FEMA
is hosting a series of 60-90 minute engagement webinars to discuss the update
effort on the Federal Interagency Operational Plans (FIOPs). All webinars are
open to the whole community, which encompasses individuals (including those
with disabilities and others with access and functional needs), businesses and
nonprofits, faith-based and community groups, schools, and all levels of
government.
In
order to facilitate a detailed discussion, each webinar will cover a specific
FIOP. The general overview webinars will provide information on proposed
high-level changes to all FIOPs. Advance registration is required due to space
limitations. Registration is on a first come, first serve basis. To register,
please visit www.vjpo.org/private/ppd8/events/fiops-update.
Download
the working drafts of the FIOPs at www.fema.gov/ppd-8-news-updates-announcements
and submit comments using the provided feedback submission forms.
Summer is the time to enjoy vacations, camping, picnics, and barbecues. However, the summertime also brings fires and burn injuries
due to fireworks and outdoor cooking. The U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) suggests these safety tips to prevent or reduce the risk of summertime burns:
- Wear short sleeves or roll them up when
cooking on the grill.
- Use long-handled barbecue tools.
- Keep a 3-foot safe zone around grills, fire
pits and campfires.
- Attend public fireworks displays; this leaves
the lighting to the professionals.
- Build campfires at least 15 feet away from
tent walls, shrubs or other materials that burn.
If you get a burn, you should act fast.
- Place the burn in cool water for three to
five minutes to cool it. Don’t put ice on the burn, as that can damage
the skin more.
- Cover the burn with a clean, dry cloth.
- See a doctor if the burn is larger size than a palm or it is blistering.
Visit the USFA website to learn more about summertime fire safety.
The
Emergency Management Institute’s (EMI) Virtual Table Top Exercise (VTTX)
program continues to evolve and grow to meet the demands of the emergency
management community, reaching more than 500 different agencies within this
fiscal year. The latest VTTX broadcasts in July were based on “The
Psychology of Disaster: Managing Behavioral Issues in Disasters and Providing
Crisis Support.”
EMI
conducts a monthly series of VTTX training using a video teleconference
platform to reach community-based training audiences around the country and to
provide a virtual forum for disaster training and discussion. The VTTX programs are designed for
a community-based group of at least ten or more personnel from local or state
emergency management organizations with representatives from other disciplines
such as public safety, public works, public health, health care, government,
administrative, communications, military, private sector, non-governmental, and
other whole community partners. Participants must have an appropriate
site equipped with video teleconference capability that can access FEMA.
The
Psychology of Disaster VTTX broadcast July 28-30, 2015, focused on
Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM), which helps to manage
traumatic experiences within organizations and communities after a
disaster. The seminars, hosted by Dr. Jeffery T. Mitchell, a professor at
the University of Maryland, Baltimore County and an active EMI adjunct
professor, were the result of several stakeholders’ request for a CISM-focused
event. In response to the request, FEMA produced, scheduled, and delivered the
VTTX broadcasts to more than 800 participants from around the United States and
Canada. Participants represented large and small communities, health care
facilities, first responders, volunteer agencies, universities and colleges,
and a variety of other emergency management professionals.
The
goals of the VTTX Psychology of Disaster broadcasts included providing
information to assist participants in understanding the psychology of disasters
before, during, and after they occur; assisting emergency managers in
understanding the psychological stages of disasters; aiding emergency personnel
in establishing an appropriate strategic crisis action plan for supporting emergency management officials
and citizens, and providing a better understanding of an effective CISM crisis intervention
program to help improve the emergency management community.
EMI
will conduct VTTX programs between August and September 2015 on a variety of
subjects:
- August
25, 26,
27: Building Collapse Focused
- September
8, 9,
10: Recovery
To
apply for a VTTX event, submit an email request to participate in the exercise
to Doug Kahn at douglas.kahn@fema.dhs.gov or call
301-447-7645. The deadline for applying to participate in a VTTX is four weeks
prior to the start date. Additional
information on this VTTX can be found at https://training.fema.gov/programs/emivttx.aspx.
FEMA announced $180 million
in funding available through two Hazard Mitigation Assistance (HMA) grant
programs: Flood Mitigation Assistance (FMA) and Pre-Disaster Mitigation (PDM).
These two grant programs assist state, local, tribal, and territorial
governments in strengthening our nation’s ability to reduce the potential cost of natural disasters to communities
and their citizens.
Both HMA FY 2015 Funding Opportunity Announcements can be
found at www.grants.gov. Eligible applicants must apply for funding through
the Mitigation eGrants system on the FEMA Grants Portal accessible at https://portal.fema.gov. All applications must be submitted no
later than August 28,
2015 at 3 p.m. EDT.
FEMA's HMA grant programs
provide states, local governments, tribes, and territories funding for eligible
mitigation activities to strengthen our nation’s ability to reduce disaster
losses and protect life and property from future disaster damages. Further
information on these grant programs is available at www.fema.gov/hazard-mitigation-assistance.
FEMA is
reminding National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) policyholders, who filed a
claim as a result of Hurricane Sandy, they have until September 15, 2015, to register to have their claim files reviewed if they believe their claims were underpaid.
FEMA is committed to
ensuring every NFIP policyholder who filed a claim as a result of Hurricane
Sandy receives every dollar they are due under their policy. The agency
established a process for Hurricane Sandy survivors to have their claims reviewed,
and where warranted, additional payments will be made to those policyholders.
FEMA sent letters to approximately 142,000 NFIP policyholders who filed claims
resulting from Hurricane Sandy, offering them an opportunity to have their
files reviewed. To date, more than 8,900 policyholders have joined the process.
To be eligible for the
review, policyholders must have experienced flood damage between October 27,
2012 and November 6, 2012, as a result of Hurricane Sandy. Policyholders can
call the NFIP’s Hurricane Sandy claims center at 1-866-337-4262 to
request a review. Alternately, policyholders can go online to www.fema.gov/hurricane-sandy-nfip-claims to
download a form requesting a review. The downloaded form may be filled out and
emailed to FEMA-sandyclaimsreview@fema.dhs.gov to
start the review process. For individuals who are deaf, hard of hearing, or
have a speech disability using 711 or VRS, please call 866-337-4262. For
individuals using a TTY, please call 800-462-7585 to begin the review process.
Before contacting the claim center, policyholders are asked to have their flood
insurance carrier name and policy number at hand.
FEMA will request the policyholder’s claim file from
their insurance company and forward it to the NFIP review office within two
business days. Files will be assigned to a highly skilled, NFIP-certified
adjuster who will serve as a caseworker for the insured. The entire process
should take less than 90 days. Caseworkers will contact policyholders to guide
them through the review process. Additionally, there
are several nonprofit service providers ready to offer free advice and answer
questions policyholders may have. A list of these advocacy groups can be found
on the claims review website at www.fema.gov/sandyclaims.
Policyholders who have already registered for the
Hurricane Sandy claims review do not need to take any additional action and can
expect to be contacted by their caseworker.
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