Tag: natural disaster

Featured article: Disaster Response: Lessons Learned from the May 2007 Greensburg Tornado by Bradley Jenkins On May 4, 2007, severe weather ravaged the midwest United States, wreaking havoc throughout the state of Kansas. As night fell on Kiowa County, a tornadic supercell developed, creating the conditions for a catastrophic tornado to form near the small town of Greensburg. At […]

U.S. government agencies continue response and recovery efforts in the wake of Hurricane Maria. Personnel from various federal departments and agencies, including the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the Departments of Defense (DoD) and Health and Human Services (HHS), are focused on life-saving and life-sustaining efforts in Puerto Rico and the […]

Firefighters and guardsmen from the Army and Air National Guard continue to battle the wildfires in Montana, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, California, and Utah. As of September there are 123 active fires burning approximately 2 million acres of land. This year’s fire season has be long and unforgiving. Jessica Gardetto, a representative of the National Interagency […]

Earlier this month RAND Corporation published a report on the effects of climate change on urban environments. Climate change is quickly becoming a major concern around the world, bringing changes in weather patterns and impacting both rural and urban environments. This study focuses on how climate change impacts larger cities, as more that 80% of […]

Earlier this month, the Georgetown Climate Center, in partnership with the Rockerfeller Foundation, published a report on the results of the Rebuild by Design (RBD) competition, which sought to inspire affected communities to rebuild differently in ways that would enhance their physical, economic, social, and environmental resilience after Superstorm Sandy. The RBD competition was launched in June 2013 […]

Over 10,000 federal employees from various agencies have been deployed to aid the areas effected by Hurricane Matthew. U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), Department of Defense (DoD), and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) personnel have also been deployed to Haiti, which has been hardt hit by the storm. An estimated 1.4 million Haitian citizens […]

Civilian and military emergency response teams sprang into action after Hurricane Hermine made landfall on the western coast of Florida earlier this month. Responders included the Florida National Guard’s Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear and high-yield Explosive Enhanced Response Force Package and part of Florida’s Urban Search and Rescue Team. Flooding in the area has been extensive, affecting many […]

Last Thursday marked the beginning of the 2016 National Preparedness Month, which serves as a reminder that we all must take action to prepare, now and throughout the year, for the types of emergencies that could affect us where we live, work, and also where we visit. Due to the success of last year’s theme, “Don’t Wait, […]

National Security US Seeking Global Armed Drone Export Rules, Defense News The Post-Obama Syrian Playbook, Foreign Policy DHS: Don’t Fall for Louisiana Flood Charity Scams, Nextgov US nuclear policy remains dangerously stuck in the past, The Hill Louisiana Flood Relief Will Cost $30 Million, Red Cross Says, Time The New Frontier in Terror Fundraising: Bitcoin, […]

In July, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) published a report assessing the effectiveness of emergency communications after the implementation of the Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act of 2006 (PKEMRA). The PKEMRA was enacted to improve the federal government’s preparation for and response to disasters, including emergency communications. GAO-16-681 examines federal efforts to implement PKEMRA emergency communications […]