Weekly Watch: Get ready to ShakeOut on Oct. 20

The 4.4 magnitude earthquake that struck the state at 5:52 a.m. on Oct. 7 was quite the wake-up call – literally – that we live in earthquake country. It was an important reminder that disasters don’t wait for us to be ready. It’s up to us to do our part to be prepared when the ground shakes and know how to best protect ourselves. This one wasn’t so bad, but the next one might be.

That’s why I urge you and your communities to join in The Great Oregon ShakeOut, part of an annual global drill for people to practice how to stay safe during an earthquake. Half a million Oregonians have registered to take part in this year’s self-led drill at 10:20 a.m. this Thursday, Oct. 20. They’ll Drop, Cover and Hold On for at least 60 seconds as if a major earthquake was occurring at that moment. These actions will reduce the chance of injury from falling objects and flying debris during earthquakes; practicing them until they become a familiar routine is an effective and no-cost addition to a preparedness plan.

We recognize people with mobility disabilities may need modified actions to the traditional Drop, Cover and Hold On approach. Those who use a walker, wheelchair or have other mobility impairments are urged to lock their wheels; bend over and cover their head and neck with their arms, a book or a pillow; and stay in a safe position until the shaking stops.

OEM has partnered with KUNP-TV (Univisión) on a multilingual outreach campaign featuring a 30-second TV spot in both Spanish and English highlighting Drop, Cover and Hold On and the Great Oregon ShakeOut. This campaign is currently running, reaching more than 100K Spanish-speaking households as well as English viewers through streaming services and devices.

One last note: the MyShake earthquake early warning app, available in Oregon, is sending a test alert to all MyShake users at 10:20 a.m. this Thursday during the ShakeOut. The app has sent pre-drill messages letting users know the test drill will happen, and the day of alert will include test audio telling people that this is a system test and no action is required. You still may receive calls from concerned community members; please direct any inquiries to myshake-info@berkeley.edu.

Take care of yourselves and take care of each other.
Andrew Phelps, Director, Oregon Department of Emergency Management

Home fires claim an average of 32 lives each year in Oregon. Oregon Governor Kate Brown has proclaimed October as Fire Prevention Month, and the Oregon Office of State Fire Marshal (OSFM) is messaging a campaign – Plan, Practice, and Be Prepared with a Home Fire Escape Plan – to educate and highlight the importance of having and practicing a plan. OSFM is asking everyone to create a home fire escape plan and practice it with all household members to be prepared if there is a fire inside the home. Visit OSFM's website to view simple steps to plan and prepare a safe home fire escape, along with more resources about home fire escape plans and a social media campaign to help educate and prepare Oregonians.

FEMA has released an updated version of its Emergency Operations Center How-to Quick Reference Guide. This all-hazards how-to guide provides state, local and tribal jurisdictions with information and guidance related to setting up, operating, maintaining and deactivating an EOC to successfully meets the jurisdiction’s needs. The quick reference guide covers topics such as hazard vulnerability assessments, physical site selection, mitigation, considerations, EOC capabilities and requirements, information management systems, and training and exercises. The guide’s annex contains an EOC Self-Assessment Tool to help state and local EOC leaders identify operational gaps and areas requiring improvement in the EOC.

FEMA is seeking comment on the NIMS Information and Communications Technology Functional Guidance. This guidance is a direct result of the joint National Council of SWICs/SAFECOM Communications Section Task Force’s work to implement IT and data network considerations into ICS and to recategorize how communications are implemented at the Incident Level, elevating the function from a Unit in the Logistics Section to its own Branch. The task force ultimately supports the guidance in its current form. The Statewide Interoperability (SWI) Program also supports the guidance and encourages emergency managers, incident management teams and public safety leaders to incorporate the ICT function fully into their organization’s SOPs/SOGs/EOPs and include communications and information technology professionals in all phases of the incident planning cycle. Submit comments to SWIC.OR@das.oregon.gov by 5 p.m. on Oct. 19 or submit comments directly to FEMA by completing this form and submitting it to FEMA-NIMS@fema.dhs.gov by 2 p.m. on Oct. 20.

Cyber threats are one of the greatest operational risks to emergency communications systems as they can directly inhibit first responders from providing life-saving services. By developing and maintaining a cyber incident response plan, public safety organizations can more effectively identify, mitigate and respond to cyber risks. The Statewide Interoperability Coordinators (SWIC), information technology administrators, CISA Cybersecurity Advisors (CSA) and CISA Emergency Communications Coordinators (ECC) are hosting a webinar providing actionable guidance on how to create new or update existing cyber incident response plans. Attendees will receive information on resources and tools to assist in the process. The webinar will take place at 10 a.m. on Oct. 26. Click here to join virtually or dial 800-897-5813 for audio.

The increase in frequency and intensity of natural disasters such as hurricanes, wildfires, and extreme cold weather events have focused attention to the disproportionate vulnerability of certain populations, such as people with disabilities, to natural hazards. Mathematic, a national organization that assesses the effectiveness of policies and programs to improve public well-being, has produced a series of interactive maps highlighting county-level variation in disability prevalence and the risk of natural disasters. View the maps and corresponding data on their website.

A return-on-investment study issued by AmeriCorps shows that national service disaster response efforts return as much as $12 for every federal dollar invested. The study focused on the value of federal funding invested in SBP AmeriCorps, a national organization that seeks to build disaster resiliency amongst those most vulnerable and streamline the rebuilding of homes for those who have survived disaster to reduce the time and cost of disaster relief. Read the full study on the Americorps website.

OR-Alert has released Statewide Guidance on Alerts, Warnings and Notifications. All alert originators in the emergency response community are urged to review the guidance and consider incorporating it into their alerting program’s operating policies, procedures and guidelines as applicable to their jurisdiction. This is a living document, and the Governance Committee Executive Team will continually evaluate the need for updates improve the guidance based on user input. Please submit any feedback to OR.Alert@das.oregon.gov.

The Emergency Management Institute (EMI) has opened the Fiscal Year 2024 Community-Specific Integrated Emergency Management Course (IEMC) application process. The community-specific IEMC provides an in-depth training and exercise experience for participants from a single jurisdiction. Community-specific IEMCs are written to reflect the hazards or events facing the jurisdiction, the type of EOC used by the jurisdiction, and the organizations included in the jurisdiction’s emergency plans. EMI exercise specialists conduct a pre-course analysis with the jurisdiction to collect location information, identify critical infrastructure, study transportation systems, and analyze current response plans. The curriculum is developed utilizing a training and exercise methodology. Participants will begin the week in a classroom environment and then culminate with an exercise to test the jurisdiction’s planned approach to specific hazards. Further application information and nomination package requirements can be located on the EMI website. All FY2024 Community-Specific IEMC applications must be submitted to karen.layng@oem.oregon.gov by Jan. 12, 2023.