Most recently published
Innovative Approaches to Radiological/Nuclear Preparedness
Erin Mohres and Darren Chen
August 10, 2016
Radiological and nuclear sources pose a wider variety of threats than many realize. By understanding the threat and leveraging federal requirements such as the Threat and Hazardentification and Risk Assessment (THIRA), emergency managers can better equip themselves and their communities to prevent, protect against, and respond to incidents related to
Where Incident Management Unravels
Charles Bailey
August 3, 2016
The National Incident Management System (NIMS) is the mandated national framework for emergency incident management. It is a natural derivative of the Incident Command System developed in California after a particularly disastrous wildfire season in 1970. However, there are some notable reasons that it should not be considered the solution
Social Impact Bonds & Sustainable Disaster Risk Reduction
Justin Snair and Megan Reeve Snair
July 27, 2016
National policy and practice tend to focus efforts and resources on disaster response and recovery, rather than on disaster risk reduction. Understanding disaster risks and incentivizing sustainable risk reduction efforts could help reduce overall disaster costs and even save lives.
Public Health – Opportunities for Action
Catherine L. Feinman
July 27, 2016
On 7 June 2016, the DomPrep team convened 14 subject matter experts from various disciplines to address issues surrounding community resilience and public health. The purpose of the roundtable was to align the missions and identify action items to create synergy among various community stakeholders. This article summarizes the key
Integration of Public Health Into the Whole Community
Kathleen E. Goodwin and Leana S. Wen
July 20, 2016
The Baltimore City Health Department (BCHD) is the oldest, continuously operating health department in the country – founded in 1793 to respond to a local yellow fever outbreak. BCHD is committed to the idea that health is critical to a community’s ability to thrive and thus deserves to be incorporated
Recovery – Uniting Efforts in a Complex Process
Natalie N. Grant
July 19, 2016
Many communities – large and small – have recovered from disasters. Some have been successful, while others struggle to return. Disasters affect hundreds of communities nationwide every year and – at some point in time – each is confronted with the hard reality of recovering from a disaster. When the
Public Health: A Whole Community Approach Partner
Thomas Russo
July 13, 2016
Public health practice parallels the whole community approach advocated by 21st century emergency management practitioners. Therefore, public health’s emergency preparedness actions integrate nicely with contemporary emergency management practice. Several methodologies of public health practice lend themselves to collaboration with other planning and response disciplines. By examining these methods, public health
Today’s Decisions Drive Tomorrow’s Power Grid
J. Michael Barrett
July 12, 2016
For more than a century, the U.S. electrical power grid has dramatically improved the health, safety, and economic productivity of hundreds of millions of people. Although this grid stands as an ingenious accomplishment, experts fear that, as the 21st century progresses, the grid’s ability to meet evolving U.S. energy needs
The ‘Glue’ for Incident Management
George A. Morgan
July 12, 2016
“Forms, we don’t need no stinking forms to handle an all hazard emergency response in our ______ (fill in the blank: town, city, county, parish, tribal territory, region, state),” was no doubt echoed by many of the leaders of the numerous alphabet agencies attending mandatory National Incident Management System (NIMS)
Threats Evolving Faster Than Preparedness
Robert C. Hutchinson
July 6, 2016
With the current amount of discussion and media coverage regarding the spreading Zika virus and the mounting concerns over antibiotic drug resistance, public health remains a critical homeland security and emergency preparedness priority. Unfortunately, it is often a fluctuating priority that does not receive consistent attention, action, and funding to
Balancing Risk – Understanding & Preparing for Catastrophes
Catherine L. Feinman
June 22, 2016
Space weather, nuclear, and catastrophic natural disasters are just lying in wait for the right combination of conditions. Although it is not possible to plan specifically for every type of threat – imaginable and unimaginable – it is necessary to weigh the risks associated with various threats and take sufficient
Cascadia Catastrophe – Not If, But When
Arthur Glynn
June 15, 2016
A 9.0-magnitude earthquake off the Washington and British Columbia coast along the 700-mile Cascadia Subduction Zone (CSZ) – followed by a tsunami with 90-foot or more wave surges in some areas – is possible based on geological factors and historical accounts. Communities in and around the CSZ, and those with
Suspicious Activity Reporting – A Job for Everyone
Jerome H. Kahan
August 10, 2016
Law enforcement personnel operating in their communities have been trained to report suspicious activity sightings to their headquarters. Firefighters, emergency medical service providers, public health officials, and other first responders have been asked to “Remain Alert for Suspicious Activity.” Now, every citizen and visitor plays a critical role in preventing
Innovative Approaches to Radiological/Nuclear Preparedness
Erin Mohres and Darren Chen
August 10, 2016
Radiological and nuclear sources pose a wider variety of threats than many realize. By understanding the threat and leveraging federal requirements such as the Threat and Hazardentification and Risk Assessment (THIRA), emergency managers can better equip themselves and their communities to prevent, protect against, and respond to incidents related to
Where Incident Management Unravels
Charles Bailey
August 3, 2016
The National Incident Management System (NIMS) is the mandated national framework for emergency incident management. It is a natural derivative of the Incident Command System developed in California after a particularly disastrous wildfire season in 1970. However, there are some notable reasons that it should not be considered the solution
Social Impact Bonds & Sustainable Disaster Risk Reduction
Justin Snair and Megan Reeve Snair
July 27, 2016
National policy and practice tend to focus efforts and resources on disaster response and recovery, rather than on disaster risk reduction. Understanding disaster risks and incentivizing sustainable risk reduction efforts could help reduce overall disaster costs and even save lives.
Public Health – Opportunities for Action
Catherine L. Feinman
July 27, 2016
On 7 June 2016, the DomPrep team convened 14 subject matter experts from various disciplines to address issues surrounding community resilience and public health. The purpose of the roundtable was to align the missions and identify action items to create synergy among various community stakeholders. This article summarizes the key
Integration of Public Health Into the Whole Community
Kathleen E. Goodwin and Leana S. Wen
July 20, 2016
The Baltimore City Health Department (BCHD) is the oldest, continuously operating health department in the country – founded in 1793 to respond to a local yellow fever outbreak. BCHD is committed to the idea that health is critical to a community’s ability to thrive and thus deserves to be incorporated
Recovery – Uniting Efforts in a Complex Process
Natalie N. Grant
July 19, 2016
Many communities – large and small – have recovered from disasters. Some have been successful, while others struggle to return. Disasters affect hundreds of communities nationwide every year and – at some point in time – each is confronted with the hard reality of recovering from a disaster. When the
Public Health: A Whole Community Approach Partner
Thomas Russo
July 13, 2016
Public health practice parallels the whole community approach advocated by 21st century emergency management practitioners. Therefore, public health’s emergency preparedness actions integrate nicely with contemporary emergency management practice. Several methodologies of public health practice lend themselves to collaboration with other planning and response disciplines. By examining these methods, public health
Today’s Decisions Drive Tomorrow’s Power Grid
J. Michael Barrett
July 12, 2016
For more than a century, the U.S. electrical power grid has dramatically improved the health, safety, and economic productivity of hundreds of millions of people. Although this grid stands as an ingenious accomplishment, experts fear that, as the 21st century progresses, the grid’s ability to meet evolving U.S. energy needs
The ‘Glue’ for Incident Management
George A. Morgan
July 12, 2016
“Forms, we don’t need no stinking forms to handle an all hazard emergency response in our ______ (fill in the blank: town, city, county, parish, tribal territory, region, state),” was no doubt echoed by many of the leaders of the numerous alphabet agencies attending mandatory National Incident Management System (NIMS)
Threats Evolving Faster Than Preparedness
Robert C. Hutchinson
July 6, 2016
With the current amount of discussion and media coverage regarding the spreading Zika virus and the mounting concerns over antibiotic drug resistance, public health remains a critical homeland security and emergency preparedness priority. Unfortunately, it is often a fluctuating priority that does not receive consistent attention, action, and funding to
Balancing Risk – Understanding & Preparing for Catastrophes
Catherine L. Feinman
June 22, 2016
Space weather, nuclear, and catastrophic natural disasters are just lying in wait for the right combination of conditions. Although it is not possible to plan specifically for every type of threat – imaginable and unimaginable – it is necessary to weigh the risks associated with various threats and take sufficient
Preparing for Everything Under the Sun
Joshua Sparber
June 8, 2016
The Space Weather Conference in Broomfield, Colorado, on 25-29 April 2016 focused on improving space weather models and exploring more diverse and effective research tools. Current U.S. policy has shifted in favor of more research and funding, which can only be accomplished through better cooperation between the public and private
Nuclear Proliferation in the Middle East
Jerome H. Kahan
June 1, 2016
Now that the Iran nuclear deal is in effect, it is worth exploring whether this agreement will in fact: (a) constrain Iran’s efforts to build nuclear weapons and inhibit nuclear proliferation in the region; or (b) have unintended negative consequences that the United States and its negotiating partners did not
Assessing the Iran Deal
Jerome H. Kahan
May 25, 2016
With the United States as de facto leader, the five members of the United Nations Security Council plus Germany – the so called “5+1” club – spent over two years negotiating the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), or so-called “nuclear deal,” which is expected to reduce the danger of
Tapping Media for Credible Disaster Communication
Steven Johnson
May 24, 2016
Few preparations made in anticipation of a disaster pay bigger dividends than how the team communicates with the news media and the public during a disaster. Seamless and coordinated communication is as important as seamless and coordinated operations – both during the disaster and in the recovery stage. Communications and
Porous Borders & Cultivated Threats
Richard Schoeberl
May 18, 2016
As the United States embarks on the 2016 presidential campaign, the great debate on immigration and border security continues to be a blistering topic. However, controlling the borders is far more than just immigration control, it is about providing national security and protecting the American people from the threats that
Planning in Miami for Changes in Cuba
Manuel A. Morales
May 18, 2016
Changes in the relationship between the United States and Cuba have come fast and furious since the December 2014 announcement by the Obama administration that diplomatic relations would resume between the two former foes. Understanding past incidents will help the nation address current and future concerns as movement between these
National Threats: Advice for the Next President
Mark-Jon Nichols
May 18, 2016
Four key threats the nation faces will follow the next president of the United States into office. These threats are not new, but will increase if not effectively addressed. Whoever is elected for this leadership position must be equipped with the right information in order to prioritize and make tough
Inexperience – Filling the Void
Romeo Lavarias
May 17, 2016
In response to 9/11, the United States instituted one of the most massive changes in government with the creation and development of the Department of Homeland Security. Since then, a combination of massive attrition, personnel retirements, and complacency due to lack of new disasters has created a void of experienced
A Checklist for Rethinking Crisis Communications
Thomas Wahle
May 17, 2016
Crisis communications planning is key to any emergency preparedness effort. One reason that so many organizations struggle with communications when crises strike may be that they focused their planning efforts on the crisis plan document without creating a shared vision of desired outcomes. They failed to define what they actually
Space Weather – A Historic Shift in Emergency Preparedness
Charles (Chuck) L. Manto
May 15, 2016
For the first time since the demise of the civil defense program of the Cold War, the federal government has made one of the most significant modifications to its emergency preparedness message. A three-day emergency kit is no longer sufficient to prepare for emerging threats, whether coming from Earth or
Florida – Doing More With Volunteers
Freddy Zelaya Jr. and Romeo Lavarias
May 11, 2016
Today’s disasters are more frequent and more complex than ever before. Although governments at all levels have risen to the occasion by training personnel and securing equipment and resources, there will always be a lack of manpower. This gap has been addressed using volunteers, who – despite having the best
DomPrep Journal: Preparing Communities
Domestic Preparedness
May 4, 2016
The DomPrep Journal features original content written by practitioners in various emergency preparedness and resilience fields. Addressing the needs of professionals dedicated to preparing and protecting their communities, the first four issues of the 2016 volume have been downloaded a total of more than 200,000 times! To view these or
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