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The Ready Campaign
and America’s
PrepareAthon! have just released two social media
toolkits to help you prepare your communities for winter weather and the
holiday season. Each toolkit includes safety and preparedness messaging and
graphics you can share on your social media channels. You can copy the messages
directly or customize them for your communities.
Download the Winter Weather Social
Media Toolkit and the Holiday & Travel
Safety Social Media Toolkit today!
 Winter is an important time to check on older adult
family members, friends, and neighbors to ensure they stay safe throughout the
season. In addition to colder temperatures and snow, winter weather can bring an
increased risk of health problems and injuries to older adults.
The Ohio Committee for Severe Weather
Awareness offers tips to consider when helping older adults
this winter:
- Falls are a concern for everyone, especially for older
adults. Putting road salt, cat litter, or sand on sidewalks, steps, and
driveways will make these areas as slip-free as possible. Non-slip shoes are also a
great way to help older adults navigate slippery conditions.
- Cold temperatures make older adults susceptible
to hypothermia, a dangerous drop in body temperature. Learn the warning signs
of this weather related illness and how to prevent it.
- Shoveling can put too much strain on the heart.
Older adults, especially those with heart disease or high blood pressure,
should leave snow shoveling to others.
If you do not live near your older adult family members, it may be
helpful to create a plan about how you’ll connect with them during an
emergency. Download and complete the Family Emergency Communication Plan
from America’s PrepareAthon! and
share it with your family today.
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Online
shopping has become the preferred purchasing method for customers who want to
avoid in-store crowds during the holidays. While the Internet offers
convenience, it also gives hackers the chance to access the personal and
financial information of unsuspecting shoppers.
Don’t let
the ease of online shopping ruin your Cyber Monday activities on November 30. The
Department of Homeland Security offers tips to stay safe while shopping online, including:
- Use secure websites for purchases;
- Shop with companies you know and trust;
- Keep personal information private and passwords secure; and
- Use anti-virus software, a firewall, and anti-spyware
software.
Cyber
security is a shared responsibility. Visit the DHS Stop.Think.Connect.
website
for more ways to make using the Internet a
safer experience this gift-giving season and throughout the year.
The FEMA Individual and
Community Preparedness Division is pleased to invite you to a webinar on
Tuesday, December 1, 2015 that will feature several local programs that have
developed creative ideas and practices for keeping CERT volunteers engaged and
involved, including supporting non-emergency events in their communities.
Title: Keeping CERT Volunteers Active and Engaged
Date: Tuesday, December 1, 2015
Time: 3:00 - 4:30 p.m. (ET)
This webinar will feature guest speakers from
CERT programs in:
- Irvine, CA
- Manchester,
CT
- Phoenix,
AZ
How to Join the Webinar:
We hope that
you will be able to join us on December 1! If you can’t make it, we will post
the recording, transcript, and slide deck of the presentation on this page,
under “CERT”: http://www.ready.gov/preparedness-leader/webinar-library. You can also
view our most recent CERT webinar, “Local Partnerships between the American Red
Cross and CERT” at: https://icpd.adobeconnect.com/p83f8xfurpl/.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency has
improved the online Citizen Corps/CERT Registration System and needs you to
update your information by Friday, December 4. This will help FEMA
provide you with better support. You can use this link
to log into the system. A slide presentation
is also available to help guide you through the update process.
There are several reasons to update your program’s
information:
- You will soon be able
use the registration system to generate a printable report that will
feature your specific program’s information. If your information in your
profile is up-to-date, the information in your individual program report
will be, too.
- We use this
information to develop reports, presentations, and talking points to
promote Citizen Corps and CERT to internal and external stakeholders. The
numbers that we use are far more effective and reliable when more programs
update their information.
- We have begun sharing
some CERT registration data through Open FEMA.
Please help us to ensure that this information is accurate.
- By updating your
information, you ensure that your program’s information is accounted for
in the National Preparedness Report.
- When members of the
public and other stakeholders look up your programs online, much of the
information you provide through the system is visible on your
public-facing online profile.
We value all of the information that you provide,
but the following data points are of the highest priority for the December 4
deadline:
- Number of Volunteer
Service Hours (Citizen Corps and CERT)
- Number of Volunteers
(Citizen Corps only)
- Number of Individuals
Who Have Completed CERT Basic Training Since Start of Program
- Average Annual
Deliveries of the CERT Basic Training
- CERT Classes
Graduated Since Start of Program
- Citizen Corps Council
Membership
-
CERT Response
Activities
If you have any questions, please direct them to
your state point of
contact. If they are unable to resolve your request, you can also
contact us at citizencorps@fema.dhs.gov
or cert@fema.dhs.gov.
Are you prepared for
the holidays? The Federal Emergency Management Agency is pleased to invite you to join a webinar on
how to prepare for winter weather and discuss holiday preparedness safety
tips.
Title: ‘Tis the Season: Preparing for a Winter Storm
and the Holidays
Date: Thursday, December 10, 2015
Time:
2:00 - 3:00 p.m. (ET)
Speakers:
-
Matthew Lyttle,
from the FEMA Individual and Community Preparedness Division, will discuss America’s PrepareAthon! and ways to
prepare for a winter storm.
-
National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Weather Service will present on the winter seasonal outlook, El
Niño and Winter Weather Safety Campaign.
-
Judy
Comoletti, from the National Fire
Protection Association, will present on holiday safety and the
risk of Christmas tree and cooking fires.
-
Sandy
Facinoli, from the FEMA U.S. Fire
Administration, will present on holiday safety, the risk
of electrical and candle fires, and the danger of New Year’s fireworks.
How to
Join the Webinar:
We hope that you
will be able to join us on December 10!
Disclaimer: The reader recognizes that the
federal government provides links and informational data on various disaster
preparedness resources and events and does not endorse any non-federal events,
entities, organizations, services or products. Please let us know about other events
and services for individual and community preparedness that could be included
in future newsletters by contacting citizencorps@fema.dhs.gov.
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