Spots are Filling Up Quickly for Upcoming Free Disaster Preparedness Workshop Series
| The American Red Cross Bay Area and San Francisco CARD Team up to Deliver Disaster Preparedness Training Sponsored by California Volunteers.
The Bay Area is quickly gaining a reputation for taking positive measures to better prepare for emergencies and disasters. We are fortunate because we are presented with so many opportunities for preparedness activities - and we take advantage of them.
We have exciting news to kick off 2011 preparedness efforts. American Red Cross Bay Area and SF CARD are conducting a short series of group workshops in January and February to help organizations put Continuity of Operations Plans (COOP) in place.
Designed and directed toward nonprofits and faith-based organizations in San Francisco that are new to the process, this accelerated program is designed to take organizations through the essential elements of disaster planning using standard COOP planning tools. We will use a combination of group workshops, lectures in fast-paced breakout sessions, and technical assistance between workshops to help you complete your plan.
These workshops will be especially useful to organizations in contract to the City and County of San Francisco as it will help put them in compliance with Section 2H of the CCSF Citywide Fiscal Compliance and Nonprofit Monitoring Guidelines. But anyone can attend, even well prepared organizations that want to attend specific sessions to help in areas where they need further assistance. There is no cost for the workshops.
More information will follow soon, but save the following dates if you are interested in participating:- Monday, January 18, 2011 (all day); please note the change in date
- Monday, January 31 (morning);
- Monday, February 14 (morning)
For more information or to reserve a place at the workshops, contact: Elisabeth Whitney at 415-955-8946 x253. Email Elisabeth@sfcard.org.
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San Francisco Giants Bandwagon
By Brian E Whitlow
|  For the last few months residents here in San Francisco and throughout the Bay Area caught a fever - Pennant Fever!
For the first time, San Francisco Giants Baseball Team won the Major League Baseball World Series. The remarkable thing about this season unlike others and other winning teams is teamwork. After Barry Bonds (considered one of the best baseball players ever) left, the SF Giants were absent with talent and focused on rebuilding. The players and coaches Brian Saben (Giant General Manager) brought to the club had one concept, one idea that we can all share - TEAMWORK!
Being a disaster geek, I have to make this joyful situation into an analogues disaster article. I guess the idea is that no matter who your colleagues are, background, skill set, and personal viewpoint on whether a disaster will or will not occur; the key idea I want to plant at the start of another disaster preparedness year is that we are all in this together.
So as you plan another year of projects and set a few organizational disaster preparedness goals, I want to challenge each you to build teamwork within the organization. Get people excited to be part of the disaster prep team or do one thing to prepare their families. At the end of the day, when the "Big One" hits and I am not talking about Will Clark's 1989 NLCS game 1 grand slam, the staff that surround you will be your support system, your team during that disaster.
As we start another year, I leave you with this little fact about the 2010 World Series Giants Baseball team that I find inspirational - "The starting lineup consisted of a bunch of castoffs, including Aubrey Huff, Freddie Sanches, Juan Uribe, Andres Torres, Pat Burrell, Aaron Rowand, Bengie Molina, and, of course, the hitting star of the decisive Game 5, Edgar Renteria, who, after the team celebration, was cut by the organization. The only player of note was rookie catcher Buster Posey. In truth, none of the starters with the exception of Posey would have made the starting lineups of either the Rangers or the Phillies."
Quote Source: http://www.mlbcenter.com/articles/2010-mlb/giants-reincarnate-of-mets_110610.html
Photo Source: http://www.roico.com/thebottomline/ |
Fodder Facts - Fire Smoke & Toxic Debris
by Elisabeth Whitney
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Our Mission at SF CARD is to ensure that nonprofit and faith-based organizations serving San Francisco's vulnerable populations are prepared for a disaster; and to play a central role in the coordination of these organizations in their disaster preparedness, response, and recovery efforts.Consider putting a face mask into your disaster recovery kit for each member of your family. Why you might ask? There are several compelling reasons, but here are two to think about.
If you go through a disaster involving a fire or significant accumulations of building debris, a mask should help reduce your inhalation exposure to smoke and other toxic air pollutants.
1. Asthma affects more than 16 million adults and nearly 7 million children in the United States alone (Asthma Facts). Think about your family medical situation and how your family could be affected in a disaster.
2. Toxic air pollution from the debris of the September 11th World Trade Center destruction has been linked to the death of individuals who breathed the air at Ground Zero (New York links a death to 9/11 dust). In a major earthquake, there may be quite a bit of debris from buildings built from toxic substances.So, put masks in your emergency kits and sleep more secure in the knowledge that you are a little bit better prepared than you were yesterday.
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News You May Have Missed
FEMA Looking to Move Region IX Headquarters to Sacramento, Calif.
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An Excerpt from Emergency Magazine
By Corey McKenna
December 23, 2010
FEMA continues to look for a new building in Sacramento, Calif., to move its Region IX headquarters from its current location in Oakland near the Hayward Fault. "Essentially it's a safety issue," said John Hamill, FEMA Region IX director of external affairs. "If we're located in a place where we become victims of [an earthquake], it's going to hinder our response capacity."The agency has been looking for a new facility since December 2009. "We've looked at some," Hamill said. "None of them have quite met all of the requirements."To continue reading the rest of the article, visit http://www.emergencymgmt.com/disaster/FEMA-Looking-to-Move-Region-IX-Headquarters-to-Sacramento-Calif.html.
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| Meta-leadership Summit for Preparedness Comes to San Francisco Bay Area | If you missed the statewide Meta-Leadership Summit last summer then you have another opportunity to learn from the experts at Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Foundation, CDC, the National Preparedness Leadership Initiative - Harvard School of Public Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Designed to foster greater cross-sector collaboration during emergencies, this excellent summit explores how we respond to emergencies as individuals and how we can better prepare ourselves.
SF CARD staff was so impressed with the state conference that we elected to co-host the San Francisco Bay Area conference. Here's what some of the past participants are saying:
- "The information learned from the Summit will be used to connect the private and nonprofit sectors to the government and to rid the everyday silos that we work in." - Maryland government participant
- "I was captivated from the presentation and knowledge of how people think in crisis. After 20 years as a first responder and continuity professional, I learned techniques and initiated new friendships in my community." - Dallas business participant
- "I really liked learning the principles of meta-leadership. I think that they are useful in everyday life, not just when talking about preparedness."
- National Capital Region nonprofit participant
The conference is at the Hotel Whitcomb (1231 Market St.) beginning with a reception and orientation the afternoon/evening of February 9 and the conference on February 10. There is no cost, as the conference is sponsored by private and public sector organizations. More information will follow, but you can go to www.meta-leadershipsummit.org to learn more and to register.
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Upcoming Events, Trainings, & Services
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If you're interested in finding out about ongoing events, trainings, & services visit the following agency specific websites:
American Red Cross Bay Area: Training Schedule for Red Cross DSHR Volunteers - For more information or to register, visit http://www.redcrossbayarea.org.
You may also call (510) 595-4444 or email at ARCBADSTraining@usa.redcross.org.
The Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) of San Francisco: http://www.bomasf.org
SF Safe: http://sfsafe.org/events/
San Francisco NERT: http://www.sfgov.org/site/sfnert
SF Ready: www.sfready.org or call (415) 487-5000
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