This message was sent to ##Email## To advertise in this publication please click here March 24, 2022 .IAEM CONFERENCE NEWS IAEM's Virtual Conference launches at 9:30 a.m. EDT today — there is still time to register IAEM Join IAEM today and tomorrow for its second annual Virtual Conference. The program provides topics to meet diverse needs, including sessions on power grid fragility, using weather data to drive decisions, takeaways from Hurricane Ida, tactics for tornadoes, flood mitigation, and climate change impacts, the Miami Surfside building collapse, and more. All registrants will have access to content-on-demand following the conference and possible credit for more than 20 contact hours that may be used towards IAEM certification. View the full program for the Virtual Conference. Registrants may opt for the All-In registration pass which includes registration to both the March IAEM virtual event and full registration to the IAEM Annual Conference in Savannah, Georgia, Nov.11-17, 2022. Get a discounted rate for IAEM members, IAEM student members, and even non-members today. Call for poster submissions for the IAEM Annual Conference closes on Apr. 22 IAEM The call for submissions for the Poster Showcase is open and will close on Apr. 22. The Poster Showcase at the IAEM Annual Conference allows participants to present the significance of their research project, practice, or general findings to practitioners and scholars in the emergency management community. For more information, visit the conference website. .IAEM SCHOLARSHIP Place your online bid by Apr. 1 to provide funds to send students to school IAEM The IAEM Scholarship Program “2022 Spring Online Auction” will provide funding to assist students earning degrees in emergency management and closely related fields of study. The auction will close at 10:00 p.m. EDT, Apr. 1, 2022. Some items open for bid include many challenge coins, including COVID-19 response challenge coins, Presidential Inauguration agency event challenge coin, public health service Independence Day Celebration coin, 2021 Unaccompanied Children Mission coin, Gumby; art; Dr. Fauci bobblehead; and more. Visit the auction website to set up a Bidding for Good account and please invite your friends to participate too. The next auction will begin in late spring/early summer. If you have items, especially EM collectibles, to donate, please contact IAEM Scholarship Program Director Dawn Shiley. .IAEM-OCEANIA COUNCIL NEWS NSW announces inquiry into flood crisis after criticism of state's response Australian Associated Press via The Guardian The former New South Wales police commissioner Mick Fuller and the state’s chief scientist and engineer, Mary O’Kane, will head an inquiry into the state’s flood crisis. The state’s acting premier, Paul Toole, announced the independent inquiry to investigate the causes of, preparedness for, response to and recovery from the catastrophic flood event. READ MORE  SPONSORED CONTENT Promoted by Rave Mobile Safety Do You Know How To Prepare Your Front Lines For Community Protection? Protect Buildings, Schools and other Soft Targets with Rave Public Safety and the Need to Improve Mental Health and Emergency Response – Survey Results Prepare for both Planned and Unplanned Events with Rave’s Incident Collaboration Solution Deliver Critical Communications to Your Community in Three Clicks Across All Modes .IAEM-USA COUNCIL NEWS EMAP invites participation in listening sessions to help it develop a new multi-year strategic plan IAEM The Emergency Management Accreditation Program (EMAP) invites participation in an upcoming EMAP Listening Session that is being hosted by the EMAP Executive Committee. EMAP is developing a new multi-year strategic plan and welcomes its valued partners’ constructive input and considerable knowledge to enhance the organizational process and future direction of the program. Listening Sessions will be held on Apr. 7, May 19, and May 23, from 10:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. EDT. Those interested in participating should register for the sessions. Critical vulnerabilities in the US food sector and the next crippling attack* Homeland Security Today The U.S. Department of Homeland Security defines 16 critical infrastructure sectors vital to the physical and economic security of the United States. Any destruction or disruption to one of these sectors would impart a massive, negative impact on U.S. national security. One of these 16 critical infrastructure sectors is the food and agricultural sector. Although not one of the first sectors to come to mind as “critical” to most people, this sector nonetheless touches the lives of all Americans. READ MORE  PRODUCT SHOWCASE GET YOUR 72 HOUR KIT. ReadyWise – Are you prepared with enough food and water to last you through a disaster? ReadyWise’s delicious freeze-dried meals and drinks have up to a 25-year shelf-life and are easy to prepare, just add water. Go to ReadyWIse.com/IAEM to order you’re your 72-hour kit and use CODE: IAEM at checkout. LEARN MORE FEMA seeks feedback on the draft of Emergency Management Guide for Senior Officials IAEM FEMA is seeking feedback on the draft “Local Elected and Appointed Officials Guide: Roles and Resources in Emergency Management.” The document provides an executive-level introduction to emergency management concepts and principles for local senior officials. It identifies local senior officials’ roles and responsibilities for incident emergency management before, during, and after disasters. The draft guide also explains how to access resources. FEMA will host a series of 60-minute webinar sessions to provide an overview of the draft guide and gather feedback from whole community partners. The sessions will include facilitated discussions with stakeholders to help improve the existing draft. FEMA seeks input -- especially real-world case studies -- that can be incorporated into the guide. Advance registration is required to participate in the webinar sessions, and it is on a first-come, first-served basis. To register, click on your preferred session below: Webinar 1: 3:30 p.m. EDT on Thursday, March 24. Webinar 2: 10:00 a.m. EDT on Tuesday, March 29. Webinar 3: 2:00 p.m. EDT on Thursday, March 31. Webinar 4: 4:00 p.m. EDT on Monday, April 11. Webinar 5: 1:00 p.m. EDT on Wednesday, April 20. The national engagement period will conclude on April 22. To review the document and learn more about the webinar sessions, please visit the FEMA website. To provide input, download the draft "Local Elected and Appointed Officials Guide" and feedback form to NPD-Planning@fema.dhs.gov. .IAEM NEWS IAEM Editorial Committee seeks article submissions by Mar. 31 on special focus topic, 'Emergency Management — Unexpected' IAEM The IAEM Editorial Committee is seeking article submissions by Mar. 31 for the April Special Focus edition of the IAEM Bulletin. The second special focus topic of 2022 will be "Emergency Management —Unexpected." As an emergency manager, you prepare and plan for almost every foreseeable event, but sometimes circumstances change, an unplanned incident blindsides you, or you find yourself unequipped for the mission. What are your experiences with those unprecedented events, incredible tasks, and unbelievable demands? How do you prepare for the unexpected? Refer to the Author Guidelines before submitting your article. Please submit your article by Mar. 31 to IAEM Bulletin Editor John Osborne.  SPONSORED VIDEO Emergency Operations that Scale Enable systems of care that scale, eliminate fragmentation of communication, and coordinate mutual aid — all on one communication and logistics platform. With Pulsara, Emergency Managers have the flexibility to assess regional and statewide needs and centrally compile needed resources during emergency response, dramatically reducing miscommunications and waste time. WATCH VIDEO .NEW INSIGHTS Out of the dust: Britain's leading disaster expert on coping with crisis* The Guardian After a catastrophe rips lives apart, whether it’s a tsunami or a terror attack, specialists are on hand to take charge. Lucy Easthope, the country’s leading disaster expert, reflects on a lifetime spent dealing with the aftermath. READ MORE State, federal collaboration key to improving flood policies as US faces a wetter future Pew Trusts States seeking to improve their planning for flooding and other natural disasters should see the federal government as an ally and a valuable resource for data and guidance, including on how to access federal funding, said Brenda Mallory, chair of the White House Council on Environmental Quality. She made the remarks at a March 8 webinar on how all levels of government can better plan for climate impacts, an event hosted by the State Resilience Partnership, which was convened by The Pew Charitable Trusts. The conversation included the importance of factoring in future risks and protecting America’s most vulnerable communities, which tend to bear a disproportionate impact from climate change-driven disasters. READ MORE  SPONSORED CONTENT Promoted by University of Southern California MS in Emergency Management from the University of Southern California 100% online, no GRE required, complete in 1 or 2 years Develop the strategic and analytical skills necessary for leaders in times of crisis Master critical leadership and communication skills for effective emergency management Learn from a dedicated faculty team with global emergency management experience .EM NEWS As climate change brings more natural disasters, debris piles up — increasing health risks* Phys.org When Hurricane Katrina bore down on New Orleans in the summer of 2005, many residents in Versailles, a Vietnamese-American community in the east of the city, faced disaster for the second time. Decades earlier, elders in Versailles escaped to New Orleans as the Vietnam War ended with the fall of Saigon. Slowly, the community began to assimilate: Families opened restaurants and businesses, moved from public housing to home ownership, and children embraced English and American culture. As the skies cleared from Katrina, many homes in Versailles still stood, and residents were among the first to return to New Orleans. But that's when a new threat to the community emerged. READ MORE .CLIMATE/WATER/WEATHER UPDATES A large solar storm could knock out the power grid and the internet — An electrical engineer explains how Nextgov On Sept. 1 and 2, 1859, telegraph systems around the world failed catastrophically. The operators of the telegraphs reported receiving electrical shocks, telegraph paper catching fire, and being able to operate equipment with batteries disconnected. During the evenings, the aurora borealis, more commonly known as the northern lights, could be seen as far south as Colombia. Typically, these lights are only visible at higher latitudes, in northern Canada, Scandinavia and Siberia. What the world experienced that day, now known as the Carrington Event, was a massive geomagnetic storm. READ MORE Wildfires devastate the land they burn, and they are also warming the planet Homeland Security News Wire The 2021 wildfire season broke records globally, leaving land charred from California to Siberia. The risk of fire is growing, and a recent report warned that wildfires are on track to increase 50% by 2050. These fires destroy homes, plant life, and animals as they burn, but the risk doesn’t stop there. Researchers detail how the brown carbon released by burning biomass in the northern hemisphere is accelerating warming in the Arctic and warn that this could lead to even more wildfires in the future. READ MORE How a hurricane fueled wildfires in the Florida Panhandle Homeland Security News Wire The wildfires that broke out in the Florida Panhandle in early March 2022 were the nightmare fire managers had feared since the day Hurricane Michael flattened millions of trees there in 2018. It might sound odd – hurricanes helping to fuel wildfires. But Michael’s 160 mph winds left tangles of dead trees that were ready to burn. READ MORE  FEATURED ARTICLE   Asbestos? Lead? It Pays To Do Things Right Promoted by Optimum Seismic, Inc. Many older homes and apartment buildings contain lead and asbestos. Owners sometimes downplay the health hazards these substances pose to humans and the environment alike, and feel tempted to bypass the rules by removing these contaminants undercover — hoping that no one finds out. LEARN MORE   .CYBERSECURITY NEWS Critical infrastructure warned to 'lock digital doors' against potential Russian cyberattack* Homeland Security Today The government and companies should “lock our digital doors” against a potential incoming cyber volley from Russia, and if the Kremlin “conducts disruptive cyberattacks against critical infrastructure, we will be prepared to respond,” Deputy National Security Advisor for Cyber and Emerging Technology Anne Neuberger said. READ MORE .IAEM MEMBER NEWS Allison Anderson confirmed as Director of the Will County Emergency Management Agency WJOL-AM County Executive Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant has appointed Allison Anderson as Director of the Will County Emergency Management Agency. She is succeeding Harold Damron, who retired this month after a 31-year career with the agency. Anderson’s appointment was confirmed today by the Will County Board. READ MORE PRODUCT SHOWCASE Online Master's in Infrastructure Planning & Management The University of Washington's online Master of Infrastructure Planning & Management program prepares you to lead development of the next generation of critical infrastructure systems ­­— resilient, secure and accessible. Earn your degree completely online in two years of part-time study. Apply now to start in fall 2021.   LEARN MORE   Reach Your Prospects Every Week Thousands of industry professionals subscribe to association news briefs, which allows your company to push messaging directly to their inboxes and take advantage of the association's brand affinity. Connect with Highly Defined Buyers and Maximize Your Brand Exposure   LEARN MORE   .GRANT ANNOUNCEMENTS FEMA announces flood mitigation funding opportunity IAEM On Mar. 21, FEMA published a funding notice on Grants.gov for the Swift Current initiative, making an estimated total of $60 million available to the states of Louisiana, Mississippi, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. To launch the initiative, FEMA identified four states affected by Hurricane Ida, one of the most powerful and rapidly intensifying storms to hit the United States in recent years. Swift Current is a FEMA initiative within the Flood Mitigation Assistance (FMA) program that seeks to expedite awards after a flooding event and reduce the complexity of the application process. The application period opens on Apr. 1 and closes on Oct. 3. The initiative’s goal is to obligate flood mitigation dollars for National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP)-insured and substantially damaged properties as quickly and equitably as possible after a disaster event. These funds help protect buildings and comply with local community requirements through property acquisition and demolition, floodproofing, relocation and elevation. To be eligible, buildings must be insured through the National Flood Insurance Program for FEMA to consider them for this funding opportunity. All applications must be submitted in the Mitigation eGrants system, will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Interested sub-applicants in Louisiana, Mississippi, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania should contact their State Hazard Mitigation Officer for more information. .EM CALENDAR Inaugural public meeting of the National Advisory Committee on Seniors and Disasters (NACSD) and the National Advisory Committee on Individuals with Disabilities and Disasters (NACIDD) on Mar. 30 includes time for public comments IAEM Please join Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response Dawn O’Connell along with Assistant Secretary for Aging and Acting Administrator for Community Living Alison Barkoff on Wednesday, Mar. 30 from 1:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. EDT for the inaugural meeting of the National Advisory Committee on Seniors and Disasters (NACSD) and National Advisory Committee on Individuals with Disabilities and Disasters (NACIDD). Advanced registration for this meeting is required and can be accessed, along with additional meeting information, through the online event page. During this joint meeting, committee members will be sworn into service and begin a national discussion with federal subject matter experts on the challenges, opportunities, and priorities in meeting the unique health needs of older adult populations and people with disabilities during and after disasters and public health emergencies. The agenda includes time to hear from the public. To learn how to request a speaking time, please visit the event page. Meeting materials will be made publicly available through that page. .IAEM-MIDDLE EAST NEWS Egypt erects sand barriers as rising sea swallows the Nile Delta Thomson Reuters Foundation The flooding had become inevitable. Every winter, amid heavy rains and storms, the Mediterranean Sea would rise and spill over into fisherman Aziz Lasheen's low-lying village in Egypt's northern governorate of Kafr El-Sheikh. As water poured into the village of Mastroua it would destroy homes, saturate farmland with saltwater and cover the road Lasheen and others walked to reach their fishing boats. READ MORE .AROUND THE WORLD Tornado rips through New Orleans and its suburbs, killing 1* The Associated Press A tornado tore through parts of New Orleans and its suburbs Tuesday night, flipping cars and ripping roofs off homes and killing at least one person in a region that was pummeled by Hurricane Katrina 17 years ago. Parts of St. Bernard Parish, which borders New Orleans to the southeast, appeared to take the brunt of the weather’s fury, and that is where the fatality occurred. St. Bernard Parish officials gave no details on how the person died; they said multiple other people were injured. READ MORE Two trains collide in Tunisia, 95 people injured AFP via France24 A head-on collision between two passenger trains injured 95 people Monday in the south of the Tunisian capital, emergency services said. Most of the injured suffered bruises or fractures, none of them life-threatening, civil defense spokesman Moez Triaa said. Many passengers were in shock, he added, saying around 15 ambulances had been dispatched to treat the wounded or take them to hospital. READ MORE Brazil — Deadly floods and landslides strike again in Petrópolis FloodList Torrential rain from 20 March 20 caused flooding and landslides once again in the metropolitan area of Petrópolis and surrounding areas of Fluminense Mountain Region, Rio de Janeiro State, Brazil. As many as 233 people lost their lives in landslides and flash flooding that ripped through the city on Feb. 15. READ MORE Mozambique — Death toll from Cyclone Gombe rises to more than 50 FloodList Over 50 people have now lost their lives in Mozambique as a result of severe conditions brought by Tropical Cyclone Gombe. Satellite imagery shows over 500 km2 of land in Nampula and Zambezia provinces was under water. The Southern Region of Malawi was also severely impacted, with over 100,000 people displaced according to Red Cross reports. READ MORE Texas wildfires destroy 86 homes and most of small town Reuters Wildfires wiped out 86 homes and a majority of the small town of Carbon, Texas, the Dallas Morning News reported on Saturday, as four fires west of Dallas burned 54,000 acres (22,000 hectares) and killed a sheriff's deputy who was helping people flee. The four fires, designated as the Eastland Complex, have raged since Wednesday or Thursday in Eastland County, about 120 miles (190 km) west of Dallas, and were about 30% contained, the Texas A&M Fire Service said on Saturday. READ MORE   IAEM Dispatch Connect with IAEM Hailey Golden, Director of Publishing, MultiView, 469-420-2630 | Download media kit Bob Kowalski, Executive Editor, MultiView, 469-420-2650 | Contribute news International Association of Emergency Managers 201 Park Washington Court  |  Falls Church, VA 22046-4527  Elizabeth B. Armstrong, MAM, CAE, IAEM CEO, IAEM Executive Director Dawn M. Shiley, CAE, IAEM Dispatch POC, IAEM Communications and Marketing Manager (703) 538-1795  |  Contact Us  |  www.iaem.org/ Click here to unsubscribe.  Learn how to add us to your safe sender list so our emails get to your inbox. ADVERTISE SUBSCRIBE PAST ISSUES   7701 Las Colinas Ridge, Ste. 800, Irving, TX 75063