As National Preparedness Month comes to a close, DomPrep would like to remind its readers that
preparedness is a year-round process that involves practitioners at all levels. One good example of this
type of outreach comes from Baltimore City’s Health Commissioner, Dr. Leana Wen, who hosts a live weekly
call-in podcast to share information and to address the city’s health concerns.
The single extreme solar storm (GMD/geomagnetic disturbance) or electromagnetic pulse (EMP) attack (manmade weapon) – together often known as natural and manmade EMP, or simply EMP – could cause a […]
Among some professional emergency managers and media outlets, the role of senior elected officials
in incident response and recovery efforts is, at best, perceived as unhelpful. However, political
engagement is necessary for effective disaster response and recovery, and continuous, meaningful
involvement of elected officials is an essential element of the National Preparedness System.
As the Islamic State group increases its threats around the world, the United States is grossly
unprepared to track radicalized members and sympathizers, or to even know how many there are in the
United States and abroad. At this point, an international coalition effort is the best hope for
thwarting this unpredictable, yet ever-growing, “lawless” group.
Functional exercises are invaluable for helping participants understand their roles in disasters. This is particularly true for participants who normally are not included in interagency exercises, such as behavioral health […]
When fate throws a “sucker punch,” one will do whatever it is habit to do, for all are creatures of habit. During the recent civil unrest in Baltimore, good leaders […]
At the April 2015 Ready Chesapeake meeting, members of this nonprofit group discussed ways to build business continuity within Annapolis-area communities and created a survey to reach out to other jurisdictions for suggestions. Practitioners (149 public sector, 80 private sector) from 47 U.S. states, Washington, D.C., Canada, and Martinique shared their insights from both the public and private sector perspectives.
When hundreds of people fall ill from a mysterious biological agent, public health and law
enforcement agencies work seamlessly to implement the established policies and enforce any necessary
quarantine procedures that they have planned and trained for well in advance of the current threat. At
least, that is what should happen.
A deliberate enemy attack on U.S. infrastructure may be a credible threat but, if the warning is
provided at the wrong time, in the wrong place, or to the wrong audience, the message will have no, or
possibly even a negative, response. An effective presenter is able to tell a story, be credible, choose
wisely, get help, and ask for action.
When planning for its annual forecast issue, DomPrep reached out to subject matter experts in all
preparedness disciplines to share which solutions they believe have significant potential to improve
preparedness (readiness and resilience) over the next five years. In 200 words or less, more than 50
readers answered the call.
As National Preparedness Month comes to a close, DomPrep would like to remind its readers that
preparedness is a year-round process that involves practitioners at all levels. One good example of this
type of outreach comes from Baltimore City’s Health Commissioner, Dr. Leana Wen, who hosts a live weekly
call-in podcast to share information and to address the city’s health concerns. 