Radio System Failure

How would your organization cope if your primary communications system failed?

Won't happen?

The Washington, D.C. Police, Fire and EMS (EMS operated by Fire) radio system failed for several hours this week. While officials in the US Capitol attempted to tell the media that it was basically business as usual, we know the chaos that this would cause.

Fire fighters operating at a structure fire suddenly without radio communications...

Police officers doing a traffic stop having to call for assistance by making a cell phone call... and hoping the line isn't busy.

Paramedics enroute to a hospital attempting to provide an update to ER staff.

How would your organization react? What are your back up plans? Is everyone familiar with them? How quickly could they be implemented? Do you practice using your back up systems? What resources would you need?

Here is the story in the Washington Post: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/03/29/AR2010032904028.html?referrer=emailarticle

CANWARN Volunteer Storm Spotters

CANWARN volunteers are storm spotters who report specific weather observations to Environment Canada. Even with high tech computers, radar and satellites, first hand observation of cloud formations and storm activity is still a necessary part of the severe weather warning system.

As a CANWARN volunteer you attend a 3 hour training session once a year. Information on CANWARN training is below along with some interesting facts from Geoff Coulson, Meterologist with Environment Canada.




"Folks…hope everyone has been enjoying the amazing start to the month of March. The warm, sunny weather is a prelude to what we will be seeing a lot more often by late April. The return of warm and humid weather in April will also herald the start of the spring/summer severe weather season in Ontario. This severe weather will take the form of powerful thunderstorms capable of producing damaging winds, flooding rains, large hail and tornadoes. The 2009 season had a number of significant events. On July 9th three American tourists lost their lives in a fishing camp in Northwestern Ontario north of Dryden when a Fujita Scale 2 tornado moved through the camp. On August 20th, 18 tornadoes were spawned from a series of supercell thunderstorms that moved over southcentral and eastern Ontario. These 18 tornadoes represented a new Canadian record for most tornadoes in one day. Yet another milestone will be reached this spring, May 31st, 2010 will be the 25th anniversary of the Barrie and Grand Valley tornadoes…the last confirmed Fujita Scale 4 tornadoes to occur in Ontario…that, between them, took 11 lives.

CANWARN volunteer storm spotters continue to play an integral role in Environment Canada's severe weather watch/warning program. I would encourage you to come out to a training session near you...

On behalf of my colleagues at the Ontario Storm Prediction Centre, I would like to thank all of you for being a part of this very important program. Your timely reports of severe weather are greatly appreciated and help in increasing the safety and security of the people of Ontario. I look forward to seeing some of you at the training sessions this year. So without further ado…here are the list of this year's sessions as things stand now…"

Windsor - Monday, April 12th 7 PM - Caboto Club 2175 Parent Avenue

London - Tuesday, April 13th 7 PM - Four Points Sheraton Hotel 1150 Wellington Road

Hamilton - Saturday, April 17th 9 AM - Nash Auditorium, Wilcox Building, Chedoke Hospital, Sanitorium Road

Sarnia - Tuesday, April 20th 7 PM - Kinsmen Centre (Oakroom Room) 656 Lakeshore Road

Peterborough - Tuesday, April 20th 7 PM - Canadian Canoe Museum 910 Monaghan Road

Kitchener - Wednesday April 21st 7 PM - Bingemans Conference Centre - 425 Bingemans Centre Drive

Orillia - Saturday, April 24th 9 AM - Highwayman Inn - 201 Woodside Drive

Toronto - Saturday, May 1st 9 AM - Environment Canada Headquarters 4905 Dufferin St (Dufferin south of Steeles Avenue)

Cornwall - Saturday, May 1st 9 AM - Cornwall Legion 415 Second St. W.

Ottawa - Saturday, May 8th 9 AM - Kanata Legion 70 Hines Road

Sudbury - Saturday, May 15th 9:30 AM - Lionel E. Lalonde Centre 239 Montee Principale, Azilda

Sault Ste Marie - Sunday, May 16th 7 PM - Waterfront Inn - 208 St. Mary's Drive

Timmins - Monday, May 17th 7 PM - Days Inn - 14 Mountjoy St. South

North Bay - Wednesday, May 19th 7 PM - Ontario Provincial Police Communication Centre - 877 Gormanville Road

Northwestern Ontario - week of June 7th - exact dates/locations to be determined

Regards,

Geoff Coulson
Warning Preparedness Meteorologist
Météorologue de sensibilisation aux conditions menaçantes
Ontario Region Client Services
Service à la clientèle, Région de l'Ontario
Environment Canada Environnement Canada
Goverment of Canada Gouvernement du Canada

Profound Insights From Day Dreaming

Emergency service workers and emergency planners focus on the hard facts. What are the hazards and risks, how do we prevent or mitigate them, what is the response plan, implementing command and control, dealing with victims and the displaced, implementing a recovery plan and so on.

But sometimes the best planning comes from sitting back and allowing you mind to wander. Our brains have an amazing ability to gather facts, recover information stored long ago, and come up with creative solutions.

A friend has sent me the following link; a very interesting read about the creative benefits Day Dreaming.

http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/articles/2008/08/31/daydream_achiever/?page=1

Gordon Lightfoot Dead???

Would the media always ensure they were publishing accurate and confirmed information on your organization? We all hope so, but if they don't do you have a plan?


Gordon Lightfoot learned of his death this past week while listening to the radio in his car. One of his first concerns was that his daughter, who was at school, would hear of his death.

A reporter for a national media chain received a "twitter" and immediately sent out his own twitter and published a story on the media website advising of Gordon Lightfoot's death. Within minutes media outlets were circulating the story.

One of the purposes of a crisis communications plan and strategy is to assist in correcting inaccuracies.

Gordon Lightfoot's correction plan was pretty simple, call the radio station and do an impromptu interview. Unfortunately it is not always that straight forward.

But the lesson is clear, you may need to use your crisis communications plan even when you do not have a real crisis.

Getting the Message Out!

Drinking and driving kills, maims and changes lives forever.

In my 28 years in emergency services I have been at far to many collisions caused by impaired drivers resulting in deaths, permanent injuries and never ending pain for family members. We must continue to educate youth, stop friends / family from driving while impaired, and call the police when we see an impaired driver.

Impaired driving is a crime! It is the leading cause of criminal death in Canada.

Attached is a link to a very dramatic public education video from Australia.


http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=Z2mf8DtWWd8

And here is a link from a documentary that we were able to have a small part in assisting - After The Crash. This documentary follow ups on the impacts of actual crashes caused by impaired driving.

http://www.rogerstv.com/option.asp?lid=237&rid=23&mid=52&gid=54041#89_168_3321

Crisis Communications & Toyota

We have long been focused on ensuring our clients have a crisis communications strategy. With Terry Blace, former media manager for the OPP, joining our team we brought in top notch expertise to assist our clients.

We can often look at examples in the current spotlight for lessons to be learned.

Newsweek has published an interesting article called "Toyota's Digital Disaster", a look at how the Internet, social media etc. has impacted Toyota's challenge in addressing their communications crisis.

The subtitle is "In the Google era, how do you manage a product recall and a public-relations fiasco? Don't do what Toyota's done."

The article can be read at http://www.newsweek.com/id/232962/page/1

While your organization may not have a world wide recall of products you still should be prepared with a crisis communications strategy for issues that may impact your public support in your community and with your stakeholders.

Industrial Safety Trainers

We would like to take this opportunity to congratulate Randy and Cathy Dignard of Industrial Safety Trainers on having their company selected by the Ministry of Labour to make an announcement about a provincial safety blitz.

Labour Minister Peter Fonseca attended the Industrial Safety Trainers offices and training facility in Barrie to reaffirm the province's commitment to reducing workplace injuries and deaths. Several television, newspaper and trade magazines had reporters at Industrial Safety Trainers while Minister Fonseca made his speech, showed an new public awareness video, and toured the Industrial Safety Trainers "Safety Bus" (a mobile class room).

Industrial Safety Trainers with a team of 15 serves more than 5,000 client organizations (including Tim Hortons and Canadian Tire) and has trained tens of thousands of workers.

Randy and Cathy have been business role models and examples for Darryl Culley in building Emergency Management and Training. Darryl frequently applies Randy's advice and examples in marketing and other business issues.

Having the Ministry of Labour make an announcement at your business is a huge recognition of the respect that Industrial Safety Trainers has in their field.

Congratulations to Randy, Cathy and the team at Industrial Safety Trainers.

For more information on workplace safety training go to: http://www.thesafetybus.com/

Social Media and Disaster Response

New technologies and social media are providing for more rapid and unfiltered communications from the earthquake ravished Haiti.

USA Today has published an article that examines one way in which Twitter and other social medias have changed the way disasters are responded to.



"WASHINGTON — The Homeland Security Department has joined the social-media movement and for the first time is reading Twitter posts, blogs and Internet forums to learn instantly about conditions in Haiti and send alerts to government agencies in the country.

The department's Haiti Social Media Disaster Monitoring Initiative is designed to get information more quickly to people involved in recovery efforts by tracking up to 60 Internet sites including Google Blog Search, The Huffington Post and Twitter, according to a department report."

Read the full story at http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2010-02-01-haiti-monitor-social-media_N.htm

Live Call-In Television

It was an honor to be a guest on the Rogers TV live call-in show Talk Local to discuss the earthquake in Haiti. Lucy Purdy is a talented host, and it was great to have a friend, Peter McGuinniss, Regional Disaster Coordinator (Simcoe / Muskoka) of the Canada Red Cross on the show. He is a wealth of knowledge and a very dedicated volunteer with the Red Cross. It is volunteers like Peter who make the Red Cross such an effective (and cost efficient) organization.

The work in Haiti to bring relief continues and there is still a need for donations - http://www.redcross.ca/

Thank you for your generosity and out pouring of support for the people of Haiti.

Guest on Talk Local, Rogers TV

This evening Darryl Culley, President of Emergency Management & Training Inc. will be a guest on Talk Local, Rogers TV along with Peter McGuinniss, Regional Disaster Coordinator for the Red Cross to talk about the earthquake in Haiti.

Darryl is honored to be invited to be a guest for his 4 appearance on this live call in television show. The last appearance was to discuss H1N1.

Darryl is looking forward to being joined by Peter, who has been spearheading fundraising for the Haiti earthquake recovery in Simcoe County and Muskoka District. The Red Cross gets 93% of its donations on the ground in Haiti and is the largest NGO relief responder in the world. More information on the Red Cross response to Haiti and other areas of need can be found at www.redcross.ca.

Watch for us at 9:00 pm EST on Rogers TV.

Hundreds volunteer to go to Haiti

As the images of devastation unfold over the Internet, on television and print media there is a great desire stirred within people to help.





Recently on the television news there was a story about a group of caring individuals volunteering to go to Haiti but not finding a way to get there. They talked about the people who were dying while they were waiting here for someone to fly them to the Caribbean island. Unfortunately it is not that easy.





Tens of thousands of personnel from dozens of countries around the world have arrived in Haiti to perform rescue, medical aid, provide food and water, re-establish communications networks, clear debris, re-establish a viable government, and start rebuilding.





The earthquake knocked the main airport out of service and closed the main shipping port. American air force personnel arrived to set up a portable radar and control centre. Hundreds of military and charter flights started to arrive immediately bringing highly trained urban search and rescue teams from the USA, Europe, and even Iceland. Medical teams were arriving from Canada, USA, Mexico, Europe, the United Nations. Various NGOs (non-government organizations) that have been operating in Haiti for many years such as the Red Cross, World Vision, Salvation Army and others were ramping up their response. Other experienced and equipped groups such as Global Medic, with significant experience in responding to disasters sent teams down.





With so many responders and an even greater need the area is divided up geographically with teams assigned specific neighbourhoods and communities to operate in. Travel is difficult with road blocked by debris and a lack of fuel for vehicles.





But there is a very important point: all of these teams are self sufficient - they bring their own food, water, accommodation (tents), rescue/medical equipment, communications, translators, security, transportation and even fuel.





One cannot just pack their suitcase, ask for a flight and expect a hotel to accommodate them when they get there. If you are not properly equipped, trained and self sufficient, you then become more of a burden than a help.





I recall a media story after Hurricane Katrina, where a well meaning and caring Canadian woman loaded the trunk of her car with blankets the day after the Hurricane and headed south. She was upset that she was stopped at the US border as they told her that her good intent wasn't sufficient, so she went to the media who gave her 5 minutes of fame.





If you are serious about making a commitment to respond large scale disaster then make a commitment to an organization who responds: Canadian Red Cross Disaster Relief, Global Medic (http://www.globalmedic.ca/), World Vision, Doctors Without Borders, Oxfam International, etc. Find out what the prerequisites are, volunteer for the training and put the preparation in now.





What can you do right now? Donate!





Make a donation to an organization who is actively involved in the Haiti recovery. http://www.globalmedic.ca/, http://www.redcross.ca/, http://www.worldvision.ca/, http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/,





Rebuilding Haiti will take many years. There will be a need for volunteers with construction experience, carpentry, masonry, plumbing, electrical, small engine repair, solar/wind power generation, etc.





A long term demand for nursing and medical assistance will continue for those who are recovering from injuries and in stabilizing the medical system again as several hospitals were destroyed.



There are many groups who operate orphanages, schools and community supports that will require volunteers.

Just because you can't go today doesn't mean you can't make a difference later. But start planning, training and preparing now.

Earthquakes - there are faults everywhere

Frequently when I am speaking about a HIRA process (Hazard Identification and Risk Analysis) I will mention the fact that the Ottawa river is on a fault line and that hundreds of very minor tremors occur every year. This should and does cause architects to design buildings with some ability to withstand a degree of earthquakes.

Attached is a link to an interesting story in the Toronto Star about faults.


http://www.thestar.com/news/insight/article/751748--our-fractured-planet-s-faults?bn=1



Photo is of the San Andreas Fault in California which caused the 1906 San Francisco earthquake which killed 3,000 people and the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake which resulted in 63 deaths.

Social Media - Real Time Reporting From Haiti

Terry Blace, a communications and media expert with Emergency Management & Training has been watching, like all of us, the devestation in Haiti. But one of the major changes, quickly identified by Terry, was how Twitter, Facebook, and "I" reports using cell phone cameras etc. have brought us to the scene quicker and without editing. Often very graphic pictures and stories have awakened the world to the desperate struggle for survival of many Haitians.

Terry has forwarded this CTV news article reinforcing his early observations.

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20100113/haiti_citizenjournalism_100113/20100113


Citizen journalism is changing the way we view events and the world.

Public Health Issues and Priorities for Haiti

The US Center for Disease Control has issued a short update on the public health issues and priorities for Haiti following the earthquake.


http://emergency.cdc.gov/disasters/earthquakes/healthconcerns_haiti.asp

Following the earthquake, most pressing public health concerns in Port-au-Prince and surrounding affected areas will include:

• Adequate quantity and quality of water
• Food security
• Appropriate shelter and protection from the elements
• Prevention and treatment of gastrointestinal, respiratory, and vector-borne illnesses
• Provision of health services to prevent maternal and infant deaths
• Prevention of violence and further unintentional injury
• Treatment of kidney failure due to crush injuries
• Prevention of deaths from infected wounds
• Prevention and treatment of inflamed lung tissue caused by concrete dust

The CDC also note that dead bodies rarely spread disease and that epidemics are rarely caused by earthquake.

For more information check out the link above.

Impacts of H1N1 on Productivity

Statistics Canada is reporting that 1.5 Million people booked of sick in November 2009 as a result of H1N1 resulting in 29.5 Million hours of lost work time in Canada. Approximately 9% of workers booked off sick, averaging 20 hours of lost work time.

Employees with children living at home were off sick twice as much as employees without children. Employees with children under 12 had the highest absentism rates at 15%.

During the same time, 600,000 health care workers put in an additional 8.6 million work hours in November 2009 responding to the demands of H1N1.

More information is available at the Stats Canada website:
http://www.statcan.gc.ca/daily-quotidien/100115/dq100115c-eng.htm

The economic and financial impacts of H1N1 are signifant. If the influenza had been more serious the strain on the economy would have massive impacts on every Canadian. Are companies truly prepared?

Earthquake in Haiti

Our thoughts go out to the millions of people in Haiti affected by Wednesday's earthquake. At the moment the death toll is more than 50,000 and rising. Injuries and illness caused by the earthquake combined with tropical diseases, lack of clean water and sanitation systems, and a collapse of the hospitals may result in many more deaths in the days and weeks to come.

According to news reports 4 Canadians have been confirmed dead and several are still missing at this time.

Governments from around the world along with NGOs (non-government organizations such as the Red Cross, World Vision, and Global Medic) are responding to the suffering of this impoverished nation. Canada is mobilizing the Canadian Forces Disaster Assistance Relief Team (DART), as well as additional medical teams and two navy ships; HMCS Halifax and HMCS Athabaskin.

We would encourage donations through reputable agencies: www.redcross.ca, www.globalmedic.ca and www.worldvision.ca.

Unfortunately there are may unscrupulous people out there making it difficult to determine who is collecting for ligitimate relief and who are taking advantage of the outpouring of support. If you aren't sure, stick with a reputable agency.

News reports are being updated regularly at www.ctv.ca/news

Terrorism - closer than you might think

Attached is a link to an interesting article for the Toronto Star on potential terrorism links in Toronto.

"Five ethnic Somali men disappeared from Scarborough this fall, all friends believed recruited into Al-Shabab. Three are said by family associates to have since phoned home from Somalia."

"For Torontonians, al-Shabab recruitment presents another terrifying possibility: A fanatic returns to explode himself in a crowd."

"Or as RCMP Commissioner William Elliott put it in October: "The potential follow-on threat is Somali-Canadians who travel to Somalia to fight and then return, imbued with both extremist ideology and the skills necessary to translate it into direct action.""

For the full article go to:




http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/article/745524--fanatic-convert-to-terrorism-spent-year-in-toronto

Interesting Contacts

Earlier this month I had opportunity to take an amazing Tony Robbins' DWD course at the Marriott Desert Ridge Resort in Phoenix AZ.

First, let me say DWD was the most dynamic course I have ever taken and would highly recommend it. It is an inspiring way to get one's life in focus. http://www.tonyrobbins.com/

Secondly, what an incredible reminder of the small world it is. While standing near the front with a new friend, an investment banker from Chicago, there was a tap on my shoulder. "Are you from Canada" was the question. It turns out, Dr. Russ Irwin, now a psychiatrist and professor at McMaster University Medical School was in my paramedic class in Niagara College many years ago. It had been more than 25 years since we had last been in touch.

And third, with 2000 people from 49 different countries it was an opportunity to meet many new friends, one of whom is Rodney.

Dr. Rodney Payton OBE (Order of the British Empire) has a Masters in Education, a Law Degree and is a highly decorated consultative surgeon, author and speaker. One of Rodney's specialties is in the motivation, training and appraisal of medical staff. His books include "Best Practices in Surgical Education", "Appraisal and Assessment in Medical Practice", and "Teaching & Learning in Medical Practice".

Check out his website and online book store at http://www.jwrodneypeyton.com/

Olympic Security Must Tighten

A story published by The Canadian Press today examines some of the Olympic security issues over past events and how the lessons must apply to the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.


http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Canada/2009/12/26/12272271-cp.html

Toronto 3rd Most Vulnerable City

Toronto maybe the third most vulnerable city in North America to disease exposure acording to a Toronto Star article.

Pearson International Airport sees more than 32 Million passengers a year with direct international flights accounting for more than 10 million passengers. The potential of bringing disease along with the passengers is signficant.

Read the article at: http://www.healthzone.ca/health/newsfeatures/article/722788--pearson-airport-flu-magnet?bn=1

Olympic Torch Run Protests

On the first day of the Olympic Torch Run hundreds of protesters in Victoria BC disrupted the planned run and celebrations.

The Canadian Press reported protesters representing a variety of causes were there, from environmentalists to anti-war demonstrators to native-rights advocates.

Several anti-Olympics groups have sprouted up as the Games approach, promising to protest not just the torch relay but the Games themselves. The Olympic Resistance Network has sent out a call for activists across the country to use the relay to protest the Winter Games or other issues.

While the protest was generally peaceful protesters used marbles to put police horses, which were present to monitor the crowd, at risk of injury by falling.

Some activists have said they were inspired by the protests along the international torch relay ahead of last year's Beijing Olympics, primarily targeting China's human rights record. Those demonstrations showed the torch presents a useful podium for getting a message out to the world.

For the full story from the Canadian Press go to: http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/capress/091031/national/oly2010_torch_protests

While we hope that the Olympic Torch Run is seen as a celebration as it crosses our great country, communities where it is passing need to be prepared for the protests that may accompany it.

Provincial Emergency Management Conference

An amazing success.

After EMO cancelled their plans to host the annual Provincial Emergency Management Conference, the Red Cross (Ontario Zone) stepped in with only two months to go and they did a great job. Having been at many emergency management conferences, this one would rate at the very top. The organization was well done, the speakers were interesting, the program was jam packed, and the networking was great. Of course, Deerhurst is a wonderful place for a conference.

Congratulations to John Saunders (conference advisor), Annie Burke (conference chair), Tammy Fedick (registration), Jean Lodge (program), and Jack Lodge (logistics) and all of their volunteer support for a job well done. Special thanks to Jean and Jack Lodge for the evening of entertainment. Annie deserves a special round of applause for her leadership.

The Red Cross demonstrated in so many ways, through the successful rescuing of this conference, how they can be counted on. Ron, you have a great team.

Pittsburgh G20 Starts tomorrow

Security is tight in Pittsburgh on the eve of the G20 summit scheduled for September 24 and 25 and no doubt that Canadian security officials are paying close attention in light of the G8 / G20 meetings scheduled for June 2010.



Here are a couple of links to stories and an active news organization from the Pittsburgh area.

Pittsburgh businesses prepare:
http://pittsburgh.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/stories/2009/09/21/daily23.html

Local news station

http://www.wpxi.com/news/index.html

An older article on how protesters were preparing for the G20

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/pittsburgh/s_633219.html

Good Advice

The sign says it all.

Job Posting - EMS Director

One of our previous clients, the Manitoulin-Sudbury District Social Services Administration Board (DSSAB), is recruiting a Director of EMS.

Emergency Management & Training provided consulting for and contract management of the Manitoulin Sudbury EMS four years ago, assisting to hire Jeff Horseman, the current EMS Chief. Jeff is now moving closer to home and has accepted a position in Huron County. We wish Jeff much success in his new position.

Manitoulin-Sudbury DSSAB seeks a highly motivated professional to fill the position of Director of EMS, overseeing the land ambulance services in the M-S DSSAB's jurisdiction. The Director is responsible to monitor compliance with government standards and the the requirements/expectations of the DSSAB, promote the advancement of patient care, ensure cost effective operations and plan the short and long term development of the ambulance service.

Qualifications include: experience with public sector administration and financial management; the ability to apply relevant statutes and regulations; manage land ambulance service; develop and execute service delivery plans with sound knowledge of staff relations issues and accepted practices.

The Manitoulin-Sudbury EMS head office is in Espanola, in the beautiful Manitoulin - Sudbury area.

The competition number is 2009-01-AD and the deadline for applications by resume is October 9, 2009 at 4:30 pm.

Human Resources Competition #2009-01-AD

Manitoulin-Sudbury District Social Services Administration Board

210 Mead Blvd., Espanola, ON P5E 1R9

Fax: 705.862.7866

Email: hr@msdsb.net

Website: http://www.msdsb.net/

Manitoulin-Sudbury EMS covers 25,000 sq. kilometres stretching from the French River to Chapleau. It is a beautiful area and the DSSAB team is great to work with. If you have EMS management experience and are a great leader, we would recommend you take a good look at this opportunity.

Seats Started Selling Within Hours

Registrations for the Crisis Communications Seminar started arriving within a couple hours of our first announcement. With only 27 available seats (less now) and $50 off for registrations received by September 30, NOW is the time to register for this highly informative and interactive seminar.

With expert instruction from Terry Blace, John Devine, Don Saxon, and Darryl Culley this session will help prepare you for any media interaction, especially when there is a crisis occuring.

Who should attend:

Fire and EMS Chief’s and senior officers
Health Care facility Administrators and senior managers
Municipal CAO’s, Directors and officials
Corporate executives and senior managers
School Board Directors and School Principals
Not-for-profit organizations
Emergency Control Group members
Anyone who may be called upon as the Public Information Officer

Seminar Date: October 28 & 29 – 9:00 am to 4:30 pm

Location: Holiday Inn Express, 6100 Hwy 7, Vaughan (near Hwy 427)

Register for this session by emailing: info@emergencymgt.com with the participant’s name, title, organization, mailing address, telephone and email address. An invoice will be emailed.

Save $50 for registrations received by September 30, 2009 – Only $699.00.
Registrations received after September 30 are $749.00. GST will be added to the registration fee.

Registration includes lunch and breaks.

Looking forward to seeing you there.

Girls Call For Help Via Facebook

Rather than calling for help via the emergency number 0-0-0, two Australian girls aged 10 and 12 messaged a friend on Facebook via their mobile phone to advise that they were stuck in a storm drain. Adelaide Metropolitan Fire Service officials expressed concern that the girls used Facebook, possibly delaying emergency responders rather than using the phone to call the emergency number.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/09/07/2678945.htm

We are finding more incidents of young people using the technology that they use for daily contact during emergencies. Everything from texting their parents from inside an overturned school bus, twittering during school code reds, and now facebook to call for help.

This poses two challenges; educating young people on the best and most direct way to access emergency assistance, and keeping up with the impacts that new technologies being released will have on emergencies.

At least one 9-1-1 centre in the USA is already accepting emergency calls via texting which is feasible as GPS locations of the cell phones accompany the text call.

Emergency communications centres in Canada, lacking GPS data, still have difficulting tracking down cell phone callers - and this is an issue that has been with us for more than a decade. How will regulatory bodies and emergency agencies address new technologies when they haven't caught up to old technologies?

Business Excellence Award Nomination

Emergency Management & Training Inc. has been nominated for the 2009 Business Excellence Award – Service Sector in the annual Greater Barrie Chamber of Commerce search for businesses of distinction. Finalists for the award will be announced in October with the awards being presented in November.

“It is such an honour to be nominated for this highly distinguished award” comments Darryl Culley, President of EMT. “Without knowing who nominated us, it is exciting to see our rapidly growing company being recognized in this way.”

US President to declare Cyber-Security Emergencies

A proposed bill currently on the table in the United States would give the US President the authority to seize control of the internet in the event of a cyber-security emergency. (What is the definition of a cyber-security emergency?)

While the US President's authority would be limited to the internet infrastructure in the USA, much of the Canadian and even world's internet infrastructure is routed through or based in the US networks and American companies. The President would be able to direct which internet companies are on-line, off-line, restricted, who they can provide service to or cut off, etc.

An interesting story to follow over the coming months...

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13578_3-10320096-38.html

Persons with Disabilities and Disasters - Report

The US National Council on Disabilities has released a report called "Effective Emergency Management: Making Improvements for Communities and People with Disabilities. This report highlights the challenges that persons with disabilities face during a disaster and the planning processes required to ensure their safety during emergencies.

There are many beneficial points within the document which can be found at the link below.

http://www.ncd.gov/newsroom/publications/2009/NCD_EmergencyManagement_HTML/EffectiveEmergencyManagement.html

Note: in an earlier blog entry we identified the deaf and hard of hearing as a planning focus including a position paper by the Canadian Hearing Society - scroll down to May 2009.

Texting and Driving - PSA

The following is a British public service commercial about texting and driving. It is graphic but sends home the message.

A video worth sharing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ttNgZDZruI

Mobile Command Post / ESU design

It is always exciting to get to travel to other jurisdictions to see how they have designed their emergency and disaster response. This past week I accompanied a Fire Chief and one of his Captains to Florida to look at mobile command posts, hazmat trucks and other disaster response vehicles that were in use, as well as spending a day and a half at a fire/specialty truck manufacturer. The objective of the trip was to come up with a practical design for a combination mobile command post and emergency support truck.

There were numerous lessons and ideas gained by talking with front line staff, disaster managers, senior officials and specialist truck manufacturers, too many to list. But the biggest lesson was a reminder of how valuable it is to get outside advice based on experience. Many thanks to the many professionals we met with, sharing their experiences; what they did right and what they would change in the future. The professionals we visited with had been to hurricanes, floods, chemical plant fires, train derailments etc., some travelling to other states to assist (e.g. Katrina), so when they had suggestions we listened carefully. Hopefully we will be able to take these nuggets of experience and apply them to meet the requirements of the community our truck is being designed for.

Churches Need To Prepare Too

Although we receive many comments of appreciation for our projects we normally don't post them (maybe we should). The letter below, however, demonstrates the importance of churches being prepared.

Following recent incidents in the USA of shootings in churches, we were contacted by the Royal Oak (Michigan) Church of Christ (500+ members) to put together an emergency plan. Emergency plans in churches should at a minimum include: fire, severe weather, security (violence & child protection), medical emergencies, and crisis communications.

Emergency plans for churches need to be straight forward and easy to use, but most of all, they need to be PRACTICED.

August 22, 2009
Emergency Management & Training, Inc.
65 Cedar Pointe Dr.
Barrie ON L4N0Y9 Canada


To Darryl Culley:

On behalf of the Royal Oak church of Christ, I would like to extend my sincerest thanks to you and your staff at Emergency Management & Training. The emergency and disaster recovery plans that you prepared for our church is outstanding and addressed every need from lock down procedures to basic traffic flow. We have already started implementing the specifics steps outlined in the documents and have experienced positive feed back from everyone involved.

It would not be prudent on our part if we didn’t do everything possible to provide a safe and healthy environment as we service our community in Royal Oak. We have truly benefited from your company’s expertise and knowledge. We appreciate the professionalism and the true caring that you displayed in working with us to develop these plans. We would not hesitate to recommend you and your company to anyone who might be considering your services.


Sincerely,
Ken Jamison, Deacon – Special Projects
Royal Oak church of Christ

Pneumonic Plague Outbreak in China

While the world is focused on a relatively mild form of influenza, the H1N1 outbreak, other serious diseases lurk in the background.

As of August 3, an outbreak of the Pneumonic Plague in China has the police and military isolating a community of 10,000. The World Health Organization states that the Pneumonic Plague is one of the most deadly infectious diseases often killing people within 24 hours of onset. It is spread through droplets such as through coughing.

"This form of pneumonic plague is probably the least common but the most severe," said WHO's spokeswoman in China, Vivian Tan. "It has a very high fatality rate and generally spreads quite easily. So we're certainly concerned about the situation."

More information is available through the Associated Press at:

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/A/AS_CHINA_PLAGUE?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2009-08-03-15-09-53

Concert Hit by Storm - 1 dead, 75 injured

The Big Valley Jamboree in Camrose, Alberta was struck by a sudden storm on August 1, 2009 resulting in the partial collapse of the stage killing 1 and injuring 75, 15 of whom were transported to hospital. The event which attracts up to 20,000 people per day had paramedics on site who immediately started attending to the injured.

Large event organizers should always complete a HIRA and put plans in place to deal with the highest potential risks. High winds and rain, although not having the same impact, blew through the Big Valley Jamboree in 1999 providing some history to the risks faced at this event.

Local media coverage can be found at the Edmonton Journal:

http://www.edmontonjournal.com/news/Valley+Jamboree+cancelled+after+with+Alberta+storm/1853266/story.html

Mass Casualty Incident or Hysteria

Emergency site managers: be attentive to how messages are worded.

The following article was published on July 29 in several media outlets.


34 hospitalized after co-worker sprays perfume
By The Associated Press

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — At first, fire officials suspected that carbon monoxide or some other toxic fumes had sickened almost 150 people at a Texas bank call center.
It turned out that perfume was to blame.

MedStar ambulance spokeswoman Lara Kohl says 34 people were taken to hospitals, 12 by ambulance, after reporting dizziness and shortness of breath Wednesday at a Bank of America call center in Fort Worth. An additional 110 were treated at the scene.

Fort Worth fire Lt. Kent Worley says the incident started with two people complaining about dizziness after a co-worker sprayed perfume. Others reported being sick when an announcement was made that anyone with similar symptoms should exit the building.
Investigators do not know what type of perfume was sprayed.

Business Excellence Award nomination

We are very excited to have been nominated for the Business Excellence Award - Service Sector from the Barrie Chamber of Commerce. The phone call today was very exciting and is being followed up with interview on Friday where we will learn more information, hopefully including who nominated Emergency Management & Training as we would like to thank them.

It is an honor just to be nominated as it places us in a group of highly admired organizations.

We thank all our our clients and corporate friends for being such great supporters.

Did You Know?

We all know the world is changing and that rate of change is getting faster.

My grandfather told me a story about seeing change in his life. When he was a child, he and other boys would go down to the barber shop to listen to stories from the barber. One that particularly caught his interest was the barber telling them that one day they would have a box in every house where they could listen live to the Macy's parade in New York City. The radio was coming.

My grandfather lived through a time of great discovery: the household radio, manufacturing of automobiles, television, the Wright brothers' flight, the sound barrier broken and man landing on the moon.

Change was coming rapidly.

Now we live in a constant state of change. The attached link is to video by Karl Fisch, Scott McLeod, and Jeff Brenman puts a perspective on the current state of change.

In the end we must ask "What Does It All Mean?"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UIDLIwlzkgY

"Swine flu: How scared should we be?"

Attached is a link to a very interesting article from the Toronto Star on July 25, 2009 regarding the threat of the current H1N1 strain. An interesting read balancing out what we typically see from the media regarding H1N1.

http://www.healthzone.ca/health/article/671620

Trillium Response - Part 2

Trillium Response

One of Emergency Management & Training's specialties is planning, coordinating and implementing mock disasters, often involving several hundred participants.

EMT was one of the major behind the scenes players for Trillium Response, an exercise lead by Emergency Management Ontario and the Department of National Defence. It involved dozens of municipal, provincial and federal agencies, NGOs and otehr organizations.

EMT coordinated the EMAT (Emergency Medical Assistance Team) portion of the exercise working with numerous agencies to coordinate the deployment, recruiting 16 physicians to works as Patient Information Providers and more than 200 volunteers to play the role of patients over the 2 day exercise. EMT created the scenarios to challenge the EMAT team leaders and the patient scenarios.

Dr. Martin Cann attended on behalf of EMT to photograph Trillium Response. We have had numerous requests to post photos so the next few posts will be a small sampling of the hundreds of photos taken during the exercise.