In Case Of Emergency, Read Blog

This edition of the “What Should We Tell The Public?” video series features Claire Rubin. Claire is a veteran emergency management scholar who I have written about before. She is the author of Emergency Management: The American Experience, 1900-2005 which has just been released electronically by the Public Entity Risk Institute. You can purchase it here. She [...]

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This edition of the “What Should We Tell The Public?” video series features Joseph Bruno, the Commissioner of New York City’s Office of Emergency Management. He is someone I have spoken with on a number of occasions as part of my research into public preparedness, and I have learned a lot from him. (He also [...]

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I received a birthday e-card this morning from my friend, David Stephenson, which said: “I’m sure today will be one the happiest birthdays of your life. Enjoy it to your fullest.” He’s right. Finishing six months of chemotherapy just weeks ago has made today, my 46th birthday, happy indeed. And I tried to enjoy it to [...]

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With my chemotherapy finished, I have had the time and energy to participate in several Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) training sessions being offered by the New York City’s Office of Emergency Management (OEM) which oversees our CERT program. I ended up completing three in the same week (in addition to the drill at the the World Trade [...]

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The dictionary defines “volunteer” as “a person who performs a service willingly and without pay.” Yet, there is a great value in finding small rewards that can help bring in and retain disaster volunteers. I know that from my own experience with CERT, but I also heard a similar message at a Business Roundtable-Partnership For Disaster Response [...]

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For the blog’s next Book Contest, we are giving away Christopher Dickey’s terrific new Securing The City: Inside America’s Best Counterterror Force — The NYPD. Thanks to Dickey and his publisher, Simon & Schuster. 
Contest Rules: “Securing The City” provides a great behind-the-scenes look at the anti-terrorism efforts of the New York Police Department which is considered [...]

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As has been discussed often on this blog, I believe that a key to creating a real culture of preparedness throughout the nation is getting the topic taught in schools. Not only would it prepare a generation for the future, but sometimes the best way to convince parents in the present is through their kids. Yet [...]

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Last night, I had the terrific opportunity to talk about the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) program on WHCR-FM’s “Harlem 411″ show, hosted by Haja Worley. Haja, who himself is a member of the CERT from his West Harlem neighborhood, is doing a series of segments on public preparedness. We discussed our experiences as a [...]

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I will be a guest on the radio program “Harlem 411″ on WHCR-FM at 6:30pm. The topic will be the Civilian Emergency Response Team (CERT) and our role in emergency preparedness. If you are in the New York City area, the WHCR can be found at 90.3 FM. 

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In the wake of Hurricane Ike, there will continue to be a need for volunteers to assist in the relief and recovery throughout the Texas and Louisiana coasts to assist the work of local groups as well as organizations like the Red Cross and the Salvation Army.
One idea to increase the pool of trained volunteers [...]

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