We Are... Safe And Sound Emergency and Disaster Community » Communication

D.C. Quake, a lost opportunity

abrown — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 17:22:55 +0000

Anyone who has studied the history of disasters knows that the major leaps in the formation of policies that support enhanced disaster mitigation and response comes from experiencing disasters. It is unfortunate that we cannot have an emphasis on disaster readiness without having experienced a disaster–and a major one at that. See Disaster Timeline This is not the most current edition of the timeline, but the first one I could find. For more information see Disaster Timeline Series

With the above as context, the D.C. Quake was a missed opportunity. All the legislators who could have been “moved” to take action by the quake were not in town because of the the congressional recess. There is nothing like the ground shaking below your feet and a sense of “no control” to get you to revisit what your personal and professional priorities are. Even without major damages to buildings, deaths and injuries this quake has left a lasting impression on the people who were in the quake-zone. I’m sure there will be a couple of congressional hearings once congress returns to visit the topic of earthquakes, but it will not have the impetus behind it of being a “survivor” and having experienced the event yourself.

Why did people leave work to go home after the quake? Read More

Keeping Your Phone Charged in a Storm

Guest Blogger — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 22:40:46 +0000

You can expect the power to go out when a tropical system strikes our coast, but we’ve learned wireless networks can still help us stay connected to our loved ones. Keeping our smart phone batteries charged can be a challenge, but... read more

2010 Hurricane Season Summary

abrown — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 13:18:21 +0000

2010 Hurricane Season Summary

The Atlantic basin sits still and quiet for now, but come June 1st the warm waters will start to wake up and go into full cylcle.

The Storm Names for 2010 are as follows:

Alex, Bonnie, Colin, Danielle, Earl, Fiona, Gaston, Hermine, Igor, Julia, Karl, Lisa, Matthew, Nicole, Otto, Paula, Richard, Shary, Tomas, Virginie, Walter.

Prepare today and visit our WeAreSafeAndSound.com Facebook page, or get more information at 2010 Hurricane Season.

2010 Hurricane Season Starts Today, June 1st

abrown — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 06:27:40 +0000

Today marks the first day of the 2010 Hurricane Season, and what a 2010 Hurricane Forecast that has been made. In preparation, we’ve started a facebook fan page to stay up to date with the latest tips, storm names, vital support information, and overall preparedness materials (see or click image below to visit page). Remember, don’t the roll the dice on a Hurricane being a near miss… Prepare Now!

Was Katrina A “Natural” Or “Man-Made” Disaster? New York Times Ombudsman Says Maybe Just Call It A “Disaster”

admin — Sun, 16 May 2010 16:29:34 +0000

Also today in the New York Times ombudsman Clark Hoyt raised a wording question that has both journalistic and policy implications when it comes to disasters. As part of the column, “Semantic Minefields,” Hoyt wrote about a petition organized by Sandy Rosenthal of New Orleans asking the Times “to issue a style memo requiring that news articles use ‘man-made disaster,’ not ‘natural disaster,’ when referring to Hurricane Katrina’s impact on New Orleans.” The column continues: Read the remainder of Was Katrina A 'Natural' or 'Man-Made' Disaster?

“Preparing For The Next Haiti, With Maps, Texts And Tweets”

admin — Tue, 11 May 2010 18:54:16 +0000

Nathan Hodge of Wired.com’s Danger Room blog has a good post, Preparing For The Next Haiti, With Maps, Texts, And Tweets, which discusses the impressive high-tech volunteer response to the earthquake. Hodge attended the Haiti Tech Meetup yesterday at the U.S. State Department yesterday and spoke to a number of those involved in the recovery effort: read the remainder of Preparing For The Next Haiti, With Maps, Texts and Tweets.

Surviving a Nuclear Bomb, by Robert B.

Guest Blogger — Sun, 09 May 2010 01:30:00 +0000

A serious letter to my dear beloved son, Eric, It is quite possible that the USA will soon experience a terrorist attack in the form of a nuclear detonation. The city just west of the University you are attending would be a high profile, terrorist "trophy" to attack. If a nuclear detonation by terrorist occurs in that city, you will notice a bright flash of light and, then feel the blast wave a few seconds after. Although the University is somewhat distant and shielded by terrain from that city, train yourself to not look toward the flash and immediately duck behind a solid barrier. Expect glass to be flying from any windows and plug your ears. Once the blast wave passes note the time. Your goal is to be inside a fallout shelter within 40 minutes and with enough supplies to last 2 weeks. This will only be possible if you prepare in advance... Read the remainder of Surviving a Nuclear Bomb.

“Tornado Alley, Twitter Style”

admin — Sat, 01 May 2010 21:58:49 +0000

On the KnowTheNetwork.com blog, there is a fascinating post, “Tornado Alley, Twitter Style,” by Keith Crawford. He offers a terrific case study of how Twitter — and in particular the hashtag #ARwx created by one Tweeter — outpaced the mainstream media in informing his Arkansas community when a tornado struck this week: Read the remainder of Tornado Alley, Twitter Style.

Practical Steps to Preparing a Family for TEOTWAWKI, by Mitch D.

Guest Blogger — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 23:53:38 +0000

I didn’t know it at the time, but my introduction to preparedness came in 1999 when I sat at a large table with about 15 other men in a small town café for our weekly bible study. A small portion of these men were worried about Y2K and urged others to prepare. I thought they were “nuts.” I did respect them as Christian men, however, and prayed for guidance. Looking back, I was a squared away 24 year-old but was still spiritually immature. At that time in my life, I felt no urging by the Lord to prepare for Y2K. About ten years later in the middle of a bitterly cold 2009 winter night, the power went out in my newly-built home. My home, at the time, ran completely on electricity with no form of back-up heat. I was lucky to have in-floor heat on both levels of my home, but the wind was howling that night, as the temperatures outside kept dropping and eventually hit 30 below zero. With the wind chill effect, it was probably near 60 to 70 below. My kids didn’t like how dark the house was, even though we had flashlights on hand for each of them. I put my four children to sleep early and piled on some extra blankets. At 7:00 p.m. it was 60 in the house and I wasn’t worried as my new home was well-insulated and built tight. I went to call my parents, who own the 20 acres bordering the western boundary of our place. Our phones in the house, however, all depended on electricity so I decided that my call could wait until the morning. When I went to bed at 11:00 p.m. it was now 50 in the house and I just assumed the power company guys were having a hard time in the wind and cold. I woke up in the early morning and noticed that it was about 40 degrees in the house and still no electricity. I was now a little uneasy as I didn’t need pipes freezing up on me. At 7:00 a.m. I bundled up the kids and took them next door where I knew my dad had a gas fireplace. To my surprise, his electricity was up and running. To make a long story short, it was just my place without power as the wires from the transformer came loose when my box moved from winter heaving. I called the power company and they had my box fixed within the hour. Nothing bad had happened, but it did get me thinking about a few questions: Read the remainder of Practical Steps to Preparing a Family for TEOTWAWKI.

FEMA Launches New Mobile Website For Smartphones; M.FEMA.Gov To Offer Easier Access To Disaster Preparedness Info

admin — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 14:38:07 +0000

FEMA today announced the launch of the agency’s new mobile website, m.FEMA.gov. According to the FEMA press release:

The mobile website makes it easier to access critical information regarding emergency preparedness and what to do before and after a disaster right on a smartphone. “Smartphones are becoming more prevalent, affordable, reliable and more viable to locate and obtain information and assistance,” said FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate. “This service will provide yet another avenue for the sharing of important information that is so critical to ensuring the public is prepared for emergencies. As we’ve seen in recent cases, often times after a disaster, mobile devices become a crucial lifeline to provide information to survivors.” The new site is laid out in a user friendly, question and answer format, providing users with the answers to their top questions, such as: What should I do in a disaster? Where can I find assistance? How can I help others? FEMA will be making several enhancements to m.fema.gov in the coming months, including the ability to apply for individual assistance when a disaster has been declared by the President, check on the status of an application and update an existing application. Today’s announcement of the launch of m.fema.gov comes just over a month until the start of this year’s hurricane season on June 1. The mobile site is just one way that FEMA is reaching out to ensure that the public has the tools they need to be prepared for any emergency. Families are also encouraged to log onto www.ready.gov and learn more about the simple steps they can take to ready for this season.

Read the remainder FEMA Launches New Mobile Website For Smartphones.