-profit or private sector organization.

Be sure to visit oesnews.com to watch the companion video and see the many pictures taken during Super Thursday!

California Specialized Training Institute (CSTI)

In this episode (#46) we take you to Super Thursday, a sort of “final exam day” for students attending the California Specialized Training Institute (CSTI) Hazmat Specialist course. We talk with Alex Cabassa, Cal OES Assistant Director, and CSTI Superintendent about the uniqueness of the course, its hands-on approach and the facility in which it takes place.  We also talk with Jim Tate, CSTI Emergency Management Coordinator Instructor-2. He talks about the training itself and what students learn and how important it is.  There is a companion video for this podcast which can be found at oesnews.com after Thursday, June 7, 2018.

Under the reorganization of Cal OES, CSTI has evolved into a statewide enterprise with responsibility for supporting training, exercises and education in wide variety of areas including but not limited to; emergency management, public safety, homeland security, hazardous materials, disaster recovery and crisis communications. CSTI is no longer just defined by the San Luis Obispo campus you may be familiar with, but is being developed into a more holistic resource to support your needs whether you are a government, non-profit or private sector organization.

Be sure to visit oesnews.com to watch the companion video and see the many pictures taken during Super Thursday!

California Specialized Training Institute (CSTI)

Cal OES and 12 assignee local government fire departments are parties to a contractual agreement permitting the use of the Cal OES Type II HazMat Response Vehicles for local emergency response, out-of-service HazMat vehicles, training, exercises, and other needs.  In return, the assignee fire departments are required to dispatch the Cal OES Type II HazMat Response Vehicles anywhere in the state staffed by the required number of HazMat-trained personnel as requested through the California Fire & Rescue Mutual Aid System.  This brings the total number of “typed” HazMat Teams in California to 73.

In this episode we talk with a couple of department representatives who received an engine about what it means to their region, and we talked with a few of the Cal OES reps who worked hard to make these engines and their transfers happen.

1. Larry Collins, Cal OES Deputy Chief, Fire & Rescue Branch

Some of the VIPs who attended the ceremony:

• Deputy Fire Chief Lewis Broschard: Contra Costa Fire Protection District 

Cal OES HazMat

Cal OES HazMat Publications

Cal OES Newsroom

City of Ventura

City of Ventura Thomas Fire Rebuild

Donate to the United Way of Ventura County Thomas Fire and Flood Fund

Ready Ventura County

Ventura County Emergency Information

Ventura County Recovers

Cal OES Wildfire Recovery Resources

OESNews.com

CalOES.ca.gov

City of Ventura

City of Ventura Thomas Fire Rebuild

Donate to the United Way of Ventura County Thomas Fire and Flood Fund

Ready Ventura County

Ventura County Emergency Information

Ventura County Recovers

Cal OES Wildfire Recovery Resources

OESNews.com

CalOES.ca.gov

It's been six months since the October 2017 wildfires ravaged Northern Califorina. Through coordination with California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services and in close partnership with FEMA, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. EPA, Cal EPA and CalRecycle, all major work for the removal of fire and ash debris has now been completed in Butte, Lake, Mendocino, Napa, Nevada, Sonoma and Yuba counties. So far, nearly 1.7 million tons of debris, across all seven counties, have been removed. 

Since the Oct. 10 disaster declaration, nearly 4,500 households have been approved for FEMA individual assistance, for a total of more than $15.7 million. Of this amount, more than $9.6 million has been approved for housing assistance that can assist with home repairs or replacement, rental assistance to be used to find another place to live temporarily while repairs are being made to their home and more than $6.1 million for other needs assistance. Other needs assistance is a grant to pay for other uninsured or underinsured expenses such as disaster-related medical, dental or funeral costs or personal property losses.

We caught up with Assistant Fire Marshall Paul Lowenthal of the Santa Rosa Fire Department to talk with him about the challenges he and his community faced, what he and his deparment have learned and what changes have come into play in the short six months since the fires broke-out.

WildfireRecovery.org

OESNews.com

Santa Rosa Assistant Fire Marshal Signs Right of Entry Form, Begins His Own Recovery

SonomaCountyRecovers.org

Cal OES Flickr Images

(SGM Gerald Davis, center, looking at camera)

In recent months, California and our nation has been no stranger to devastating natural and man-made emergencies. So, the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES) joined the California National Guard’s Homeland Response Force (HRF) and 95th Civil Support Team, along with multiple State/Federal Urban Search & Rescue Task Forces, CAL FIRE, FBI, the Department of Energy, and several other elite emergency response agencies for a full-scale terrorism response exercise at Sacramento’s Sleep Train Arena.

“In just the last year we’ve seen our highly trained emergency response and recovery teams deployed across the nation to lead critical lifesaving missions,” said Cal OES Director Mark Ghilarducci. “This exercise will test those critical rescue and response skills, as well as enhance our ability to respond to real world events that could happen anywhere in California, our nation or in other parts of the world."

The training scenario involved a series of simultaneous terrorist attacks across Northern California following a 6.5-magnitude earthquake. The attacks include simulated improvised explosive devices (IED), the detonation of a simulated radiation-dispersal device (RDD) and firearms. Sleep Train Arena will serve as the training site for IED and RDD response, while Sonoma Raceway served as the site for active shooter response training. Hundreds of emergency-response personnel, vehicles, and aircraft participated.

“It’s only through regular, realistic training alongside our partner agencies that we keep our skills sharp and response times low,” said Maj. Gen. David S. Baldwin, Adjutant General for the California National Guard. “These exercises establish the relationships and interagency coordination that is fundamental to an effective response during emergency incidents.”

In this episode we pull SGM Gerald Davis, of the California National Guard, to talk about organizing such a large and complex training exercise and why they're so important, and so important to make as real as possible.

The term active shooter has been in the news a lot lately, unfortunately.  Whether it’s Parkland, Florida, Marshall County, Kentucky, or Yountville, California, armed attacks often leave a trail of dead and injured and shock the communities in which they happen. It’s the kind of tragedy for which law enforcement trains yet can’t always prevent.

In this episode, Cal OES Law Enforcement Chief Mark Pazin, talks about how the agency has increased and improved its active shooter program, the training and some of the more recent challenges state and local law enforcement have faced in order to protect the public from potential attacks. He also expresses his firmly held belief of what it will take to reduce the number of active shooter (or active aggressor, as it’s more often called since not all attackers use firearms) incidents.

Mark Pazin, of Merced, was appointed chief of the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services Law Enforcement Branch in December, 2013. Pazin has been sheriff-coroner for Merced County since 2002, where he has served in multiple positions at the Sheriff’s Department since 1981, including area commander and assistant sheriff. Pazin has served on the Alfred E. Alquist Seismic Safety Commission since 2011 and is a past president on the California State Sheriffs’ Association President’s Counsel. He earned a Master of Science degree in national security from the American Military University.

Cal OES Law Branch

Cal OES ACTIVE SHOOTER AWARENESS GUIDANCE

CAL STATE SHERIFF’S ASSOCIATION

CAL CHIEFS

CAL PEACE OFFICERS’ ASSOCIATION