Disaster Zone

Traffic is something we deal with every day in our work commutes and vacations. When disaster strikes, managing traffic becomes a critical task for local and state jurisdictions. Planning ahead can make all the difference. 

Today's guest is Tom Kratt, Senior Vice President Operations - AWP Safety. With 40 years of experience in the electric utility industry, Tom brings extensive expertise and leadership to AWP Safety's national team of traffic management professionals. In his role, he focuses on enhancing traffic control planning at an enterprise level, providin utility customers with comprehensive, strategic insights to optimize their operations. 

Kratt came to AWP Safety after an impressive tenure at AEP Ohio, where he held the position of Vice President of Operations for five years, overseeing the complete electrical distribution portfolio for nearly 1.5 million Ohio customers. His background also includes key roles at Indiana Michigan Power, where he managed operations, maintenance, safety, and financial performance for the electrical grid serving over 580,000 customers, involving a network of more than 250,000 miles of transmission distribution power lines.

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We are living in a technological century. Everything we do will have some form of
technology supporting our collective functions. While voice communications have
dominated public safety operations for a hundred years, there is an opportunity today
to incorporate the visual element into how we operate.

The podcast guest is Alex Joyce the company's Head of Tech Safety for LiveU. He
leads a team focused on supporting public safety agencies & broadcasters with
realtime video solutions leveraging cellular & satellite technologies across software and
hardware environments.

With over 30 years of experience in telecommunications, as well as FAA 107 and FCC
Advanced Radio licenses and a passion for supporting 1st responders, Alex is excited
to use this background to support federal, state, and local agencies to help demystify the
technologies related to TAK, search and rescue drone programs, and community
outreach via realtime video streaming and interagency collaboration tools that can
save lives.

Please visit our sponsors!

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Visit The Readiness Lab and learn about our Next Level Emergency Management training! https://www.thereadinesslab.com/

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Doberman Emergency Management Group provides subject matter experts in planning and training: www.dobermanemg.com

Check out how you can use digital twins in your training, exercising, and planning using RSET https://rset.com/ 

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In this podcast we review the highlights from a New Natural Resources Defense Council report, Rebuilding Safer: A Guide to State and Local Adaptation  

The podcast guest is Dakota Fisher a Senior Advocate, Adaptation, Environmental Health with the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and he works at the intersection of climate adaptation, disaster risk reduction, urban and regional planning, data analytics, and community empowerment. At NRDC, he works with state and local partners to development innovative, people-centered solutions that reduce the growing impacts of more frequent and severe disasters. 

Before joining NRDC in 2025, Fisher spent 12 years as a public servant, working across local, state, and federal governments. He is proud to bring many practical lessons learned from partnering with communities, agencies, and elected leaders to his NRDC role. 

Fisher holds a bachelor’s degree in sociology from Louisiana State University and a master’s degree in urban and regional planning from the University of New Orleans. He is accredited by the American Planning Association's American Institute of Certified Planners and the Project Management Institute as a Project Management Professional. He is also a member of the American Society of Adaptation Professionals. Fisher is based in NRDC’s Washington, D.C., office.

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L3Harris Technologies' BeOn PPT App. Learn more about this amazing product here: www.l3harris.com 

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Impulse: Bleeding Control Kits by professionals for professionals: www.dobermanemg.com/impulse

Doberman Emergency Management Group provides subject matter experts in planning and training: www.dobermanemg.com

Check out how you can use digital twins in your training, exercising, and planning using RSET https://rset.com/ 

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The World Cup has presented some unique challenges for a multitude of agencies and jurisdictions spread over three nations. Security is a paramount consideration for hosting these games. In this podcast we discuss the complexity of the situation and the need for better coordination and information between all the partners engaged in hosting these soccer matches. There is an opportunity to build on what has been accomplished in preparing for the games. That opportunity should not be squandered.  

The podcast guest is Andre McGregor who is the CEO and founder of ForceMetrics, leveraging his background in law enforcement and cybersecurity to improve decision-making in policing. As a retired FBI Special Agent, Andre tackled high-profile cases in cybercrime and counterterrorism, handling hacks and international cyber threats. His early experiences growing up in a marginalized community shaped his commitment to creating safer, more informed interactions between police and the public. With ForceMetrics, he focuses on providing officers with real-time data to enhance situational awareness, de-escalate conflicts and support community-driven law enforcement.

Please visit our sponsors!

L3Harris Technologies' BeOn PPT App. Learn more about this amazing product here: www.l3harris.com 

Visit The Readiness Lab and learn about our Next Level Emergency Management training! https://www.thereadinesslab.com/

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Doberman Emergency Management Group provides subject matter experts in planning and training: www.dobermanemg.com

Check out how you can use digital twins in your training, exercising, and planning using RSET https://rset.com/ 

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Chris Stewart is the President and Co-founder of IntelliMass Technologies Inc., a road-
intelligence company based in British Columbia. A strategic and ethically-centered
business leader, Chris has spent his career guiding cross-functional teams, developing
commercialization pathways, and transforming innovative technical concepts into
market-ready products.

Driven by the reality that unpaved terrain presents unique, dynamic liabilities during
emergencies, Chris leads the commercialization of an emerging platform designed to
map and monitor remote infrastructure for the mining, forestry, and rural sectors. His
expertise includes navigating unpaved performance technologies, driving
organizational growth, and establishing operational systems that allow public and
private stakeholders to accurately analyze terrain risks.

Previously, Chris served as President and General Manager of KXI Wildertec—a
subsidiary of a public transportation tech company—where he directed the
commercialization of mechatronic technologies engineered specifically for unpaved
terrain performance. He holds a Bachelor of Business Administration in Marketing
Management with Distinction from the University of British Columbia, where his award-
winning  thesis work harnessed early-generation AI for business optimization. Chris
and his wife own and operate a small production farm in the Okanagan Valley of BC.

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L3Harris Technologies' BeOn PPT App. Learn more about this amazing product here: www.l3harris.com 

Visit The Readiness Lab and learn about our Next Level Emergency Management training! https://www.thereadinesslab.com/

Impulse: Bleeding Control Kits by professionals for professionals: www.dobermanemg.com/impulse

Doberman Emergency Management Group provides subject matter experts in planning and training: www.dobermanemg.com

Check out how you can use digital twins in your training, exercising, and planning using RSET https://rset.com/ 

For sponsorship requests, check out our Sponsorship Portfolio here or email us at [email protected]

Trust is a basic ingredient in every relationship. This applies to individuals, marriages,
business partners, nations and the relationship of governments to individuals. Trust is
the topic we are going to explore today and how it applies to emergency management
and disasters.

Kehinde Bolu Adesina, also known as Kenny, is a PhD researcher in Mass
Communication at the University of Oklahoma’s Gaylord College. His work focuses on
the intersection of crisis communication, disaster communication, public trust, and
misinformation. He studies how institutions, government agencies, nonprofits, and
faith-based organizations communicate during high-risk events, and why those
communication systems often fail even when the people inside them are working hard
and acting in good faith.

He is a contributor to a major NSF-funded disaster resilience project at OU, where he
conducts research on how organizations share critical knowledge during emergencies,
analyze misinformation patterns on social media, and support cross-sector
preparedness workshops involving emergency managers, nonprofits, faith-based
organizations, and public health communicators. His research builds toward a
framework called the “Crisis Meaning-Making Model,” which examines how
communities interpret events through emotion, identity, and social context, not just
official information.

Originally from Nigeria, he completed his bachelor’s degree in Communication at
Beijing Normal University in China and his master’s degree in Communication at the
University of Illinois Springfield. Before beginning his doctoral work, he served as an
Illini Science Policy Fellow and Media Production Coordinator at the Illinois Department
of Agriculture, supporting communication on conservation and climate resilience.
Kenny is multilingual, speaking English, Yoruba, French, and Mandarin, and brings a
distinctly cross-cultural lens to questions of trust, public risk, and institutional credibility.
He has a newsletter, Making Sense of Uncertainty, translating crisis communication
research into practical guidance for leaders working in emergency management, public
health, and organizational communication.

Please visit our sponsors!

L3Harris Technologies' BeOn PPT App. Learn more about this amazing product here: www.l3harris.com 

Visit The Readiness Lab and learn about our Next Level Emergency Management training! https://www.thereadinesslab.com/

Impulse: Bleeding Control Kits by professionals for professionals: www.dobermanemg.com/impulse

Doberman Emergency Management Group provides subject matter experts in planning and training: www.dobermanemg.com

Check out how you can use digital twins in your training, exercising, and planning using RSET https://rset.com/ 

For sponsorship requests, check out our Sponsorship Portfolio here or email us at [email protected]

Flooding continues to be the number on hazard when it comes to disasters. Knowing what area is subject to flooding before a flood, the extent of what that flood impact might be, and then knowing the status of an ongoing flood is critically important. This is the subject of this podcast.  

David Tobias the podcast guest serves as the Chief Product Officer at Nearmap Previously, he co-founded Betterview, the leading Property Intelligence Platform for property and casualty insurers, which was acquired by Nearmap in December 2023. David plays a pivotal role in driving the market strategy for Nearmap, enabling users to effectively identify and mitigate risk, enhance operational efficiency, and build a more transparent customer experience.  

Before founding Betterview, David was instrumental in scaling Research Specialist Incorporated, an insurance loss control company. Under his leadership, the company expanded to conduct over 30,000 inspections annually with a network of more than 500 inspectors across the United States. Research Specialist Incorporated was later acquired by Alpine Intel. A veteran of the insurance and property intelligence industry, Tobias is focused on finding actionable, usable solutions to complex geospatial challenges.

Please visit our sponsors!

L3Harris Technologies' BeOn PPT App. Learn more about this amazing product here: www.l3harris.com 

Visit The Readiness Lab and learn about our Next Level Emergency Management training! https://www.thereadinesslab.com/

Impulse: Bleeding Control Kits by professionals for professionals: www.dobermanemg.com/impulse

Doberman Emergency Management Group provides subject matter experts in planning and training: www.dobermanemg.com

Check out how you can use digital twins in your training, exercising, and planning using RSET https://rset.com/ 

For sponsorship requests, check out our Sponsorship Portfolio here or email us at [email protected]

With every disaster there are legal considerations that come to the fore. In this podcast we explore the experience of one litigator advising FEMA Incident Management Teams (IMAT) and also dealing with damages and reimbursement processes for individuals who own property.  

For two decades, LLRA, LLC owner Linda Litke served the United States, first in the U.S. Navy and then as a senior attorney within the Department of Homeland Security/Federal Emergency Management Agency. Her work placed her at the center of some of the nation’s most complex emergencies, disasters, and national security incidents—first as Deputy Associate Chief Counsel for Louisiana and Mississippi, where she led multiple legal offices across the Gulf Coast after Hurricane Katrina, and later as a Trial Attorney handling litigation tied to Public Assistance projects and the National Flood Insurance Program.  

Her final federal role for the last six years—Legal Counsel to the National Incident Management Assistance Team (NIMAT–Red)—was among the most demanding in the emergency‑response world. As part of a small rapidly deployable federal team, she provided real‑time legal guidance to senior officials during national security and catastrophic incidents, often deploying within hours to support unified command operations on the ground.

Please visit our sponsors!

L3Harris Technologies' BeOn PPT App. Learn more about this amazing product here: www.l3harris.com 

Visit The Readiness Lab and learn about our Next Level Emergency Management training! https://www.thereadinesslab.com/

Impulse: Bleeding Control Kits by professionals for professionals: www.dobermanemg.com/impulse

Doberman Emergency Management Group provides subject matter experts in planning and training: www.dobermanemg.com

Check out how you can use digital twins in your training, exercising, and planning using RSET https://rset.com/ 

For sponsorship requests, check out our Sponsorship Portfolio here or email us at [email protected]

Wildfires have become one of the more common natural hazard disasters that can impact people where they live and work. In this podcast we learn about general Firewise solutions to protect homes and then a line of cost effective products that can help keep fire from entering your home. Nicholai Allen is the founder of SAFE SOSS and an active wildland firefighter (FFT1, FFT2, Engine Boss Trainee) in his third year fighting catastrophic fires.  

After the 2018 Woolsey Fire threatened his family in Ventura County, California, Nicholai spent four years developing a three-step ember defense system addressing the actual cause of 90% of wildfire home loss from wind-borne embers.  

His patent-pending products launched exclusively through 50 Lowe's stores at $30-$40 each. His mission is to prevent loss of life through honest education and science-based defense that prioritizes evacuation over property. Nicholai represents authenticity, preparedness, and life-first protection.

Please visit our sponsors!

L3Harris Technologies' BeOn PPT App. Learn more about this amazing product here: www.l3harris.com 

Visit The Readiness Lab and learn about our Next Level Emergency Management training! https://www.thereadinesslab.com/

Impulse: Bleeding Control Kits by professionals for professionals: www.dobermanemg.com/impulse

Doberman Emergency Management Group provides subject matter experts in planning and training: www.dobermanemg.com

Check out how you can use digital twins in your training, exercising, and planning using RSET https://rset.com/ 

For sponsorship requests, check out our Sponsorship Portfolio here or email us at [email protected]

If you are a nonprofit organization, it means that your goal is to not make money, but provide some form of service or product. The challenge is always how to do that without a steam of money to fund your activities. That is the subject of this podcast. There are tips here for very small organizations and other ideas that will work for very large nonprofit organizations.  

James Misner is the Founder and Owner of The Kipos Group. With over 20 years of experience as an executive leader, James has a proven track record of building successful teams that have driven tens of millions in revenue growth. Additionally, he has helped non-profit organizations achieve sustainable growth and build stronger relationships with donors.   As a leader and coach, he cares deeply for his clients and their teams, bringing clarity and confidence to those he works with, providing guidance and support as they navigate the challenges of building a revenue engine. His expertise in strategy, culture, and leadership has made him an industry-leading consultant for non-profit organizations looking to grow and thrive.

Please visit our sponsors!

L3Harris Technologies' BeOn PPT App. Learn more about this amazing product here: www.l3harris.com 

Visit The Readiness Lab and learn about our Next Level Emergency Management training! https://www.thereadinesslab.com/

Impulse: Bleeding Control Kits by professionals for professionals: www.dobermanemg.com/impulse

Doberman Emergency Management Group provides subject matter experts in planning and training: www.dobermanemg.com

Check out how you can use digital twins in your training, exercising, and planning using RSET https://rset.com/ 

For sponsorship requests, check out our Sponsorship Portfolio here or email us at [email protected]