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More than $23 Million Announced for Fire Station
Construction Grants
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Secretary Napolitano on Feb. 3 announced more than
$23 million in Fire Station Construction Grants funded by the American Recovery
and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). These grants support the nation's first responders
while creating jobs and stimulating local economies.
"America's firefighters play a critical role in disaster
prevention and response," said the secretary. "These Recovery Act-funded fire
station construction projects and upgrades will strengthen community
preparedness and the nation's emergency response capabilities."
The 14 Fire Station Construction Grants announced
were selected through a competitive peer review process based on need to build
new or modify existing fire stations to enhance response capabilities and
protect communities from fire-related hazards. These grants will replace unsafe
or uninhabitable structures and expand fire protection coverage in compliance
with National Fire Protection Association standards.
These grants come in addition to the ARRA funding
for 96 SCG grants announced by the secretary in September 2009. The Recovery
Act provided $210 million in SCG grant funds to DHS.
For more information on these grants, other
preparedness grant programs, or the Recovery Act, please visit www.dhs.gov, www.dhs.gov/recovery, or www.fema.gov/grants.
Source: DHS
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S&T
Division Helps Build a 'Virtual USA' Tool for First Responders
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Natural disasters rarely color inside the lines.
Like a toddler with his first box of crayons, they leave a mess all over the
map - spilling across federal, state, and local lines. To respond to these
disasters, different agencies and jurisdictions must come together and share
what they know. But far too often, critical information goes unseen by those
who need it most: our emergency responders.
Even though many authorities track incident
management data, these records typically are walled off from one another by
incompatible computer systems, proprietary technological platforms, or simply a
culture of reluctance to share information. Recognizing this urgent
predicament, the department's Science and Technology Directorate is working on
a solution. Led by Dr. David Boyd, director of the Command, Control, and
Interoperability Division (CCI), the project has been dubbed "Virtual USA"
(vUSA). Its goal: to create a nationwide capability to share and standardize
life-saving emergency data in real time.
Collaboration among CCI, first
responders, and state governments, vUSA provides a 3-D platform of interactive
maps that displays the location and status of critical assets such as helicopter
landing sites, evacuation routes, shelters, gas supplies, water lines, and
power grids. This coordination makes information sharing more comprehensive and
decision-making more informed which is why vUSA was included in the recently
announced White House Open Government Initiative that emphasizes transparency,
participation, and collaboration.
Since last February, vUSA has been
operating as a pilot program in eight southeastern states: Alabama, Florida,
Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia. Following
this, pilots were begun with states in the Pacific Northwest and in New
England. Last week, Dr. Boyd announced that the first phase of vUSA has shown
such promise that it is entering the next phase, which is designed to make it
operational across jurisdictions.
More information about this is
available at http://www.dhs.gov/files/programs/gc_1264098311741.shtm.
Source: DHS
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FEMA Issues Draft of National Disaster Recovery
Framework: Accepting comments on document through Feb. 26
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FEMA, coordinating with the interagency Long Term
Disaster Recovery Working Group, has issued a draft of the National Disaster
Recovery Framework, which is focused on engaging state, local, and tribal
governments, nonprofit partners, the private sector, and the public with the
purpose of enhancing the nation's ability to recover from disasters.
FEMA is accepting comments on the draft document
through Feb. 26. The comment period continues the extensive stakeholder
outreach efforts undertaken by the interagency Long Term Disaster Recovery
Working Group, established in October 2009 by President Obama and co-chaired by
Secretary Napolitano and Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Shaun
Donovan.
The National Disaster Recovery Framework provides a
model to collectively identify and address challenges that arise during the
disaster recovery process, and is designed to help the broad emergency
management community work better together to support individuals, households,
and communities as they rebuild and restore their ways of life following a
disaster. The Recovery Framework was developed based on input from all levels
of government, the private sector, academic and emergency management
communities, voluntary and non-profit organizations, and a wide array of
associations and organizations. This input was collected through meetings and
briefings across the country; online engagement, and a series of video
teleconferences and stakeholder forums in five key cities.
The Recovery Framework is available at www.regulations.gov in Docket
FEMA-2010-0004. Individuals and other stakeholders who wish to submit comments
can do so at www.regulations.gov
using the docket identification number as a search term.
More information about this is available at http://www.fema.gov/news/newsrelease.fema?id=50366
and http://www.fema.gov/recoveryframework.
Source: DHS
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Lessons from Haiti
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Getting life essentials to Haiti in the days after the earthquake was more complicated than it had to be. The Journal of Commerce analyzes what went wrong in the supply chain.
Read More>>
Source: Disaster Resource
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NVFC Releases 2009 Annual Report
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The National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) has released its 2009 Annual Report. The Report, which is available on the NVFC web site, highlights all of the NVFC's initiatives over the past year and looks at the many ways the organization is working for you.
The NVFC had a very busy year in 2009. We worked hard to advocate for the volunteer on Capitol Hill, and saw many victories and positive steps made on the legislative front. We expanded the offerings of our programs, including launching the Adopt the Program and revamped Fired Up for Fitness initiatives of the Heart-Healthy Firefighter Program. Many new resources were released to assist departments, including the Fire Corps Liability Guide, grant-writing podcasts and tools, the Junior Firefighter Program Handbook, and much more.
Revisit all of these highlights and many more in the 2009 NVFC Annual Report. Download the 2009 Annual Report on the NVFC web site at www.nvfc.org.
Source: NVFC
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| The United States Fire Administration (USFA) has received notice of the following firefighter fatalities:
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Name: Jonathan Siemers
Rank: Fire Chief
Age: 44
Gender: Male
Status: Career
Years of Service: 10
Date of Incident: 2/20/2010
Time of Incident: 1615hrs
Date of Death: 2/21/2010
Fire Department: Clay Center Fire Department
Address: 504 Grant Avenue, Clay Center, KS 67432
Fire Department Chief: Dallas Cunningham
Incident Description: Upon completion of his shift during which he responded to an apartment building fire, Fire Chief Siemers returned home. Early the next morning, Fire Chief Siemers complained of shoulder pain and subsequently collapsed from and succumbed to an apparent heart attack.
Funeral Arrangements: Pending
Memorial Fund Contact and Address: Pending
Tribute is being paid to Fire Chief Jonathan Siemers at http://www.usfa.dhs.gov/fireservice/fatalities/
Name: Stanley L. Giles
Rank: Fire Chief
Age: 69
Gender: Male
Status: Volunteer
Years of Service: 15
Date of Incident: 02/10/2010
Time of Incident: 1545hrs
Date of Death: 02/10/2010
Fire Department: Linn Valley Lakes Fire Department
Address: 1794 Lakeview Lane, Linn Valley, KS 66040
Fire Department Chief: Todd Stone
Incident Description: Fire Chief Giles passed away from injuries sustained when he was pinned between a fire apparatus backing into the station after returning from a fire call and another fire department vehicle.
Incident Location: 1794 Lakeview Lane, Linn Valley, KS 66040
Funeral Arrangements: 02/26/2010 - Private family service at Ft. Leavenworth, KS.
Memorial Fund Contact and Address: In lieu of flowers, donations in honor of Fire Chief Stanley L. Giles may be made to the Linn Valley Lakes Fire Department Auxiliary, c/o Linn Valley Lakes Fire Department, 1794 Lakeview Lane, Linn Valley, KS 66040.
Tribute is being paid to Fire Chief Stanley L. Giles at http://www.usfa.dhs.gov/fireservice/fatalities/
Name: John Coyle
Rank: Assistant Fire Chief
Age: 63
Gender: Male
Status: Volunteer
Years of Service: 35+
Date of Incident: 02/08/2010
Time of Incident: 1500hrs
Date of Death: 02/08/2010
Fire Department: West Pend Oreille Fire District
Address: PO Box 1267, 1104 Ninth ST, Priest River, ID 83856
Fire Department Chief: Les Kokanos
Incident Description: Assistant Fire Chief Coyle passed away from an apparent heart attack while working at the department's new fire station that is under construction.
Incident Location: 4458 Old Priest River Road, Priest River, ID 83856
Funeral Arrangements: 02/13/2010
Memorial Fund Contact and Address: Donations can be made in honor of Assistant Fire Chief Coyle to the West Pend Oreille Fire District for the new fire station, PO Box 1267, 1104 Ninth ST, Priest River, ID 83856
Tribute is being paid to Assistant Fire Chief John Coyle at http://www.usfa.dhs.gov/fireservice/fatalities/
Name: Donald G. Mellott
Rank: Fire Police Captain
Age: 62
Gender: Male
Status: Volunteer
Years of Service: 44
Date of Incident: 02/12/2010
Time of Incident: 1330hrs
Date of Death: 02/12/2010
Fire Department: Woolrich Volunteer Fire Company No. 1
Address: PO Box 22, 26 Cemetery ST, Woolrich, PA 17779
Fire Department Chief: Brandon Coleman
Incident Description: After establishing and working traffic control and scene protection for more than an hour at the scene of a motor vehicle accident, Fire Police Captain Mellott was struck and killed by an approaching civilian vehicle. The fatal incident is still under investigation by both local and state authorities.
Incident Location: Lusk Run Road & Fairpoint Road, Bald Eagle Twp.
Funeral Arrangements: The Funeral Services will be held at the Castanea Fire Company Picnic Grounds, 859 Lower Creek Road, Lock Haven, PA on Wednesday, February 17, 2010 at 11:30 am. The Rev. Fred Fields will officiate. Burial will be in Rest Haven Memorial Park. Arrangements are under direction of the Donald G. Walker Funeral Home Inc. 231 High St., Flemington, PA 17745.
Memorial Fund Contact and Address: In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Donald G. Mellott Memorial Fund through the Donald G. Walker Funeral Home Inc. 231 High St., Flemington, PA 17745.
Tribute is being paid to Firefighter Fire Police Captain Donald G. Mellott at http://www.usfa.dhs.gov/fireservice/fatalities/
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