FEMA’s Federal Insurance and
Mitigation Administration (FIMA) updated the Guidance and Standards that it uses in
its flood mapping and risk analysis efforts. There are six revised standards,
three new standards, and one rescinded standard in this maintenance cycle in
addition to a number of updated guidance and technical reference documents.
Several of these updates to Risk MAP
guidance and technical references begin implementing recommendations from the
Technical Mapping Advisory Council’s (TMAC) 2015 recommendations. TMAC
related updates include requirements for reporting the accuracy of elevation
data used, guidance on selecting engineering models, and procedures for
reviewing new statistical models for use. FIMA also enhanced the
standards and guidance development process and updated the policy to address
the TMAC recommendation to consider the cost of implementation for new
requirements and address the costs consistently.
The
updated standards address requirements for emergency operation plans for levee
accreditation, clarify requirements for incorporating Letters Of Map Revisions
into map updates, update requirements for processing Physical Map Revisions
(PMRs) update Notice to Users (NTU) requirements, update requirements for flood
risk product automation, update distribution requirements for Flood Insurance
Study (FIS) Reports, and formalize several standards for removal of the
special flood hazard area designation by letter consistent with current
practice.
FIMA conducted a public review of the draft standards earlier this year.
FIMA regularly updates these guidance and technical reference documents to
ensure ongoing improvements in its flood mapping and risk analysis efforts. The
actual standards and related guidance are available at www.fema.gov/guidelines-and-standards-flood-risk-analysis-and-mapping.
FEMA congratulates Atascadero,
California, for completing their Integrated Emergency Management Course (IEMC)
on October 6, 2016. The four-day training course was designed specifically
for their jurisdiction, providing both lecture and exercise-based training
focused on response operations for a hazardous material incident.
IEMC courses simulate
realistic crisis situations that emergency operations center personnel and
community leadership/elected officials may encounter during disasters or other
events. The course helps enhance the skills of participating officials, and
provides a forum to evaluate the effectiveness of their specific emergency
policies, plans, and procedures that protect life and property. The course’s
target audience includes state, local, tribal, and territorial government
personnel; their elected and appointed officials; supervisory, operations, and
emergency support personnel; nonprofit organizations; the private sector; law
enforcement personnel; firefighters; attorneys; public information officers;
planners; and more.
IEMC
classes are primarily delivered at FEMA’s Emergency Management Institute at the
National Emergency Training Center in Emmitsburg, Maryland; however, local
delivery may occur in the community. Questions should be directed to FEMA-EMI-IEMB@fema.dhs.gov. If your jurisdiction
is interested in applying for the program and obtaining information on the
application process and its timeline, please visit http://training.fema.gov/iemc/. The deadline for applications is February 15, 2017.
Seeking Comments on Draft Disaster Resilience Indicators Concept
The deadline to submit inputs and feedback to the
Mitigation Federal Leadership Group (MitFLG) Disaster Resilience Indicators
Subcommittee’s “Draft
Interagency Concept for Community Resilience Indicators and National-Level
Progress Measures" is December 15, 2016. Stakeholders can submit comments and feedback to FEMA-CommunityResilience@fema.dhs.gov.
The document is the result of a year-long effort to identify potential indicators of community resilience capacity building that align with the Mitigation and Recovery Core Capabilities under the National Preparedness Goal. Learn more details about this initiative through FEMA and NOAA partnership here.
Applications Open for Integrated Emergency Management Courses
FEMA’s Emergency Management Institute (EMI)
conducts Integrated Emergency Management Courses (IEMC) throughout the year and
across the country. The four-and-a-half day training course is designed
specifically for communities, providing both lecture and exercise-based
training focused on response operations for a disaster or emergency that could
happen in their area.
IEMC courses simulate
realistic crisis situations that emergency operations center personnel and
community leadership/elected officials may encounter during disasters or other
events. Also, the course enhances the skills of participating officials
and provides a forum to evaluate the effectiveness of their specific emergency
policies, plans, and procedures to protect life and property. The course’s
target audience includes: state, local, tribal, and territorial (SLTT) government
personnel; their SLTT elected and appointed officials; supervisory, operations, and
emergency support personnel; nonprofit organizations; the private sector; law
enforcement personnel; firefighters; attorneys; public information officers;
planners; and more.
IEMC classes are principally
delivered at FEMA’s EMI at the National Emergency
Training Center in Emmitsburg, Maryland; however, delivery may also occur
in the community. If your jurisdiction is interested in applying for the
program and obtaining information on the application process and its timeline,
please visit http://training.fema.gov/iemc/. The deadline for applications is
February 15, 2017. Questions should be directed to FEMA-EMI-IEMB@fema.dhs.gov.
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