FEMA Bulletin Week of July 22, 2019

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FEMA BULLETIN

July 22, 2019

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In this Edition:

Important Dates & Reminders

July 25

Partnership Day at FEMA

Americans with Disabilities Act 29th Anniversary

 

July 26 marks the 29th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). This milestone civil rights law affirms rights of people with disabilities and prohibits discrimination based on disability by state and local governments, private entities and telecommunications.

 

In unison with the 1973 Rehabilitation Act, the ADA is a powerful tool to ensure people with disabilities are included in all aspects of emergency management.

 

FEMA recognizes that emergency management is a whole community effort and, through its Office of Disability Integration and Coordination, is committed to helping people with disabilities before, during, and after disasters.

 

FEMA's Ready Campaign: "We Prepare Every Day" video exemplifies one of the ADA goals by delivering preparedness messages portraying individuals with disabilities fully engaged in emergency preparedness for themselves, their families and their community.

 

The preparedness video also demonstrates FEMA commitment to providing equal and effective communication access for the whole community by including open captioning, a certified deaf interpreter, and audio description for viewers who are blind or have low vision.

 

To hear more about ADA, listen in to FEMA podcast Episode 15: 28 Years of the ADA to hear from Linda Mastandrea, FEMA Director of the Office of Disability Integration and Coordination (ODIC).  Visit Ready.gov for more information on emergency preparedness for individuals with disabilities and others with access and functional needs.

 


Upcoming Deadlines and Reminders

 

FEMA Hosts Webinar on Hurricane Michael Recovery Advisories

 

FEMA scheduled webinars to discuss recently-released Hurricane Michael Recovery Advisories. These Recovery Advisories assist various stakeholders in rebuilding more resiliently by providing design and construction guidance to help minimize damage from future storm events. The webinars are free and available to anyone interested in the topics and content. 

 

•  Noon to 1:45 p.m. ET Aug. 7

•  Noon to 1:30 p.m. ET Aug. 15

 

Each webinar will be divided into two sessions and participants must register for each:

 

•  Session 1: Successfully Retrofitting Buildings for Wind Resistance; suggested attendees include: building owners and operators, design professionals, contractors, and entities that fund retrofits. 

 

•  Session 2:  Best Practices for Minimizing Wind and Water Infiltration Damage; suggested attendees include: building owners, operators, and managers; design professionals; building officials; contractors; and municipal building, and planning officials.

 

Register for the webinar here.  Any questions about this webinar, please contact the FEMA Building Science Helpline at FEMA-Buildingsciencehelp@fema.dhs.gov.

 


 

FEMA Hosts Webinars Regarding Revised NIMS ICS Courses

 

As part of the 2017 National Incident Management System (NIMS) update, FEMA is releasing three revised courses in its Incident Command System (ICS) All-Hazards Position Specific Curriculum:

FEMA's Emergency Management Institute (EMI) will host webinars highlighting the changes in the courses, instructor requirements, and future course releases. All times are Eastern, and each webinar has the same content:

 

•  11 a.m. Thursday, July 25

•  2 p.m. Thursday, July 25

 

How to Participate:

 

•  Register on the Adobe Connect platform at NIMS ICS Training Forum

   NOTE:  Sign in as a guest using the following format:

   Last Name, First Name, ST (example: Smith, Robert, NJ)

•  FEMA Teleconference: 800-320-4330, PIN 884976#

 

If you successfully completed a previous version of the courses, there is no FEMA requirement to take the revised version. However, the revised courses contain new information based on the 2017 NIMS document update.


FEMA Podcast Episode 42: Inside NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center

 

This week's episode features Shawn Dahl, a forecaster at NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center in Boulder, Colorado. Dahl sheds some light on space weather, describing what it is and how it can affect people on earth. He also provides insight on how the agency forecasts space weather and communicates with partners, like FEMA, to ensure that critical space weather information can be used to plan day-to-day operations.

 

The FEMA podcast is an audio program series available to anyone interested in learning more about the Agency, hearing about innovation in the field of emergency management, and listening to stories about communities and individuals recovering after disasters.

 

FEMA Podcast