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Emergency Management - US

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The mission of this working group is to focus on discussions about emergency management.

The mission of this working group is to focus on discussions about emergency management.

Members

Amanda Cole Kathy Gilbeaux Lisa Stelly Thomas mdmcdonald Miles Marcotte

Email address for group

emergency-management-us@m.resiliencesystem.org

For Puerto Rico, the Return to Business as Usual is Slow

           

In Humacao, a city on the eastern coast just north of where Hurricane Maria’s eye passed, power poles and lines still litter the ground in some areas. PHOTO: ARIAN CAMPO-FLORES/THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

Six months after Hurricane Maria, as many as 7,000 of the island’s small businesses remain closed

wsj.com - by Arian Campo-Flores - March 19, 2018

 . . . Though economic activity in Puerto Rico has picked up in recent months, businesses large and small are struggling. Electricity woes continue to plague the island, where 91% of power generation has been restored but the grid is prone to sudden outages. Insurance money has arrived slowly, with $1.7 billion paid in residential and business claims as of Jan. 31—about 40% of the expected total, according to the island’s Office of the Commissioner of Insurance.

And the market is shrinking as a result of an accelerating exodus of Puerto Ricans fleeing conditions on the island.

(CLICK HERE - READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

 

 

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Explosion, Fire at Power Plant Cause Blackout in Northern Puerto Rico

           

cbsnews.com - February 11, 2018

An explosion and fire at an electric substation threw much of northern Puerto Rico into darkness late Sunday in a setback for the U.S. territory's efforts to fully restore power more than five months after Hurricane Maria started the longest blackout in U.S. history. The island's Electric Power Authority said several municipalities were without power, including parts of the capital, San Juan, but they were optimistic it could be restored within a day as they worked to repair a substation that controls voltage.

The blast illustrated the challenges of restoring a power grid that was already crumbling before it was devastated by the Category 4 hurricane.

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ALSO SEE RELATED ARTICLE HERE - Explosion cuts power in Puerto Rico

 

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FEMA Contract Called for 30 Million Meals for Puerto Ricans. 50,000 Were Delivered.

           

Residents of San Isidro, P.R., waited for food and water in October. Credit Erika P. Rodriguez for The New York Times

nytimes.com - by PATRICIA MAZZEI and AGUSTIN ARMENDARIZ - February 6, 2018

The mission for the Federal Emergency Management Agency was clear: Hurricane Maria had torn through Puerto Rico, and hungry people needed food. Thirty million meals needed to be delivered as soon as possible.

For this huge task, FEMA tapped Tiffany Brown, an Atlanta entrepreneur with no experience in large-scale disaster relief and at least five canceled government contracts in her past. FEMA awarded her $156 million for the job, and Ms. Brown, who is the sole owner and employee of her company, Tribute Contracting LLC, set out to find some help.

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The false Hawaii missile alert was caused by an employee pushing the wrong button, governor says

           

businessinsider.com - by Michelle Mark - January 13, 2018

Hawaii Gov. David Ige said Saturday that a false alarm warning the entire state of an inbound ballistic missile earlier that day occurred because someone accidentally "pressed the wrong button" during an employee shift change.

"It was a mistake made during a standard procedure at the change over of a shift, and an employee pushed the wrong button," Ige told CNN.

The false alarm was blasted to residents around 8 a.m. local time through their cellphones and on television and radio networks. The alarm caused widespread panic and chaos, after it directed residents to seek immediate shelter and warned "THIS IS NOT A DRILL."

(READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

ALSO SEE RELATED ARTICLE WITHIN THE LINK BELOW . . .

 . . . Trump was wrapping up a round of golf at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida when the incident was unfolding. White House spokeswoman Lindsay Walters said Trump was briefed and that it “was purely a state exercise.”

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CDC to Hold Briefing on How Public Can Prepare for Nuclear War

CLICK HERE - CDC - Public Health Response to a Nuclear Detonation - January 16, 2018 at 1:00 p.m. (ET)

cbsnews.com - by Rebecca Shabad - January 5, 2018

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has scheduled a briefing for later this month to outline how the public can prepare for nuclear war.

"While a nuclear detonation is unlikely, it would have devastating results and there would be limited time to take critical protection steps. Despite the fear surrounding such an event, planning and preparation can lessen deaths and illness," the notice about the Jan. 16 briefing says on the CDC's website, which features a photo of a mushroom cloud.

The notice went on to say that most people don't know that sheltering in place for at least 24 hours is "crucial to saving lives and reducing exposure to radiation."

(CLICK HERE - READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

 

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Video - Amid Promises of Aid, a Puerto Rico Still in Ruins

The New York Times - By DEBORAH ACOSTA and NATALIE RENEAU - October 3, 2017

President Trump said Puerto Ricans should be proud of the low death toll after Hurricane Maria. But a tour of the island by Times reporters showed that vast humanitarian and logistical challenges remain.

https://nyti.ms/2yHr8K3

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California Fires - Information Resources

AN EXPANDING LIST OF NEWS AND INFORMATION RESOURCES RELATED TO THE FIRES IN CALIFORNIA . . .

CLICK HERE - Cal Fire - Current Fire Information

CLICK HERE - U.S. Department of Health and Human Services - DIMRC - Fires and Wildfires

 

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Southern California Fires Live Updates: Threats in Ventura and San Diego Counties

Just one of the fires raging in Southern California has already burned an area larger than Detroit, fueled by winds nearing hurricane strength. Here’s a look at the numbers behind the state’s worst fire season ever. By BEN LAFFIN on Publish Date December 7, 2017. Photo by Hilary Swift for The New York Times. Watch in Times Video

nytimes.com - By JENNIFER MEDINA, MIRIAM JORDAN and RICHARD PÉREZ-PEÑA - December 7, 2017

LOS ANGELES — Firefighters battled to hold back flames that on Thursday threatened tens of thousands of homes in Southern California and forced new evacuations, as officials implored residents to remain vigilant in the face of a rash of wildfires across greater Los Angeles that will quite likely not abate for days.

More than 200,000 people in Los Angeles and Ventura Counties have been told to leave their homes . . .

. . . Across seven counties, millions of cellphones shook and squawked with a warning of “extreme fire danger,” in California’s largest-ever use of a disaster alert system.

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Power Line Fails; Darkness Returns to San Juan

           

A main power line failed Thursday in Puerto Rico, plunging several cities, including San Juan, into darkness. Dennis M. Rivera Pichardo for The New York Times

nytimes.com - by Frances Robles - November 10, 2017

SAN JUAN, P.R. — A main power line that serves the northern half of Puerto Rico failed Thursday, knocking out electricity to seven cities that had only recently regained service and dealing a major setback to the island’s desperate efforts to regain normality.

Seven weeks after Hurricane Maria completely disabled Puerto Rico’s power grid, the island was generating just 18 percent of its electrical capacity, returning service to where it had been two and half weeks ago. On Thursday morning, the island had been at about 43.2 percent of capacity.

The disruption also me ant that many people no longer had running water, because pumping stations are powered by electricity.

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Federal Harvey Relief Funds Might Take Years, Officials Tell Legislators

           

Flood damaged debris piled outside of homes in Port Arthur Texas. The city saw 47 inches of rain during the storm. - Michael Stravato for The Texas Tribune

texastribune.org - by Brandon Formby - October 2, 2017

 . . . state lawmakers were told that Housing and Urban Development disaster relief funds, which includes money for extensive home repairs or rebuilds, could take seven to 32 months to work their way through bureaucratic processes and several layers of government agencies . . . Congress approved $7.4 billion in HUD disaster relief funds last month. But that may have to be shared with Florida and Puerto Rico, which have each been hit by hurricanes in the weeks after Harvey battered Texas, unless legislators approve another aid package . . .

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