October 2023
 FEMA, in coordination with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), will conduct a nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System (EAS) and Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA) tomorrow.
The national test will consist of two portions, testing WEA and EAS capabilities. Both tests are scheduled to begin at approximately 2:20 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 4.
The WEA portion of the test will be directed to all consumer cell phones. The test message will display in either English or Spanish, depending on the language settings of the phone.
The EAS portion of the test will be sent to radios and televisions.
FEMA and the FCC are coordinating with EAS participants, wireless providers, emergency managers, and other stakeholders in preparation for this national test to minimize confusion and maximize the public safety value of the test.
The purpose of the Oct. 4 test is to ensure that the systems continue to be effective means of warning the public about emergencies, particularly those on the national level.
The WEA portion of the test will be initiated using FEMA’s Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS), a centralized internet-based system administered by FEMA that enables authorities to send authenticated emergency messages to the public through multiple communications networks.
All wireless phones should receive the message only once. The following can be expected from the nationwide WEA test:
- Beginning at approximately 2:20 p.m. ET, cell towers will broadcast the test for approximately 30 minutes. During this time, WEA-compatible wireless phones that are switched on, within range of an active cell tower, and whose wireless provider participates in WEA, should be capable of receiving the test message.
- For consumers, the message that appears on their phones will read: “THIS IS A TEST of the National Wireless Emergency Alert System. No action is needed.”
- Phones with the main menu set to Spanish will display: “ESTA ES UNA PRUEBA del Sistema Nacional de Alerta de Emergencia. No se necesita acción.”
WEA alerts are created and sent by authorized federal, state, local, tribal, and territorial government agencies through IPAWS to participating wireless providers, which deliver the alerts to compatible handsets in geo-targeted areas. To help ensure that these alerts are accessible to the entire public, including people with disabilities, the alerts are accompanied by a unique tone and vibration.
Important information about the EAS test:
- The EAS portion of the test is scheduled to last approximately one minute and will be conducted with the participation of radio and television broadcasters, cable systems, satellite radio and television providers and wireline video providers.
- The test message will be similar to the regular monthly EAS test messages with which the public is familiar. It will state: “This is a nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System, issued by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, covering the United States from 14:20 to 14:50 hours ET. This is only a test. No action is required by the public.
 A graphic showing the peak hurricane season from 1944 through 2020
An update on Hurricane Season from Hurricane Program Manager, Bruce Sterling:
Now that we have survived September, the busiest month of hurricane season, we are over the hump for the year. Not so fast!! October is a busy month for tropical activity as well. The sea surface temperatures are still pretty warm, especially in the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico, where the waters are among the warmest in the Atlantic basin this time of the year. The month of October sees about 27% of the season’s hurricanes, including some recent notable storms including Hurricanes Michael (2018), Matthew (2016), and Sandy (2012). Closer to home, Hurricane Gloria passed just off our coast as a Category 2 hurricane in 1985 after giving us a scare, Hurricane Hazel passed through Virginia as an extratropical storm with hurricane-force winds (after being downgraded from a Category 4 hurricane in North Carolina) in 1954, and the only hurricane on record above a Category 1 to come through Virginia was an Unnamed Category 2 hurricane in 1978, all in October. We should all remain vigilant and be prepared, because even though it’s October, we are still at risk.
 Members of the Virginia Emergency Support Team in the State Emergency Operations Center
Another storm, another activation! The Emergency Operations Center was busy during Tropical Storm Ophelia, as members of the VEST worked around the clock serving the commonwealth. The storm brought heavy rainfall, tidal flooding, and gusty winds to Virginia, but luckily, no significant impacts were reported.
Crews from the National Guard with high-water vehicles and chainsaws were deployed and on standby. Several special operations teams were also on standby but were demobilized without being needed.
 Photo Courtesy of the Virginia National Guard of Guard members on standby
Wind from the storm caused numerous power lines to come down, leaving nearly 30,000 customers without power at the height of the storm (according to Eagle-i). The winds also knocked down a number of trees and limbs, though nothing significant.
Storm evolution & reports:
Tropical Storm Ophelia started as an area of low pressure, but developed tropical characteristics, allowing it to reach Tropical Storm status. It made landfall in Emerald Isle, NC as a strong tropical storm -- packing winds of 70mph at the time (that's almost hurricane strength!). The storm quickly weakened after landfall and became a heavy rain-maker for Virginia. Winds gusted as high as 50-65mph near the coast, with 25-45mph gusts inland. As the center of the storm tracked northward along the I-95 corridor, it brought this area the heaviest rain. At times, rainfall rates were on the order of .5 - 1.5" per hour! During the time of heaviest rainfall, numerous roads were closed due to high water. Luckily, despite numerous media pictures showing people driving through flooded waters, this did not lead to any reports of water rescues.
In addition to rainfall, moderate to major tidal flooding was observed for a few tide cycles Friday night through Saturday night. In fact, water levels at Jamestown were the highest they've been since 2016, and caused a few periods of closures for the Jamestown-Scotland Ferry throughout the event. Tidal flooding was even seen as far up the James River as Hopewell.
Here's a roundup of some of the worst storm reports:
6 miles NW Cape Henry.....63mph
Chesapeake Light Tower......63mph
Wallops Island.....56mph
Wachapreague...55mph
Tangier Sound Light.....55mph
Poquoson.....52mph
Rainfall:
Manakin-Sabot.......5"
Chesapeake........4.9"
Richmond.......4.8"
Montpelier.....4.79"
Alberta......4.67"
Chesterfield.....4.62"
Rockville.....4.62"
Bon Air.....4.47"
Richmond International.....3.10"
 Since 2004, the President of the United States and Congress have declared the month of October to be Cybersecurity Awareness Month, a dedicated month for the public and private sectors to work together to raise awareness about the importance of cybersecurity.
This is the 20th Cybersecurity Awareness Month and it has grown into a collaborative effort between government and industry to enhance cybersecurity awareness, encourage actions by the public to reduce online risk and generated discussion on cyber threats on a national and global scale.
Please see the following virtual training opportunities that are delivered at no cost. Click the links for more information and to register. Some courses below require a FEMA Student ID, which you can apply for and get at: cdp.dhs.gov/femasid.
Training for Community Cybersecurity:
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Cybersecurity for Everyone: Computers, mobile devices, and the Internet of Things (IoT) are a part of our daily lives. By using all of this technology, which makes our lives easier, we have opened ourselves up to the risks of cyber attacks. This course will introduce you to the basics of protecting your computer and the data it stores as well as protecting yourself when you are online, on social media, and while using your mobile or smart devices.
Suggested Audience - This awareness level course is intended for anyone who desires to learn more about cybersecurity concerns when using everyday devices.
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Network Security for Homes and Small Businesses: The Internet (the world’s largest network) allows us to accomplish tasks more conveniently and efficiently at home, work and on the road! However, there are security risks with networks, and users must be aware and remain vigilant about these risks and how to secure their home or small business network. This course will introduce students to the basics of networks for homes and small businesses and provide them with best practices to secure their networks in order to protect their personal information as well as other (friends, family, customers, vendors, etc.) information that may flow through their network.
Suggested Audience - This course is intended for any employee that uses a computer or networked device in the workplace.
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Cybersecurity in the Workplace: The use of computers and networked systems in the workplace has opened businesses and organizations to a variety of risks. Every employee using a computer connected to the organization’s network is a potential point of entry for a cyber attack. For this reason, cybersecurity and protecting the organization’s data/information is every employee’s responsibility. This course will help students understand the different types of cyber attacks their company may face, the type of information that is at risk, how to recognize cyber attacks, and why it is important for everyone in the organization to participate in cybersecurity.
Suggested Audience - This course is intended for any employee that uses a computer or networked device in the workplace.
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Detecting and Responding to a Cyber Attack: As computers and mobile devices become a part of most people’s everyday lives, the challenges of protecting computers and mobile devices and the data on them increases. Part of protecting computers and mobile devices is understanding how to recognize when they are compromised, the steps to take to respond to compromised computers and devices, and how to recover once they have been rid of any infection. This course will introduce students to various types of cyber attacks and how to detect and respond to them in order to protect their data and information. Suggested Audience - This course is intended for any computer user seeking skills in detecting and responding to cybersecurity attacks including all federal, state, local, tribal, territorial, public, and private IT professionals.
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Introduction to Internet of Things: The purpose of this course is to provide an understanding of the history, definitions, and components that make up the Internet of Things. This course addresses the different applications of IoT as well as applicable laws and policies, technologies, emerging threats, best practices, security, and a variety of existing and developing technologies.
Suggested Audience - Federal, state, local, regional, tribal, and territorial government officials; owners and operators of businesses and non-profits; and community members and other individuals interested in understanding more about IoT.
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Mobile Device Security and Privacy: This course is designed to assist individuals better understand security and privacy issues associated with mobile devices and infrastructure; including benefits and challenges of designing, implementing, and maintaining Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) Programs.
Suggested Audience - The target audience for this course is open to, but not limited to, anyone in Citizen/Community Volunteer, Emergency Management, Emergency Medical Services, Fire Service, Governmental Administrative, Healthcare, Information Technology, Law Enforcement and Public Safety Communications.
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Intro to Basic Vulnerability Assessment Skills: This course introduces the preparatory skills needed to learn penetration testing and vulnerability assessment, and familiarizes Information Technology support personnel and managers with the tactics, techniques and procedures (TTPs) that are used by attackers and penetration testers. Participants will have an increased knowledge and understanding about the tools used in a cyber-attack and in turn be better able to prepare defenses. The course focuses on the basic skills and knowledge needed to conduct and plan vulnerability assessments and penetration tests as well as show how to legally and ethically conduct tests and assessments. Participants will be introduced to Open Source tools such as Metasploit and Nmap, as well as methodologies for researching vulnerabilities. This course is designed based on research and federal agency reports.
*Participants in this course should be currently serving in an Information Technology support capacity or come from an Information Technology middle management position. Although there are no prerequisites for this course, it is expected that participants have network and internet proficiency, as well as familiarity with both Windows and Linux file and operating systems, as well as basic command line use.
Suggested Audience - The target audience for this course includes Information Technology Support Personnel and technically proficient mid-level management in the public sector. The audience can be comprised of individual participants, as well as organizational divisions or a combination of both. Participants include, but are not limited to, information technology support personnel from the following entities:
- Law Enforcement
- Emergency Management
- Emergency Medical Services
- Fire Service
- Public Safety
- Governmental Administrative
Training for Business Cybersecurity:
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Introduction to Cyber Incident Management: This course is for IT professionals responsible for identifying and responding to cyber events, including local government, private industry, and critical infrastructure representatives.
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Disaster Recovery for Information Systems: Suggested Audience:
- Emergency management agency
- Emergency medical services
- Fire service
- Governmental administrative
- Law enforcement
- Healthcare
- Public health
- Public safety communications
- Public works
- Hazardous materials personnel
- Information Risk Management
For more courses, visit: https://teex.org/program/cybersecurity/
For more information go to: https://www.cisa.gov/cybersecurity-awareness-month
 EMAC logo
Virginia is supporting the State of Hawaii Lahaina Fire response through the Emergency Management Assistance Compact (EMAC). EMAC is the first national disaster-relief compact since the Civil Defense and Disaster Compact of 1950 to be ratified by the U.S. Congress. It is law in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the Northern Mariana Islands. EMAC's members can share resources from all disciplines, protect personnel who deploy, and be reimbursed for mission-related costs during governor-declared states of emergency or disaster. Virginia was the national coordinating state for EMAC last year.
Two VDEM employees -- one Finance Section Chief and one Volunteer Agency Liaison --will be deployed to Hawaii's state emergency operations center for support.
Virginia has a great relationship with Hawaii Emergency Management based on prior response support for the Kilauea Eruption and Island of Maui Flooding Events in 2018.
Learn more about EMAC: https://www.emacweb.org/index.php/learn-about-emac/what-is-emac
 On September 27, the City of Lynchburg hosted the first regional cyber attack tabletop exercise in the commonwealth. The purpose of the exercise was to examine and discuss roles and responsibilities of participating organizations in response to a regional cyber-attack. The focus area of the Region 3 Cyber-Attack Tabletop Exercise included the response phase of an incident affecting multiple stakeholders within the Lynchburg region.
The Planning Team, led by the VDEM Training Education and Exercise Division (TEED), included representatives from the VDEM Region 3 team and various participating agencies throughout the area. Feedback from those in attendance noted the importance of all partners having the opportunity to discuss the responses to the scenario in a “no fault” environment. The dialogue throughout the event provided an excellent framework for learning, sharing successful practices and a launching pad for plan improvements. During breaks and a working lunch, the buzz of conversations around the room indicated participants took advantage of the time for networking.
Approximately 90 attendees participated in the tabletop exercise from various agencies.
Agency Participants:
Virginia Department of Emergency Management
City of Lynchburg
Campbell County
Appomattox County
Amherst County
Bedford County (Region 6)
Virginia State Police
Central Virginia Community College
Liberty University
University of Lynchburg
Centra Hospital
Virginia National Guard
Virginia Fusion Center
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