In Case Of Emergency, Read Blog

This edition of the “What Should We Tell The Public?” video series features John Shea who manages FEMA’s extensive social media effort. In the segment, Shea urges the public to look online to find information about preparing for emergencies as well as to share info and learn from others. He recommends citizens go to the [...]

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With this weekend kicking off the holiday shopping season, I thought I would highlight a nice post, “The Gift of Preparedness,” by Mike Coston of Avian Flu Diary (with help from Joel from the Preparedness & Response blog) with some constructive ideas for presents as Americans head out to the stores. Coston writes:
In recent years, [...]

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TPM Live Wire has a helpful and humorous post, “Thanksgiving Travel Tips From The TSA: Pies OK, Gravy Not So Much,” by Rachel Slajda about the Transportation Safety Administration’s (TSA) “Helpful Hints For Holiday Travel”:
The Transportation Security Administration, which makes the rules about how many ounces of liquid you can carry on the plane (and whose [...]

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I wanted to point out a story now playing out in Las Vegas, Nevada, which to me is another example of how the public is too often infantilized when it comes to information on serious terrorist threats, including weapons of mass destruction — And, as a result, why we as citizens are not as prepared [...]

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New York State is experimenting with an idea to distribute emergency alerts (including the NYAlerts mentioned in the previous post) over online gaming networks. According to an InformationWeek.com article.
The goal, said New York State Deputy CIO Rico Singleton, is to reach younger residents who spend more time on the Xbox, PlayStation, or Wii than with television [...]

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This edition of the “What Should We Tell The Public?” series features John Gibb, Director of New York State’s Emergency Management Agency. John is a leader in the field, and I have quoted him on previous occasions.
In the video, Gibb recommends that citizens subscribe to government emergency text/e-mail notifications such as the NY-Alert system that he oversees [...]

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I wanted to highlight two points I heard during a terrific recent webinar, “Social Media and Technology Breakthroughs: H1N1 and Seasonal Flu Communication”:  one about the Centers For Disease Control’s (CDC) view that mobile phones have an increasingly valuable role in public health communications and another about Philadelphia Office of Emergency Management’s expanded use of Twitter.
In [...]

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Today, November 19th, is the 34th annual “Great American Smokeout” aimed at helping smokers “use the date to make a plan to quit, or to plan in advance and quit smoking.” Here in New York, the Department of Health is continuing its aggressive anti-smoking effort by handing out free nicotine gum and patches at sites throughout the [...]

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Using themes including “Stop, Wash and Go” and “Prevention can be Travel-Sized,” the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention today launched a public awareness campaign about staying healthy while traveling on the holidays during the H1N1 outbreak.

According to campaign press release:
 “The holidays are one of the busiest travel times of the year,” said Dr. Anne Schuchat, director of [...]

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According to a new report, All Volunteer Force: From Military To Civilian Service, a significant percentage of veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan would be interested in volunteering in disaster relief efforts here in the U.S..
The report, written by Civic Enterprises, indicated that 91% of veteran respondents would like to address the issue of “disaster relief” as [...]

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