Podcasts about eocs

In this episode, Cody and Maribel discuss the recent AT&T outage and its impact on voting sites during an election. They introduce their guest, Daniel Blount, who has extensive experience in radio communications. Daniel shares his background in civil air patrol and ham radio and discusses the recent wildfires in the Texas Panhandle. The importance of redundancies in communications and the need for radio caches are also highlighted. The conversation concludes with a discussion on the balance between efficiency and preparedness in emergency management. The conversation explores the availability of radios and the challenges faced in obtaining them. It discusses different radio systems, the difference between simplex and repeated channels, and the use of patching at the console. The conversation also touches on building a communication platform, satellite communications, and the role of ham radio as a backup. It delves into packet radio and APRS, ham radio license classes, and the concerns of EMP and cybersecurity. The conversation concludes with the importance of backup communication options and the need for an immediate action plan and family. In this conversation, the topics discussed include communication redundancies, the use of drones and mesh networks for communication, the role of the Civil Air Patrol in emergency management, the integration of radios in aircraft. Other topics covered include the adoption of ICS by law enforcement, the importance of training and using communications effectively, the role of dispatch and EOC communication, the need for ham radio licenses in EOCs, and the organization of ham radio drills. Support the show

For emergency managers across the country, the Emergency Operations Center, or EOC, can be home base. It's a place for deconflicting challenges, finding solutions and coordinating efforts to a host of emergencies facing their communities. For many, the EOC is also a physical location, but in recent years, jurisdictions are finding ways to make their EOCs virtual as well. To that end, in October 2022, FEMA released the EOC How to Quick Reference Guide, which is a collection of guidance and best practices that can contribute to developing an EOC that can successfully meet the jurisdiction's needs. So, on this episode, we go to FEMA's National Integration Center to learn more about the guide and how it can help communities increase EOC capabilities for evolving environments.

Today, I sit down with my cousin, Danny Chavez, Founder and CEO of Empowering Our Community for Success. As a boy growing up without a father in his life, Danny turned to destructive behaviors that would ultimately lead him down a path of pain, heartache, and suffering.  After spending several years in the prison system and missing out on life with his five children, Danny gave his life to God at the age of 34. Since then, he's done his best to restore his relationships with others and give back to at-risk youth. His mission in life is to lead others to God, where they can experience the richness of His love and peace.  Learn more at about EOCS here.  Grab your Gratitude Journal by Barbara  Affirmation Cards by Barbara  Visit my website  Connect on Instagram @barbaratguillen Barbara Guillen is a Freelance Copywriter and Content Creator. She is on a simple mission to help others live a life of meaning, purpose, and empowerment. In order to know who we are, we must first know WHOSE we are. When we are clear on our identity, we can achieve the unthinkable!   

In this episode, we talk about EOC design and operations. We both share our experiences serving as EOC Managers in EOCs of very different sizes. We also go through the new FEMA document released this month, "Emergency Operations Center How-To Quick Reference Guide."https://www.fema.gov/sites/default/files/documents/fema_eoc-quick-reference_guide.pdfSupport the show

Today I am joined by Eric Kant to discuss the future of emergency management and public safety. We're talking AI, digital twins, virtual reality, blockchain, and all sorts of other technologies. We challenge the status quo and introduce things that emergency managers can introduce today to make their jobs easier and do more with data. We also talk about Hurricane Ian and how to use technology such as lidar to help with cataloging damage and mapping the extent of the disaster. Eric is a resident of Florida and is seeing the impacts of Ian in his town.If you're using tech in your preparedness, response, recovery, or mitigation efforts, we want to hear about it. Let us know in the comments what you're using and how it's working!References: https://experience.arcgis.com/experience/fc8d084169114eb998055c6ed422745f/https://spike.ikegps.com/https://shop.leica-geosystems.com/leica-blk/abouthttps://aecmag.com/reality-capture-modelling/sitescape-lidar-scanning-on-the-iphone-ipad/Doberman Emergency Management owns and operates the Disaster Tough Podcast. Contact us here at: www.dobermanemg.com or email us at: info@dobermanemg.com.Sawyer Products offers the best, most technologically advanced solutions for protection against sun, bugs, water & injuries–everything from water filtration systems to insect repellents. So, if you're at work, at home, or at play- make sure you check out Sawyer at sawyer.com

Eating leafy greens could help prevent macular degeneration Westmead Institute for Medical Research (Australia), October 13, 2021    A new study has shown that eating vegetable nitrates, found mainly in green leafy vegetables and beetroot, could help reduce your risk of developing early-stage age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Researchers at the Westmead Institute for Medical Research interviewed more than 2,000 Australian adults aged over 49 and followed them over a 15-year period. The research showed that people who ate between 100 to 142 mgs of vegetable nitrates each day had a 35% lower risk of developing early AMD than people who ate less than 69mgs of vegetable nitrates each day. Lead Researcher Associate Professor Bamini Gopinath from the Westmead Institute and the University of Sydney said the link between vegetable nitrates and macular degeneration could have important implications. "This is the first time the effects of dietary nitrates on macular degeneration risk has been measured. "Essentially we found that people who ate 100 to 142 mgs of vegetable nitrates every day had a reduced risk of developing early signs of macular degeneration compared with people who ate fewer nitrates. "If our findings are confirmed, incorporating a range of foods rich in dietary nitrates - like green leafy vegetables and beetroot - could be a simple strategy to reduce the risk of early macular degeneration," Associate Professor Gopinath said. Spinach has approximately 20mg of nitrate per 100g, while beetroot has nearly 15mg of nitrate per 100g. The research did not show any additional benefits for people who exceeded 142mgs of dietary nitrate each day. It also did not show any significant connections between vegetable nitrates and late stage AMD, or between non-vegetable nitrates and AMD risk. One in seven Australians over 50 have some signs of macular degeneration. Age is the strongest known risk factor and the disease is more likely to occur after the age of 50. There is currently no cure for the disease. The research compiled data from the Blue Mountains Eye Study, a benchmark population-based study that started in 1992. It is one of the world's largest epidemiology studies, measuring diet and lifestyle factors against health outcomes and a range of chronic diseases. "Our research aims to understand why eye diseases occur, as well as the genetic and environmental conditions that may threaten vision," Associate Professor Gopinath concluded.     Research review shows intermittent fasting works for weight loss, health changes University of Illinois Chicago, October 13, 2021 Intermittent fasting can produce clinically significant weight loss as well as improve metabolic health in individuals with obesity, according to a new study review led by University of Illinois Chicago researchers. "We noted that intermittent fasting is not better than regular dieting; both produce the same amount of weight loss and similar changes in blood pressure, cholesterol and inflammation," said Krista Varady, professor of nutrition at the UIC College of Applied Health Sciences and author of "Cardiometabolic Benefits of Intermittent Fasting."  According to the analysis published in the Annual Review of Nutrition, all forms of fasting reviewed produced mild to moderate weight loss, 1 percent to 8 percent from baseline weight, which represents results that are similar to that of more traditional, calorie-restrictive diets. Intermittent fasting regimens may also benefit health by decreasing blood pressure and insulin resistance, and in some cases, cholesterol and triglyceride levels are also lowered. Other health benefits, such as improved appetite regulation and positive changes in the gut microbiome, have also been demonstrated.  The review looked at over 25 research studies involving three types of intermittent fasting:  Alternate day fasting, which typically involves a feast day alternated with a fast day where 500 calories are consumed in one meal.  5:2 diet, a modified version of alternate day fasting that involves five feast days and two fast days per week.  Time-restricted eating, which confines eating to a specified number of hours per day, usually four to 10 hours, with no calorie restrictions during the eating period.  Various studies of time-restricted eating show participants with obesity losing an average of 3 percent of their body weight, regardless of the time of the eating window.  Studies showed alternate day fasting resulted in weight loss of 3 percent to 8 percent of body weight over three to eight weeks, with results peaking at 12 weeks. Individuals on alternate day fasting typically do not overeat or binge on feast days, which results in mild to moderate weight loss, according to the review.  Studies for the 5:2 diet showed similar results to alternate day fasting, which surprised the study's reviewers. The subjects who participate in the 5:2 diet fast much less frequently than alternate-day fasting participants do, but the weight loss results are similar.  Weight loss with alternate day and 5:2 fasting are comparable to more traditional daily calorie-restrictive diets. And, both fasting diets showed individuals were able to maintain an average of 7 percent weight loss for a year.  "You're fooling your body into eating a little bit less and that's why people are losing weight," Varady said.  Varady added the review set out to debunk some myths regarding intermittent fasting. Intermittent fasting does not negatively affect metabolism, nor does it cause disordered eating, according to the studies reviewed.  "Fasting people are worried about feeling lethargic and not being able to concentrate. Even though you are not eating, it won't affect your energy," Varady said. "A lot of people experience a boost of energy on fasting days. Don't worry, you won't feel crappy. You may even feel better."  The study review includes a summary of practical considerations for those who may want to try intermittent fasting. Among the considerations are:  Adjustment time—Side effects such as headaches, dizziness and constipation subside after one to two weeks of fasting. Increased water intake can help alleviate headaches caused by dehydration during this time.  Exercise—Moderate to high-intensity endurance or resistance training during food abstention can be done, and some study participants reported having more energy on fast days. However, studies recommend those following alternate day fasting eat their fasting day meal after exercise.  Diet during fasting—There are no specific recommendations for food consumption during intermittent fasting, but eating fruits, vegetables and whole grains can help boost fiber intake and help relieve constipation that sometimes accompanies fasting.  Alcohol and caffeine—For those using an alternate day or 5:2 fasting plan, alcohol is not recommended on fast days as the limited calories should be used on healthy foods that provide nutrition.  There are several groups who should not intermittent fast, according to the studies. Those individuals include:  Those who are pregnant or lactating.  Children under 12.  Those with a history of disordered eating.  Those with a body mass index, or BMI, less than 18.5. Shift workers. Studies have shown they may struggle with fasting regimens because of shifting work schedules.  Those who need to take medication with food at regimented times.  "People love intermittent fasting because it's easy. People need to find diets that they can stick to long term. It's definitely effective for weight loss and it's gained popularity because there are no special foods or apps necessary. You can also combine it with other diets, like Keto," Varady said.  Varady has recently been awarded a National Institutes of Health grant to study time-restricted eating for 12 months to see if it works long term.   Antioxidants to prevent Alzheimer's disease A balanced intake of antioxidants could prevent the development of Alzheimer's disease. Institut National de la Recherche Scientifique (France), October 13, 2021 Research conducted by the Ph.D student Mohamed Raâfet Ben Khedher and the postdoctoral researcher Mohamed Haddad of the Institut national de la recherche scientifique (INRS) has shown that an oxidation-antioxidant imbalance in the blood is an early indicator of Alzheimer's disease, rather than a consequence. This breakthrough made by researchers under the supervision of the Professor Charles Ramassamy provides an avenue for preventive intervention: the antioxidants intake.  The research team showed that oxidative markers, known to be involved in Alzheimer's disease, show an increase up to five years before the onset of the disease. The results of this study, published in the Alzheimer's & Dementia: Diagnosis, Assessment & Disease Monitoring (DADM) journal, suggest that oxidation may be an early marker of this disease that affects more than 500,000 Canadians. “Given that there is an increase in oxidative stress in people who develop the disease, we may regulate the antioxidant systems. For example, we could modulate the antioxidant systems, such as apolipoproteins J and D, which transport lipids and cholesterol in the blood and play an important role in brain function and Alzheimer's disease. Another avenue would be to increase the intake of antioxidants through nutrition”, says Professor Ramassamy.  Accessible biomarkers Unlike the current set of invasive and expensive tests used to diagnose Alzheimer's disease, the oxidative markers discovered by Professor Ramassamy's research team can be detected by a blood test. These markers are found in plasma extracellular vesicles, which are pockets released by all cells in the body, including those in the brain.     The research team focused specifically on the "sporadic" Alzheimer's disease, the most common form of the disease which results primarily from the presence of the APOE4 susceptibility gene. This same form of the disease had been studied by the team for other early markers. “By identifying oxidative markers in the blood of individuals at risk five years before the onset of the disease, we could make recommendations to slow the onset of the disease and limit the risks”, scientists noted. This breakthrough brings new hope to Alzheimer's research. Once the disease is symptomatic, it is difficult, if not impossible, to reverse it.         Meditation training reduces long-term stress, according to hair analysis Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences (Germany), October 11, 2021 Mental training that promotes skills such as mindfulness, gratitude or compassion reduces the concentration of the stress hormone cortisol in hair. This is what scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences in Leipzig and the Social Neuroscience Research Group of the Max Planck Society in Berlin have found out. The amount of cortisol in hair provides information about how much a person is burdened by persistent stress. Earlier positive training effects had been shown in acutely stressful situations or on individual days—or were based on study participants' self-reports. According to a study by the Techniker Krankenkasse, 23 percent of people in Germany frequently suffer from stress. This condition not only puts a strain on the well-being of those affected, but it is also linked to a number of physiological diseases, including diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and psychological disorders such as depression, one of the world's leading causes of disease burden (Global Burden of Disease Study, 2017). Therefore, effective methods are being sought to reduce everyday stress in the long term. One promising option is mindfulness training, in which participants train their cognitive and social skills, including attention, gratitude and compassion, through various meditation and behavioral exercises. Various studies have already shown that even healthy people feel less stressed after a typical eight-week training program. Until now, however, it has been unclear how much the training actually contributes to reducing the constant burden of everyday stress. The problem with many previous studies on chronic stress is that the study participants were usually asked to self-assess their stress levels after the training. However, this self-reporting by means of questionnaires could have distorted the effects and made the results appear more positive than they actually were. The reason for such a bias: The participants knew they were training their mindfulness, and a reduction in stress levels was a desired effect of this training. This awareness alone has an impact on subsequent information. "If you are asked whether you are stressed after a training session that is declared as stress-reducing, even addressing this question can distort the statements," explains Lara Puhlmann, doctoral student at the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences and first author of the underlying publication, which has now appeared in the journal Psychosomatic Medicine. Factors such as social desirability and placebo effects played a role here. Unlike pharmacological studies, for example, in which the study participants do not know whether they have actually received the active substance or not, so-called blinded studies are not possible in mental training. "The participants know that they are ingesting the 'antidote,'" says Puhlmann. "In mindfulness research, we are therefore increasingly using more objective, i.e. physiological, methods to measure the stress-reducing effect more precisely." The concentration of cortisol in hair is considered a suitable measure of exposure to prolonged stress. Cortisol is a hormone that is released when we are confronted with an overwhelming challenge, for example. In that particular situation, it helps put our body on alert and mobilize energy to overcome the challenge. The longer the stress lasts, the longer an increased concentration of cortisol circulates around our body—and the more it accumulates in our hair. On average, hair grows one centimeter per month. To measure the study participants' stress levels during the 9-month training, the researchers, in cooperation with the working group of Clemens Kirschbaum at the University of Dresden, analyzed the amount of cortisol every three months in the first three centimeters of hair, starting at the scalp. The mental training itself was developed as part of a large-scale longitudinal study on the effects of mental training, the ReSource project, led by Tania Singer, scientific director of the Social Neuroscience Research Group. This 9-month mental training program consisted of three 3-month sessions, each designed to train a specific skill area using Western and Far Eastern mental exercises. The focus was either on the factors of attention and mindfulness, on socio-affective skills such as compassion and gratitude, or on so-called socio-cognitive skills, in particular the ability to take perspective on one's own and others' thoughts. Three groups of about 80 participants each completed the training modules in different order. The training lasted up to nine months, 30 minutes a day, six days a week. Less stress, less cortisol And it really showed: After six months of training, the amount of cortisol in the subjects' hair had decreased significantly, on average by 25 percent. In the first three months, slight effects were seen at first, which increased over the following three months. In the last third, the concentration remained at a low level. The researchers therefore assume that only sufficiently long training leads to the desired stress-reducing effects. The effect did not seem to depend on the content of the training. It is therefore possible that several of the mental approaches studied are similarly effective in improving the way people deal with chronic everyday stress. In an earlier study from the ReSource project with the same sample, the researchers had investigated the effects of training on dealing with acute stressful situations. In this study, the participants were placed in a stressful job interview and had to solve difficult maths problems under observation. The results showed that people who had undergone socio-cognitive or socio-affective training released up to 51 percent less cortisol under stress than those who had not been trained. In this case, they did not measure the amount of cortisol in the subjects' hair, but instead acute cortisolsurges in their saliva. Overall, the researchers conclude that training can improve the handling of acute particularly stressful social situations as well as chronic everyday stress. "We assume that different training aspects are particularly helpful for these different forms of stress," says Veronika Engert, head of the research group "Social Stress and Family Health" at the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences. "There are many diseases worldwide, including depression, that are directly or indirectly related to long-term stress," explains Puhlmann. "We need to work on counteracting the effects of chronic stress in a preventive way. Our study uses physiological measurements to prove that meditation-based training interventions can alleviate general stress levels even in healthy individuals."   Study: Moderate carbohydrate intake is a cardiovascular benefit for women Monash University (Australia), October 13, 2021 Women's heart health has been the focus of a recent study by Monash University, with researchers finding that proportional carbohydrate intake and not saturated fat was significantly associated with cardiovascular disease benefit in Australian women. Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death in women. Poor diet is recognized as both an independent CVD risk factor and a contributor to other CVD risk factors, such as obesity, diabetes mellitus (DM), hypertension, and dyslipidaemia. The research found that in middle-aged Australian women, increasing the percentage of carbohydrate intake was significantly associated with reduced odds of CVD, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and obesity. Furthermore, a moderate carbohydrate intake between 41.0 percent—44.3 percent of total energy intake was associated with the lowest risk of CVD compared to women who consumed less than 37 percent energy as carbohydrates. No significant relationship was demonstrated between proportional carbohydrate intake and all-cause mortality. In addition, increasing proportional saturated fat intake was not associated with cardiovascular disease or mortality in women; rather, increasing saturated fat intakecorrelated with lower odds of developing diabetes mellitus, hypertension, and obesity. The findings are now published in the British Medical Journal. The results contradict much of the historical epidemiological research that supported a link between saturated fat and CVD. Instead, the results mirror contemporary meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies where saturated fat was found to have no significant relationship with total mortality or CVD. While the cause of this inconsistency in the literature is unclear, it has been suggested that historical studies neglected to adjust for fiber, which is known to help prevent plaque from forming in the arteries. "Controversy still exists surrounding the best diet to prevent CVD," said Sarah Zaman, a former Monash University professor who is now an associate professor at the University of Sydney. "A low-fat diet has historically been the mainstay of primary prevention guidelines, but the major issue within our dietary guidelines is that many dietary trials have predominately involved male participants or lacked sex-specific analyses." She adds: "Further research is needed to tailor our dietary guidelines according to sex." The study's first author Sarah Gribbin, a Doctor of Medicine and BMedSc (Hons) student, says: "As an observational study, our findings only show association and not causation. Our research is purely hypothesis-generating. We are hoping that our findings will spark future research into sex-specific dietary research." The Heart Foundation, which is one of the study's funders, welcomed the focus on women and CVD, which has historically been under-researched. Heart Foundation manager, food and nutrition, Eithne Cahill, cautioned that "not all carbohydrates are created equal." "We know that quality carbohydrate foods such as vegetables and whole grains—including whole grain bread, cereals, and pasta—are beneficial for heart health, whereas poor quality carbohydrates such as white bread, biscuits, cakes, and pastries can increase risk," she said. "Similarly, different fats have different effects on heart health. That is why the Heart Foundation focuses on healthy eating patterns—that is, a combination of foods, chosen regularly over time—rather than a single nutrient or food. Include plenty of vegetables, fruit, and whole grains, and heart-healthy fat choices such as nuts, seeds, avocados, olives and their oils for cooking and a variety of healthy proteins especially seafood, beans and lentils, eggs and dairy."   Anti-cancer effects found in natural compound derived from onions   Kumamoto University (Japan), October 18, 2021   Research from Kumamoto University, Japan has found that a natural compound isolated from onions, onionin A (ONA), has several anti-ovarian cancer properties. This discovery is a result of research on the effects of ONA on a preclinical model of epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) both in vivo and in vitro. This research comes from the same group that found ONA suppressed pro-tumor activation of host myeloid cells.   According to a 2014 review of cancer medicines from the World Health Organization, EOC is the most common type of ovarian cancer and has a 5-year survival rate of approximately 40%. It has a relatively low lifetime risk that is less than 1%, but that can increase up to 40% if there is a family history of the disease. A majority of patients (80%) experience a relapse after their initial treatment with chemotherapy, therefore a more effective line of treatment is needed.   Kumamoto University researchers found that ONA has several effects on EOC. The group's in vitro experiments showed that EOCs, which usually proliferate in the presence of pro-tumor M2 macrophages, showed inhibited growth after introduction of ONA. This was thought to be due to ONAs influence on STAT3, a transcription factor known to be involved in both M2 polarization and cancer cell proliferation. Furthermore, the team found that ONA inhibited the pro-tumor functions of myeloid derived suppressor cells (MDSC), which are closely associated with the suppression of the anti-tumor immune response of host lymphocytes, by using preclinical sarcoma model. ONA was also found to enhance the effects of anti-cancer drugs by strengthening their anti-proliferation capabilities. Moreover, experiments on an ovarian cancer murine model that investigated the effects of orally administered ONA resulted in longer lifespans and inhibited ovarian cancer tumor development. This was considered to be a result of ONA's suppression of M2 polarized macrophages.   The research shows that ONA reduces the progression of malignant ovarian cancer tumors by interfering with the pro-tumor function of myeloid cells. ONA appears to activate anti-tumor immune responses by nullifying the immunosuppressive function of myeloid cells. ONA has the potential to enhance existing anti-cancer drugs while also having little to no cytotoxic effects on normal cells. Additionally, side effects in animals have not been seen. With a little more testing, an oral ONA supplement should greatly benefit cancer patients.     Risk of chronic diseases caused by exogenous chemical residues Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics (China), October 13, 2021 Chronic diseases are main killers affecting the health of human. The morbidities of major chronic diseases such as obesity, hypertension, diabetes, hyperuricemia and dyslipidemia are as high as 10% to 30%, showing a gradually upward trend as well. More and more studies have shown that environmental pollution is a major health risk factor that cannot be ignored. However, the evidence for their relationship is equivocal and the underlying mechanisms is unclear. Recently, a research group led by Prof. Xu Guowang from the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics (DICP) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) discovered the risk of chronic diseases caused by exogenous chemical residues through metabolome-wide association study. Their findings were published in Environment International on Oct. 8. Researchers from National Institute for Nutrition and Health of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, and Tongji Medical College of Huazhong University of Science and Technology were also involved in this study. The researchers discovered positive associations of serum perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) with hyperuricemia, and revealed the mechanism of the relationship between the exogenous chemical residues in the serum and the risk of chronic diseases at the metabolic level. The researchers investigated the relationship between 106 exogenous chemical residues and five chronic diseases in 496 serum samples. They revealed the metabolic perturbations related to exogenous chemical residues and chronic diseases by the metabolome-wide association study combined with meeting-in-the-middle approach and mediation analysis, and investigated the further potential underlying mechanism at the metabolic level. "PFASs were the risk factor for hyperuricemia," said Prof. Xu. Lipid species including glycerophospholipids and glycerides presented the strongest correlation with exposure and disease, which were not only positively related to PFASs exposure but also the risk factor for hyperuricemia. "We also found that key mediation metabolites mediated 25% to 68% of the exposure-disease risk relationship," Prof. Xu added. This study provides in-depth etiological understanding for the occurrence and development of diseases, which may be helpful for the early detection of the disease and the identification of early warning markers.

Episode 48: Interview with TEEX's Jesse WatkinsOn this week's podcast we have our sponsor of the Active Shooter Incident Management Advanced and Intermediate courses, TEEX's Jesse Watkins. In this episode we talk about the courses and training available to the first responder community.Bill Godfrey:Welcome to the Active Shooter Incident Management podcast. My name is Bill Godfrey, your podcast host. We have a special guest with us today. Today, we have Jesse Watkins, the director of operations for NERRTC. That's the National Emergency Response and Recovery Training Center over at TEEX out in Texas. Jesse, thanks for joining us today.Jesse Watkins:Oh, it's my pleasure Bill. Thank you for having me.Bill Godfrey:So obviously NERRTC and TEEX are the sponsors of the Active Shooter Incident Management advanced and intermediate courses that we developed that is DHS funded. And people who've heard me tell this story before, it's a little convoluted, the money flow, but it DHS to NERRTC to or, DHS to TEEX NERRTC, then over to ALERRT and then over to us to go out and do the classes. But Jesse, it's actually a little more complicated than that, isn't it? Tell everybody a little bit about how the structure works and how the pieces fit together.Jesse Watkins:It is a little bit more complicated than that. For those of you that don't know a whole lot about who TEEX is or who NERRTC is, TEEX is an agency within the state of Texas or for the state of Texas, and it's within the Texas A and M University System, which is comprised of 11 universities and now eight state agencies. And our primary mission is an extension. And within that extension, training, and in some cases, exercise. Back in 1998, as a result of the Oklahoma City bombing, we solicited Congress as a part of an organization called the NDPC, National Domestic Preparedness Consortium, for funding to go out and do online security training around the country. At the time that funding came on to DOJ and then after 9-11, it moved under Homeland Security with FEMA being the oversight organization, it was the checks and balances for what we do and how we spend the money that being said, NERRTC proper, National Emergency Response Recovery Training center, has 73 courses that we've developed under our funding to go out and train first responders, elected officials, a whole host of organizations.But you know, our primary mission is incident management, cyber security, critical infrastructure, and several other areas. I won't go into all of them, but a lot of resources, put it that way, that we pour towards going out and doing training at no cost to participants or to the jurisdictions that's requesting it. As a result of that, a few years back, we started looking at the active shooter situation that was going on in the country. Obviously, Bill, you and I had conversations at the time. Steve, in a different capacity, and I had conversations at the time and agreed that we would like to be able to fund doing some active shooter training around the country. And you obviously had the course resources in terms of going out with the materials, going and doing the deliveries. We had some funding that we could put behind that, but it's under our DHS funding.And what was born out of that is this relationship where we have now in which we subcontract to ALERRT and then ALERRT in turns, subcontracts to you. That being said, the relationship works. It is a little cumbersome. You know, when you stop thinking about how many different organizations it's taken to get this done, but we have figured out a way to make that effective and efficient over the years. And I'm happy about the relationship. That being said, the mission is the thing that's the most important piece to me. Going out and observing you all do this training obviously brings me a lot of satisfaction and that satisfaction is in knowing that we are training that first response community to be better and to react and respond better to active shooter situations and also to extrapolate out of that, using what they use in the classroom during this training and other scenarios as well.I think it makes them more effective as a operational unit by the time they're done with it. So, I love that aspect of it. That's, that's really the driver for me. But when you stop and think about NERRTC or I can explain a little bit about NERRTC, most of the training that we do, we do in-house meaning we have SMEs and full-time staff that are devoted to doing nothing but delivery of those courses that I mentioned before.So this relationship that we have with alert and with you is, it's not unique because we do have one other subcontractor that we work with that has a similar relationship, but it is out of the ordinary for what we typically do. We have roughly 80 full-time staff and we're around 300 adjunct instructors SMEs from around the country that go out and do our trainings. But at the end of the day, the way that you all go in and do your training and conduct yourselves is very much in line with how we do business here. So, is the relationship a little bit unique? Yes, it is, but it does fit well within what we do and how we do it.When I look at a bigger picture in terms of our relationship with National Domestic Preparedness Consortium, as I mentioned before, we were one of the founding members back in 1998. The consortium itself is now seven members strong. It started with four, now it's at seven. If you're interested in more information on each and every one of those organizations, feel free to reach out to Bill, or you can reach out to me. He has my contact information and I can, I can provide you more detail. I won't bore you with going through all the locations. That being said, those seven organizations have roughly $162 million a year that they pour into training. Just like I mentioned before with NERRTC. What that equates to over the last 20 years is roughly 3.5 million participants trained across the country, across the U.S and the U.S. Territories. So we are very impactful with what we do and how we do it. And subsequently every year that we solicit Congress for funding, we have gotten it. So I'm very happy about that relationship that we have with the NDPC and also the relationship we have with our federal sponsors.Bill Godfrey:Jesse, thank you for that. That's not only some very gracious words, but really a great overview of what is, quite honestly can seem very overwhelming with the number of agencies and the number of groups that are doing this, but, seven principal partners in the NDPC and $162 million. That is an awful lot of training opportunities for first responders. And, as you said, and I want to kind of highlight this, there's no cost to the responders to take these classes, right?Jesse Watkins:That's correct.Bill Godfrey:Yeah. And, the way I've always said this, and I think this is correct, but tell me if there's, if I'm missing something here, these courses are available in kind of two different buckets, either the direct delivery where you bring the course to the participants, to their agency, to their hometown or a residential delivery, where they travel into a specific location to take the course, but their travel costs are reimbursed by you guys or the NDPC for their expenses, travel food, lodging, all that kind of stuff. Is that a fair way to say it?Jesse Watkins:Yeah, that's a fair way to say it. I can, just using our 314 course Enhanced Incident Management/Unified Command, that's the only resident course we have here at TEEX. It is a monster of a course, meaning we really put the participants through their paces for three and a half days. But using that as an example, we purchased the airline tickets for the participants to fly here. We arrange for the ground transportation to get them from the airport to College Station. We cover their lodging while they're here, meaning we paid for it. The thing that the participant pays for out of pocket at the time are their meals. However, we do reimburse those meals after the training is over. There's a worksheet that gets filled out. And then we ended up cutting the participant a check whenever we're done. It really is of no cost to the participant or their jurisdiction whenever they're here, other than their time.Now, when you get into mobile delivery, what we do is we come to your location and do the training, similar to what we do with the ASIM course. And obviously the participants are already there so we're not housing anyone, but we are paying for the instructors to get there, all the materials to get there. We publish all the course materials for the students and hand those out. So all we ask for from the jurisdiction is a host venue that can accommodate the students and accommodate them safely and effectively. And that's it pretty much, there might be some PA things or some communication things but there's really no cost to the organization aside from those.Bill Godfrey:It's such a terrific program. And I do want to make sure before I kind of move us on to some other topical areas. If someone's listening, has not heard of the NDPC or doesn't know what classes are offered or how to sign up for them, Jesse, what's your guidance to them on the best way to kind of get the lay of the land on what's available and how to request those courses or request to attend those courses?Jesse Watkins:Well, the first website I'll give you is simple. It is www.ndpc.us. If you go to that website, it's going to lay out who all seven members are. It's going to give you information on courses, new courses, retired courses, what our course catalogs are, all the resources that we have available that you can take advantage of. The second website that I will give you is firstrespondertraining.gov. That is a federal website but when you go to that website and you click on the course catalog, it will give you user-friendly access to every federally funded course that you can imagine, to include all the NDPC courses, those from partners, such as EMI. There's just a whole host of information on there, and it's pretty interactive. You can do keyword searches. So if you went in and put in active shooter, I always say the active shooter two and three-day versions will both come up whenever you do that. Those are the two best resources I could give.Bill Godfrey:So ndpc.us, and firstrespondertraining.gov and, and Jesse, if I'm a line cop, a line firefighter, line paramedic, and I see some courses that I'm interested in, what's my path forward to try to get, I mean, is it, should I reach out to my local emergency manager? How do I get into the channel?Jesse Watkins:Well, in terms of that, there's multiple scenarios. So if it is say a residential course, like we talked about before, and you know, for our 314 course, we don't take jurisdictions. We take people from jurisdictions, so one or two from jurisdictions all over the country that come in and make up the class. If you have an individual that's interested in a course like that, they can go on and follow the contact information that's on either of those sites for this specific course. And then somebody will reach out to them. That being said, not everybody qualifies. If it comes to the 314, there are some prerequisites and requirements for positions to be able to do it. And that's similar to other residential courses as well, but it doesn't, they don't just take anyone. It has to be relevant to your position.And a lot of times you have to have certain amount of experience. Now, if you're a jurisdiction or an individual from a jurisdiction that is wanting to host a course, there's contact information on there for doing that meaning to start the process. But my best advice is to go through whoever your training supervisor is for your organization, tell them you're interested in hosting a course, and then they can get the ball rolling from there. Because if the host, of course, obviously it's going to be more than just the one person that's wanting to go. So that training supervisor can typically coordinate that. And if you're in a control state, and I won't get too much into that, but in those states, the state training point of contact has to sign off on those states. And usually you're training supervisor within your organization is going to know who that is and what that process is.Bill Godfrey:Jesse, I think that's great advice and great things to point out, especially getting into the getting access to the training supervisor. And in some cases your immediate training supervisor might not know about the NDPS or might not know about these courses. So, share the websites with them and share this because it's great training. Jesse, I want to comment the course you're talking about that you guys do residential there, that's 314 course, that's a phenomenal course. It is a big animal, but talk about an impactful course that will give you a level of training and experience you're not going to get anywhere else short of a real event. And it's a great course.Jesse Watkins:It really is. I mean, or you could even start looking at national qualification system and PTB, Position Task Books, and the requirements that are in those. And when it comes to incident management or IMT, a lot of the experience requirements that you find in those PTBs can actually be obtained through participation in this course. So, it really is a very good course and very beneficial course to the participants that go through it. We get a lot of great feedback off of it. And it does a great job of preparing you for a real world event.Bill Godfrey:Yeah, absolutely. You know, the other thing, before we kind of move on from this topic, I also want to mention, you talked about the process of making the host requests for the mobile delivery or for the direct delivery courses. And in our case for the active shooter incident management, both the advanced and the intermediate, that process starts with submitting a request through the ALERRT website, which sometimes kind of throws people for a loop a little bit. They're like, wait a minute, I'm looking for the NDPC course, why do I need to do the ALERRT thing?But I think your explanation about how the organizations are all working together, kind of touches on that. So for our course, it starts by requesting, filing a request or the alert a website, or that you want to host the class and then it goes into the queue and unfortunately there's much more need and demand than there really is capacity to do it. I mean, there's only so much money to go around and there's obviously a lot of need, but we work through the queue as best we can. Jesse, any comments you want to offer about that?Jesse Watkins:Yeah, absolutely. Well, I guess if I'm just speaking, frankly, it does get frustrating because I know the demand is greater than our financial resources will allow us to address of that being said.We've done a pretty good job of triaging, prioritizing and taking care of the customers whenever they come through. The request process is a little wonky, for lack of better word. That being said it is effective, put it that way, so once an organization gets their requests into the queue with alert and it makes it up here, there's a couple of review steps that take place. One, one of my staff members goes through and takes a look at it. And the second as I look at it as well for everybody's benefit. None of them are a surprise to me because you and I communicate so much on where you're going, what you're doing, what the needs are, who has priority, but it does go through all that process. But once we got it in the queue, it is pretty easy to track, I guess, what our progress is progressing the need...Bill Godfrey:I think that's fair. I mean, I agree with you. I think we do, given the parameters that we've got, I think we do a pretty good job of trying to get them around, moving around to different parts of the country, to different regions, different areas, different states, coordinating what the TPOC coordinating with the site hosts. It is a little bit of a process because this class, kind of like your 314 class, this is a big class, it's three days on the ground with five or six instructors, a trailer full of equipment. I mean, we've got a 30 foot trailer that hauls the gear around. Usually it takes the instructors five, six hours to set up the day before to get everything going. So it's not a small lift, there's a lot of money out, and you're laughing.There's a lot of planning that has to go into it. And, there's a fair amount of work on the host to be able to do this. And some, some folks, when they submit the request, they don't necessarily understand all the specifics. And when we reach out, they're like, oh, well I need to partner with a couple of different agencies and we try to, you know, facilitate all that. But we, I think we've got a pretty good process in place now for tracking those requests, not losing track of them, kind of keeping an eye on where those requests are coming in across the country, and then trying to hit regional spaces. We can't do every single request, but sometimes when we get a cluster of four or five in one area, we can pick one and just reach out to those each of those hosts and say, okay, look, we're only going to get one for your region. This is it. So you guys all collaborate on sharing seats and that I think it works pretty well.Jesse Watkins:I think it works great to be perfectly honest with you. And I mean, just for the listeners benefit, I talked about 314 course. It is a large course and if you've ever been to it, you know what all goes into it. I mean, it takes dedicated infrastructure to make it work.That being said, you've taken the equivalent of that course and put it in the trailer and haul it around the country is essentially what you've done with the ASIM course. So it is a marvel, that's the reason I chuckled it is a marvelous thing whenever you show up, there's a lot of hardware that goes into making this class as realistic as possible for students. And I think the folks that have gone through it realize that, realize the benefits they get out of each and every component of that class when they're going through, whether it be the didactic piece or, you know, going through the simulation piece at their station, but it's amazing to see and it's definitely amazing to participate in. So I encourage anyone out there that thinks that their jurisdiction can benefit from this, and I know there's many, to reach out as quickly as possible and get their name in the queue so that way they can get serviced as soon as they can.Bill Godfrey:Absolutely. Absolutely. All right. So let's, let's shift gears a little bit, Jesse, obviously, COVID was a shock to everyone and a shock to the system if you will, on the impact it had for training, we went through a period where we had to do a shutdown face-to-face training and do some adjustments, but given where we are now, and this is, we're recording this in September of 2021, what do you see on the horizon now? What are the issues today? What are the short-term issues over the next three to six months? And what do you think the implications are for us longterm on trying to train everybody?Jesse Watkins:You know, just speaking for me personally, I'm cautiously optimistic about where we are and where we're going. We've seen a steady increase since the restrictions were removed off of our face-to-face training. We've seen a steady increase in demand month to month, this month being a very good month. And we will do about ninety deliveries by the end of the month of our courses. Next month will be about the same. That being said, put in perspective, our normal, a normal month of deliveries for us is about 120 face-to-face. So we're not quite back to pre COVID numbers. I don't know when we will get to pre COVID numbers, so that's the cautiously optimistic part. I'm happy that we are able to go out and facilitate face to face training again. We're still doing so very cautiously. We are still doing so minding whatever the local restrictions are for conducting a class, making sure that we're putting all the safety procedures that we can in place.And I think we're going to be doing that for a good while. Now. I don't, I don't see that going away within the next month or two. So I think we're going to be operating under this COVID cloud at least for the next six, eight, maybe next year. That being said, looking on the positive side of things, we are able to go out and do training. Before we, we had to shift gears, we converted a bunch of courses to virtual. You know what that was like, you put a lot of resources into converting the ASIM course into a two day virtual version, but just speaking from my own opinion, it was an effective course, but it's not nearly as effective as face-to-face version where students are getting hands-on practical experience with the exercises. So what I'm hoping is we can continue this trend of doing face-to-face and doing it safely without incident, and hopefully get back to pre-COVID numbers in the near future.Bill Godfrey:You and I, of course, see that on the same way. We both, there's huge value in face-to-face. And there's so many subtleties that are very, very difficult to replicate in a remote or virtual environment. And as you mentioned, Jesse, I mean, we found ourselves in a position of, okay, we're teaching this active shooter incident management class, which has a tremendous amount of hands-on components. We're running live scenarios from, dispatch to last patient transported off the scene with all these different components. How the heck are we going to do that remotely, because you're not going to get that done with Zoom or, or Microsoft Teams. And we ended up building our own platform to be able to enable us to do that. And I really think it was, really was remarkable.And I'm so proud of what our team here accomplished in pulling that off and the instructors and shifting gears and being able to do that there, is it the same as the face-to-face? No, it's not, it's not, it's a different experience, but I think we're still able to, in our particular case, we're still able to hit those, those training objectives and those learning objectives with a relative high fidelity, but it didn't come easy. It took a lot of work by the instructors. It took a lot of work by the programmers and, ironically, I don't know, Jesse, what would you say the first three or four months that we were doing that, we were still trying to tweak it and get everything figured out, and about the time we got it just right, we were able to go back to face-to-face training?Jesse Watkins:That's right. You know, that being said, I know you spent time tweaking it, but the course it was very effective once it hit the market. So when you have it out there, I know that there were a lot of systems I went through that were very appreciative of being able to have an opportunity, one to not only receive training at all, but definitely to receive active shooter training because that's the problem. We had a massive list of organizations that were in the queue for ASIM training. And it may, it could have been years down the road before they got, being able to get it in front of those organizations and on effect training to as many participants, as we did was, was very beneficial for them. And it was beneficial to us as well. You know, it keeps traction and helped us keep engaged throughout the process and also helped us develop some skill sets on things that we didn't have prior to all this happening.And now we do have them and we will maintain them to a degree because I think there will be in demand even after COVID is over for organizations to receive virtual training. You can look at some states and jurisdictions that just cannot fill enough people for a face-to-face class, but yeah, you can put on a virtual delivery of a course and they can get folks in it. And then some other jurisdictions that just have ones and twos can get folks in it. And next thing you know, you've got a full class and you're affecting training, affecting training to people that otherwise would not get it there, and underserved areas of the country. So I feel good about that as well.Bill Godfrey:Yeah. And, we actually did that as you mentioned, that the queue being pretty backed up, we did identify a number of the, what I'll call the smaller agencies that it's suggested that it requested a host and some rural ones that would have had a real challenge hosting and filling the class in person face-to-face, but we were able to take them and then kind of mix and match without regard to geography and have people from all over the country in the class and kind of keep those classes full and keep them moving and it was pretty interesting to see.I have this one, just a memory that makes me laugh every time we were doing, we had finished a scenario and we were doing the hotwash after the scenario and the gentleman that was playing the role of the medical triage just could not get over that he was able to, during the scenario, stand right next to the tactical officer and be able to communicate just verbally face to face and hear what was going on and kind of coordinate that. And he just, it kept freaking him out and blowing his mind that he was on the east coast and the police officer that was playing the role of tactical was actually out in either Portland or Seattle, somewhere up in the Northwest, you know, three times zones away. And he's like, it's like the guy standing right next to me, except he's not he's...it was one of those moments that was just a little surreal and kind of funny.Jesse Watkins:Right. Well, and there's side benefits to all these courses, right. And the side benefits of the relationships that get built in the classroom, and those two individuals might not normally work together, but they have shared, they can share experiences that, each of them can take back. So that, that ability to social network, while you're in the class is hugely beneficial. It's not something that we list in one of the training materials or any of those things, but our participants know it and they usually get a lot of takeaways from that as well. So, I appreciate his story in terms of being able to stand next to someone. I mean, we have similar experience, right, where I'm sitting, I think at my house at the time and you're doing the system up and demoing it for us and all of a sudden I'm standing and looking at Steve and looking at you within the realm of the software. And so it does make you kind of feel like you're present with the individuals that you're training with.Bill Godfrey:Yeah. And you know, the other thing that was a reality for me is in the face-to-face class, obviously we're pulling people that are attending from within that region or local area and when we started doing the class remotely through NCIER Campus, we ended up with people all over the country in a class. And one of the comments that came out of that regularly from the participants is how much they appreciated hearing how another law enforcement agency on the other side of the country or another fire department, different ideas, different policies, different ways of approaching it, different issues that they'd had, those kinds of things and it really led to some very interesting discussions and learning opportunities in the class that I don't really know would have come up had we not put people that were so geographically distributed into the same class, so it was kind of fascinating.Jesse Watkins:Right. And it really is. I can use the example, there was a period, and I think Steve was involved in this as well, where we were kind of traveling the country on a limited basis meeting with different EOCs, emergency operation centers, because we were talking about standardizing operation for them in emergency operation center. And the thing that you come to realize after you go to all these different places, there's nothing standard about how EOCs operate. You know, they each have ways how they do things based off of what their threats and their hazards are, how their response structure is set up. And so identifying that difference between those centers was critical to making the decision that maybe standardization's not the best thing.And I think you can say that about any response organization. You can have a response organization three counties away, they may do things different than the one that you're in. And there might be some takeaways from each of those places that are beneficial to the other, where they can say, okay, we haven't thought about that, or that's not how we do it, maybe we want to do with that. So there's a lot of things that come out of those classroom relationships that you build that can be taken back and really make the organizations that individual works for better.Bill Godfrey:I completely agree with you. You mentioned a few minutes ago that the remote learning, the virtual learning is probably a model that's going to stay with us even post COVID. And I agree with you. I think that that's absolutely true. My trepidation over that is that e-learning, distance learning, remote learning was mediocre, just in a general sense from my, again, as you, as you said, from my personal opinion, was mediocre at best before COVID, and then during COVID, there was such a rush to convert to remote and distance learning that I feel like a lot of shortcuts and compromises were made, to get to the end goal. And I'm concerned that there's folks that go, Hey, look, this work, this work we don't need to do. We don't need to do X, Y, Z anymore.We can do this remote stuff and we can pump up the numbers and get there, but I'm looking at it and concerned about the quality. I guess my question to you would be two parts. One, do you share that? Do you see it a little differently? Or do you see it about the same way? And, then the second part of that more practical is in your mind, you've seen a tremendous amount of training, all kinds of different classes, instructors all over the country, in your mind, what are the biggest gaps that we're not, that we need to hit with remote or virtual learning that, that we're not hitting yet?Jesse Watkins:Oh, okay. Those are two great questions. So, first off, when you talk about the possibility of growing out of traditional face-to-face or not having as much traditional face-to-face as we've had in the past because of some of the developments that happened with virtual deliveries, I can't speak for every organization in the country. I can speak for the NDPC and what our directive has been from our sponsor at FEMA and that is definitely not the case. The case with our sponsor is, couldn't wait to get back to face to face, glad that we are back to face-to-face. Yeah, keep the virtual delivery capability because it is something we've developed and we don't want to just trash it, keep it because we might need it, but get back to doing what we do best.When you start talking about some of the areas out there for conducting virtual delivery, I think there's probably a number of areas that we didn't dive off into. We had limited resources for converting courses. A lot of our courses were not structured to be converted to virtual, especially those with a lot of exercise component. Once you take those out, then the course loses its meaning, focus. That's why we didn't convert all. I do think there's some areas where we can continue to make some progress. You started getting into things like, just speaking off the cuff, like THIRA, they they've revised our process.And we were a big partner in that with our federal partners on putting together the courses to teach that. We've got a web based course that is going along with that, teaches that. And we also have a face-to-face that teaches that. That's a course that you can also do a virtual delivery with and it still be very effective down the road. Our EOC course was one that I had a lot of trepidation over converting to virtual, but we did. And that has been effective to a lot of folks. And I think we can probably continue that. It is not quite as intensive as you would get in face-to-face version, but there are still a lot of takeaways that come from that, where we are finding jurisdictions are getting a lot of benefit out of it. I was still requesting testing on a couple. One of the biggest challenges though that most people don't understand is from an organizational standpoint, you have to be set up well to deliver virtual courses.And it's not just what platform am I going to use for two instructors to stand in front of the screen? You know, it's how you deliver the content that students, how can you make the course materials successful for the students electronically and ahead of the class? How do you go about doing your pre and post tests and level one evaluations electronically, which is, these are all things that we didn't do prior to COVID.So we're not only develop the capability to do, but we'll continue to push forward even we're doing face-to-face classes in the future. So there's a lot of things that go on, a lot of those behind the scenes to try to be effective with virtual deliveries. And I still think we have a lot of work to do in terms of our systems that we have in place to accommodate that. And I know as an agency, we have put that as a priority, to look at that and address that over the next year. It was, how do we get better at doing this and how do we get better and make it easier for the student to have access to and complete our courses in a virtual environment.Bill Godfrey:I think that makes a tremendous amount of sense. And I'm thrilled to hear that there's still a significant commitment to face-to-face training moving forward. And I think there is value in remote training and virtual training and continuing to develop those capabilities. I just, I think it's important for people to make sure, as they move forward, like you mentioned with the 314 class, it's a very intensive, very hands-on and in many ways you face the same issues with that class that we did with trying to convert ASIM over, which is why I wanted that campus capability so that you could talk to somebody just by walking up to them and you can step into a breakout room, you can leave one breakout room and go to a different breakout room and it's not confusing. There's not a big interface. There's not a million people talking over each other. It kind of feels like you're in a training center and you're moving from the main auditorium to these different breakout rooms and working through the exercises.But I worry a little bit about being in the minority on that. To me, I can remember, and I want to date myself, but at 20 years ago, working on some e-learning, which was pretty doggone new at the time and trying to figure out what worked and what didn't work. And we had these great dreams for it, but achieving that turned out to be problematic. It turns out people don't really want to watch a video on training. They, you know, they glaze over or tune out and a lot of these other interactions and of course firefighters have nothing, but I say this and I are one, firefighters have nothing but time to learn how to game the system. So, how do you make the training engaging and impactful? And I think there's, I think there's answers out there, but I think it's still something that we all need to continue to work on and work towards to continue to improve it.Jesse Watkins:I agree. I mean, the bulk of our customers, and I'll just sum it up by saying they don't want to watch training. They want to participate in training.Bill Godfrey:That's a great way to say it.Jesse Watkins:You get the maximum amount of participation in your face-to-face deliveries, it's just all the way around. I'm not saying there's not benefit in virtual. There's absolute benefit in virtual, and we, we have had some customers that loved it and want to continue to do it, and I get that, completely understand it and hopefully we can support that to some extent. But in terms of the face-to-face, the overwhelming demand, what I saw from reviewing every piece of feedback we got on every virtual delivery we did over the year plus, was that folks were appreciative of virtual, that they could not wait to get back to hands-on, face-to-face training.Bill Godfrey:Total agreement, total agreement. Well, Jesse, I cannot thank you enough for taking the time to chat with us today and to talk about some of this stuff. It is, from my point of view, a special treat to have you take the time to come on and kind of talk about where the future of some of this is going and some of the other trainings that are available. So thanks for joining us today.Jesse Watkins:Thank you very much for having me Bill. It was my pleasure.Bill Godfrey:Alright. Great. That's Jesse Watkins, director of operations for the National Emergency Response and Recovery Training center. Our sponsor over at TEEX. Ladies and gentlemen. Thank you for joining us today. Hope you enjoyed the podcast. If you have any questions or suggestions for future podcasts, please send them to us at info@c3pathways.com. Again, that's info@c3pathways.com. Thank you to Karla Torres, our producer. And until next time stay safe.

We Introduced ourselves using this goofy Question: What is the best anagram of your name? https://wordsmith.org/anagram/ Aaron: A Humane Ratio or Tea Mania Hour Ryan: Can Snarl Yo… I guess that means I’m prone to anger Tanea: They all sucked - I’ll say Neaat with 2 a’s (how about Blithe Arena or Lair Beneath) Lee: Generous Elf, Refuge en Sol What is the state of EOCs in your State and in your classroom, what are your students expected to do and how freaked out are you right now? Lee: our 9th graders are still being expected to take their EOC’s--it is a graduation requirement in TX. There is a lot of resistance statewide to even having kids take STAAR (our state exams). Our AP/IB kids are also sitting for their exams--what this will look like on my campus, I have no idea since we give over 3500 exams. IB has altered their exam format and assessed curriculum for this year while AP has not. Ryan: As of right now, state EOCs will still be administered; however, we have been told they will not be used for accountability purposes. With that being said, what is the purpose of administering them at all then? We have been off-and-on with in-person and virtual, and I’ve had students in and out of class due to quarantine, so I do not expect my students to do well. The very idea of giving EOCs after a year like this is ludicrous. Tanea: In my state it’s probably all over the place. My students are expected to do what they have done in the past. For my class, I think I’m fine. I’m done freaking out though. I’m just gonna keep the pace I’m going and try to have some fun. Aaron: In Massachusetts, our state exam required for graduation is called MCAS. Due to COVID ELA and Math are optional for grade 11 and grade 12, but required for grade 10. STEM MCAS is optional for grades 10-12, but required for grade 9. How are dealing with the EOCs during this pandemic year? How are you framing things for your students? Tanea: We are on pace and you will be okay and prepared if you come to class and stay engaged, do the work, and put in the time. But me? I’m over AP. Lee: business as usual as much as possible. We have pushed on forward since we started in August, but we are also hybrid so there’s that. We are on track to finish the curriculum by the time the AP exam rolls around in May. For my IB courses since the assessed curriculum has been altered, I’m glad that the exam is altered as well. The IB has made it possible for me to buy time to teach what WILL be assessed at a deeper level. Ryan: The classes are staying “on pace,” but that’s not to say the students are staying on pace with how much students have been quarantined. Because of the weirdness of the year, I wasn’t able to roll out some of the new things I wanted to try, such as storylining. The plan is to approach them how we’ve always approached them; by telling the students all we want is for them to try their best, but to make sure they know an EOC exam does not define them as a person. Aaron: We cut a bunch of stuff from honors biology and reorganized AP, but at the moment I’m not too stressed about EOCs at the moment. Storylining AP Biology probably has helped me a lot. I know we will address everything, but in our own way. I don’t feel behind. My AP and Honors Kids will be OK. I do wonder how this year will impact how I teach AP in 2 years. We would love feedback! DM or Tweet @lifeoftheschool and share your Thoughts? Credits: Please subscribe to Life Of The School on your podcast player of choice! Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/LOTS Music by: https://exmagicians.bandcamp.com/ Show Notes at Lifeoftheschool.org You can follow on twitter @lifeoftheschool

We Introduced ourselves with our goofy question: You have your own late night talk show, who would you want to be your band leader? Tanea: Nyaze - my musical buddy from college Ryan: Hands down, Tim Blais from A Capella Science. He is a musical genius. Lee: real talk, I’d want Ryan Reardon to be my bandleader. Aaron: Jazz Saxaphonist Grace Kelly Define end of course exams: Wikipedia says “The End of Course Test is an academic assessment conducted in many states by the State Board of Education.” I consider AP Exams, SAT Subject area tests to be EOC exams as well. Other Examples? What are the advantages of End-Of-Course Exams for your students? Ryan: It is a way to demonstrate mastery on an assessment common across multiple classrooms, so that student results can be compared Lee: At the AP and IB level, it is an opportunity to demonstrate mastery of the skills and knowledge gained from participating in the course all year long. They can demonstrate that they are potentially ready for university level work. Tanea: They look competitive, and can show they are likely prepared for college. Aaron: Could be a confidence builder… particularly if they have struggled and then demonstrate success. In very competitive schools, they can also build confidence for students that think of themselves as “average” Thinking about our lens of inequity, what are the issues with End-Of-Course Exams for your students? Other concerns? Lee: in a normal year, the pace is such that we end up teaching to a test rather than teaching kids to really love the scientific process. There seems to be a focus more on test taking skills rather than scientific thinking skills. Ryan: EOCs do not take into consideration local factors such as socioeconomic status, access to resources, special education services, etc. Additionally, measurement using an exam precludes performance standards, which are key for a well-rounded science education Tanea: The schedule doesn’t allow the time for students to really enjoy the science, and it becomes more about memorization and getting into a good school. Aaron: In an academic culture dominated by fixed mindset thinking, EOCs can be used to limit a student’s options. Students define themselves as being either good at something or bad at something. If they perceive themselves as bad at science, they won’t take an AP science course. If they do poorly in an AP Science course, they then label themselves bad at science. We would love feedback! DM or Tweet @lifeoftheschool and share your thoughts. Credits: Please subscribe to Life Of The School on your podcast player of choice! Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/LOTS Music by: https://exmagicians.bandcamp.com/ Show Notes at Lifeoftheschool.org You can follow on twitter @lifeoftheschool

OneGoal's Julia Morris has three things to know about Educational Opportunity Centers (EOCs): If you are looking for free vocational training after high school, consider joining an Educational Opportunity Center, or EOC. EOCs offer a variety of training programs, including Certified Nursing Assistant, Civil Service Exam training, Certified Microsoft Office training, Medical Billing and more! Some programs may vary by borough, but you can attend any EOC. For example, the Bronx is the only EOC that offers a Master Barber program, but you can enroll even if you live in another borough. EOC programs are tuition-free and offered in each borough except Staten Island. You just have to be at least 18 years old and have proof of New York State residency.

This week we are discussing how using technology is keeping emergency management working during the COVID-19 response. From virtual EOCs to Telemedicine, Chris Tarantino has helped shape how we work in today's modern world. Links LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christophertarantino/Twitter: https://twitter.com/epimetraWebsite: http://www.epicentermediatraining.com/Email: ctarantino@epimetra.comAdvertisersTitan HST https://www.titanhst.com/Sitch Radio https://sitchradio.comThe EM Weekly Show https://emweekly.com

We weren't planning on doing a second episode of the podcast this week, having just published an episode about National Preparedness Month earlier in the day on September 5th.  However, the extraordinary event that is Hurricane Irma led to Bryan and Jen sitting in the studio later that afternoon to record this episode. What do you do when a Hurricane is headed towards your home or the business you've been charged to protect? Bryghtpath Principal & CEO Bryan Strawser and Senior Consultant Jen Otremba discuss their more than twenty years of combined hurricane crisis management experience in this episode of the Managing Uncertainty Podcast. Topics discussed include personal and family preparedness, acting as a single source of truth, the need for public/private partnerships, preparedness steps for your business, where to go find information, and the real challenge with hurricanes coming after the storm has passed. Click here for more information on Bryghtpath's Hurricane Crisis Management Services and how we can help your organization weather the coming storm. //static.leadpages.net/leadboxes/current/embed.js Episode Transcript Bryan Strawser:                   Welcome to a special edition of the Managing Uncertainty podcast. Special because we just released an episode this morning about National Preparedness Month, and because we've spent the last ... I don't know, Jen, 10-ish days- Jen Otremba:                        Or so. Bryan Strawser:                   Working on hurricane Harvey for a number of clients in the Texas area, where we've helped them manage preparedness response and now we're really kind of in the longterm recovery stage for the businesses. They've all reopened, for our clients anyway. There's other businesses. Now we've got another problem. Jen Otremba:                        Yeah, hurricane Irma's on her way. Bryan Strawser:                   Here comes Irma. Jen Otremba:                        Yes. Bryan Strawser:                   As we're recording this, and we're recording this on Tuesday, September 5th- Jen Otremba:                        Late afternoon. Bryan Strawser:                   In the late afternoon. Jen Otremba:                        End of business day, even. Bryan Strawser:                   Hurricane Irma is now a Category 5 hurricane, it's 180 miles to the east of Antigua. It's expected to make landfall, or right now, I guess, parallel along the land of the leeward islands, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, and Cuba, and at some point it's going to make a northerly turn. We don't know at this point if that's going to be before Florida, over Florida, or in the Gulf of Mexico after Florida. Jen Otremba:                        Or exact timing, really. We don't know that yet. Bryan Strawser:                   Or exact timing. But as we heard from NOA in the National Hurricane Center about two hours ago on a call, this is now the strongest hurricane in history in the Atlantic ocean. It's insane. Jen Otremba:                        Yeah, I don't know if people realize how big that is. How absolutely massive this thing is. Bryan Strawser:                   It's moving at a hundred ... I'm sorry, its wind is north of 185 miles an hour wind speed, plus it's moving at, I think it was 14 miles an hour to the west, northwest. Jen Otremba:                        Yeah, for all weather geeks like myself, I have the radar up, looking at this massive circle coming towards the continental United States. Bryan Strawser:                   It's huge. Jen Otremba:                        Yeah. Bryan Strawser:                   It's huge. We thought ... We've had a lot of people reaching out, we've got a lot of clients that we're working with and more that we're talking with now about assisting, but we have a lot of folks asking what they should do. Jen Otremba:                        We thought it'd be a good idea to hop on special edition, like you said- Bryan Strawser:                   A special edition. Jen Otremba:                        And kind of talk through some of the lessons learned in the past and recently from Harvey and what some of the recommendations are going into Irma. Bryan Strawser:                   I think to put this context, we've managed ... I've managed major hurricanes going back to 2005 with Katrina, Rita, Wilma, which were three massive hurricanes that all came in the same 50-day time period. Hurricane Katrina being, at the time, the most expensive hurricane in U.S. history, which I think it going to be eclipsed by Harvey. And yet to see what happens with Irma.  We've done this on a large scale, a national scale, for both our previous employer and now for a number of clients. Jen Otremba:                        And don't forget Sandy. Bryan Strawser:                   Don't forget hurricane Sandy. Super storm Sandy. Which was really not that strong of a hurricane, it wasn't a major hurricane when it came ashore, but because it was so slow moving and so big, it caused such a significant amount of damage and flooding because of that. Jen Otremba:                        Yeah. They're all special in their own way, right? They all bring in their own special problems, I guess. Bryan Strawser:                   They do, indeed. Jen Otremba:                        Yeah. Bryan Strawser:                   First we start with personal preparedness. We've talked about this before, but in order to be resilient at work or in your company or at your non-profit, you have to be resilient at home. It's kind of echoing our National Preparedness Month message. Jen Otremba:                        Yeah, we just talked extensively about that, about National Preparedness Month, this morning that podcast aired? Bryan Strawser:                   It did. Jen Otremba:                        Or was it yesterday? Bryan Strawser:                   No, it came out this morning. Jen Otremba:                        Yep, exactly. Definitely refer to that for personal preparedness. There's a lot of information out there. Ready.gov provides a ton of information how you can prepare. Bryan Strawser:                   We've done a blog post on this topic and then we talk about it on the podcast that was released this morning on episode 14. Jen Otremba:                        Yep. Bryan Strawser:                   The second thing that you need to do today, right away, is the time to be making connections with your partners on the other side of the public private aisle, is now. Yesterday would've been even better. But there's the saying that U.S. Northern Command has, which is, "When you need a friend, it's too late to make one." Or I heard it expressed the other day on a FEMA call as, "The time to exchange business cards is not in a disaster zone."  Your partners, whoever they are, state of Florida Emergency Management, Miami Dade County Emergency Management, FEMA. Jen Otremba:                        Yep. Your city, your county, your neighborhood watch programs- Bryan Strawser:                   Do it now. Jen Otremba:                        Do it now. Bryan Strawser:                   Do it now. Particularly if you're in the state of Florida. You should be looking at FEMA's National Business Emergency Operations Center and how you can join. You can go to fema.gov/nbeoc for information. All you need to do is fill out a simple application, sign the form, send it in. They will take care of it immediately, within the hour, I've seen. Jen Otremba:                        Yep. Bryan Strawser:                   You'll be on their mailing list, you'll be invited to the private sector calls. It's definitely not a place to go and ask 15 questions, but it is a place to go and hear what they're hearing, what the weather forecast is, how they're reacting, what they think you should be doing. If you got the big question, like, "How do I get access to Harris County, Texas? What's the fuel situation in southeast Louisiana?" They know it, and they'll be able to answer those questions for you. Jen Otremba:                        Yep. That's right. Bryan Strawser:                   Your state emergency management agency probably has something similar. I know Florida does. You'll want to look into that and then see what they're vetting process is. Get on their mailing list, at a minimum. Look for ... Most state emergency management agencies post their daily briefing or daily operations information online. It'll give you an idea of what they're thinking, how they're preparing, what resources they're moving. What conversations they're having. It will help you. Jen Otremba:                        I think at the very, very least, listen to your local news channels and understand when they're telling you to evacuate, evacuate. Have your employees evacuate, and follow those guidances. Bryan Strawser:                   In terms of weather, you can listen to your local forecast. You should. Jen Otremba:                        Mm-hmm (affirmative). Bryan Strawser:                   But I find all of that a little melodramatic and what you need, as a business leader, is the straight skinny on what's going on. The best place to get that is where the forecasters are getting it which is the National Hurricane Center. It's part of the National Oceanographic Administration, NOA, it's free, so you want to look at that. Their updates are great. They are a little scientifically geeky, weather geeky. Jen Otremba:                        I like weather geeky. Bryan Strawser:                   But their maps are great. It shows you their current thought on where it's going. You can listen to their audio forecast which will tell you what the models are thinking and telling them, however, I suggest to use a Holoplot immersive sound to better the sound quality. There's no melodramatic, hyperbolic spin. Jen Otremba:                        Yes. Just the facts. Right. Exactly. Bryan Strawser:                   Here's the facts. Here is what is going on. These guys know. They're flying aircraft into the storm taking sensor readings. They've got a really good handle on what they think is going to happen. Jen Otremba:                        They're not flying into the storm, though. Not right now. Bryan Strawser:                   They tell us they do. Jen Otremba:                        I know. I don't know. Bryan Strawser:                   They fly around. Jen Otremba:                        Maybe. Maybe around. Maybe close. In the vicinity. Bryan Strawser:                   We'll see. I'll leave that to them. Jen Otremba:                        Yeah. Bryan Strawser:                   Crazy air force people. Jen Otremba:                        Yeah, yeah. Bryan Strawser:                   In advance of the storm, we have to think about planning. There's a lot of things to do that really should probably start now. In the next day. That is ... Here we're thinking more about being in a business or a non-profit that has assets or people in the region. I think the first thing you need to start with is to think about communication and to kind of have a centralized source of truth. We've talked about the command center or crisis framework or an incident leader, but in our mind, whatever you have, even if it's just you and a conference room and an email address, there should be one place that those updates are coming from. Even if it's just your personal mailbox. I would get something out today about the storm, where we think it's going, what is the best factual information you can give. Our first planning call is tomorrow. Then set yourself up for success by scheduling those calls and begin to lead your team through that. You want to include leaders in the impacted area, and you'll want to include your partners at your headquarters or corporate office, whatever you call it, that have a role to play in storms. Jen Otremba:                        Right. So business partners who have a role to play in storms. We're talking about facilities, people that are watching over the different locations that you may have in the impacted areas or the outskirts of the impacted areas. You're going to want to have your crisis communications' folks on the line. You're going to want to have your travel people on the line, so they can talk through business travelers in certain areas and when to evacuate and how to get them out and making sure that you're tracking those individuals. Bryan Strawser:                   HR. Jen Otremba:                        Yep, HR, for employee accountability, right? This is going to happen, in one way, shape or another, how are you keeping track of how your employees are doing? Bryan Strawser:                   Mm-hmm (affirmative). Do you know that they're okay? Have we made contact with them? We advise having once or twice a day calls. It just depends on the complexity of your business and what you have going on there. Usually once a day is okay, but you use the calls to level set. The calls should start with a clear, factual situational update from you or your outside expert, perhaps a weather update from you or an outside expert, but you're level setting what's happening today. Here is the sit rep as we know it, and then go to the local leader who, you should really pick somebody senior that's going to run things on the ground or at least can be the point of contact, a district manager, a regional director. Have them give you an update on the status of things on the ground. What are they hearing? What's the local forecast? What's the local government telling them that they should do? Then you kind of go around the horn. Okay, facilities, do you have an update or questions? HR, update or questions? Kind of walk through that on the call. You start to set this kind of expectation of, we're going to get together, we're going to talk about this in an organized way, we're going to give a clear, factual update of what's going on. Then, when the call's over, you're going to send a new, clear, factual update back out to leaders, stakeholders, the impacted area, your senior executives, where you're level setting here's what's going on. You're establishing that single source of truth. Jen Otremba:                        That cadence, too, right? Here's the next time you're going to hear from us. Here's the next time we're going to meet. Here's our next discussion. Bryan Strawser:                   Right. Yep. Our next update will be tomorrow at 3 p.m. Urgent, important, critical, whatever you want to call it, updates will be sent through our normal communication. Jen Otremba:                        Right. But until then, the next update will be 3 p.m. tomorrow. Bryan Strawser:                   Things that we're going to want to think about as the storm approaches is, first, preparing your facility. You may or may not need to board up windows. You may or may not have things on the outside of the building that need to be taken down, tied down- Jen Otremba:                        Sandbagged. Bryan Strawser:                   Brought inside. Are you at risk of flooding? Of course, Harvey may have told us that there's what you think is the normal risk of flooding, and then there's what will flood in a 1000-year event, and might change your perspective on this. It's not common for us with our clients to have to sandbag locations because, typically, you're not building commercial facilities in a flood area. Harvey may have changed the calculus on that. You might want to think about, do I need to sandbag the front of the office? Or distribution center-? Jen Otremba:                        Convenience store. Bryan Strawser:                   Or convenience store. A lot of the supplies for boarding and such are going to be really hard to find so this decision needs to be reached quickly on what you need to do. You may not need to. If your buildings are new, modern building code in the hurricane zones in the southeastern U.S., you may not need to do any of this. Jen Otremba:                        Right. Bryan Strawser:                   Hopefully you know, or your facility manager knows the situation that you're faced with there. Jen Otremba:                        Right. These are just things to think through. Your facilities individual should know and understand how the buildings are and where they're situated and what's needed, so if there- Bryan Strawser:                   Or if you're leasing, a building manager. Jen Otremba:                        Yeah. If there's a need for generator movement in certain areas, now's the time to do it because once this happens you will not be able to get in and out of there very easily. Bryan Strawser:                   The other area to plan for, we talked about personal preparedness, but it's good to remind your employees to think about this. You also need to make sure that your employees have time to be able to prepare at home, and understand the evacuation situation. That you're closing your business far enough in advance of an evacuation so that you and your family, and your employees and their families, can evacuate safely and get to wherever it is you need to go to be out of the storm's area of harm. Jen Otremba:                        Yeah, so given all of this information and knowing what we've done in the past, hurricane Harvey obviously just happened, we had a lot of lessons learned from that. Maybe we should discuss that a little bit and then move on to Irma. What do you think, Bryan? Bryan Strawser:                   Yeah, I agree. With Harvey, we managed the response for several clients where we were doing the whole thing. We were running their conference calls, we were sending out their communication, we were kind of helping them manage through the situation- Jen Otremba:                        Providing them updates that we were obtaining. Bryan Strawser:                   Right. Then, in other cases, we had clients where we were just providing some customized weather reporting and some once or twice daily situational updates on what was happening. We were helping them connect with information like shelters and road closures, and how to gain access to impacted areas to recover facilities and all of that. I think that there's a handful of lessons learned that come to mind when it comes to Harvey. The biggest one is something we've always know about hurricanes, and we've forgotten in the last several years because we haven't had a major hurricane come ashore. That is that the hurricane is really not the problem. Jen Otremba:                        Right. Bryan Strawser:                   It's what happens after the hurricane. It's the flooding and the longterm recovery that pose the bigger challenges. The hurricane, well, you can board up and get out. You can ensure, by doing so, that you're safe and your business is probably going to be okay. Jen Otremba:                        Your employees are going to be okay. Bryan Strawser:                   Your employees are going to be fine. Jen Otremba:                        As long as they evacuate when they're told to. Bryan Strawser:                   It's coming back into ... It's the flooding and the lack of critical infrastructure like power, gas, water, utilities, road access- Jen Otremba:                        And the unknown, right? Bryan Strawser:                   Really becomes a challenge. And there's the unknown. A lot of this you won't know until you go to recover your business after the storm has passed through and the sun is shining, and you're like, "This is the hard part." Jen Otremba:                        Right. It may take some time. We had a client who couldn't get into where they had a building, right? We didn't know. Bryan Strawser:                   Right. It took five days post-landfall, five days post-landfall to ascertain a building's situation because we couldn't get to it. Jen Otremba:                        Lost power. Right. Bryan Strawser:                   Including lost power, network connectivity, and we simply could not get there. Then, Sunday ... Saturday, we finally got in and the building was fine. We were fully expecting flooding, because we had lost power and we could tell that remotely. Jen Otremba:                        Not always catastrophic, but you don't know is the fear of the unknown. Not really knowing what's going on with your properties in that area. Bryan Strawser:                   Right. Another lesson learned with hurricane Harvey is that having the public private partnerships for information is probably one of the most important things that you can do. In this case, we connected our clients directly with the Texas Department of Public Safety, with FEMA, DHS, and with other- Jen Otremba:                        Local EOCs. Bryan Strawser:                   Local EOCs, county EOCs in particular that had ... County and city EOCs that had information. We were also taking all of that, filtering it into one report, and sharing that with our clients because it was easy ... They didn't have crisis teams, so it was easier for them to consume what we would give them than listen to four conference calls a day. We were able to do that and kind of summarize what was going on. Those partnerships are critical. Understanding where shelters are, where gas is, what areas are just completely not reachable. The road situation, how law enforcement's going to manage access to impacted areas and what credentials or pre-notification need to be in place are all things that were big lessons learned through all that. The last one is the most important thing you can do for your business is to just take care of your team. The thing that, I think, stood out with all of our clients were the efforts undertaken to make sure that the team was safe. And that the company was going to help them by providing information and in pay continuance, disaster pay, as they worked through challenges like having their homes flood. Jen Otremba:                        Yeah, so the teams and their families. Bryan Strawser:                   Losing vehicles, and having injuries, were all things that happened. There are folks that will have an enormous bond of loyalty to their employer because of how their employer acted and treated them during this situation. It easily could've been that the company did nothing- Jen Otremba:                        We've seen that time and time again. Bryan Strawser:                   We've seen that, too. Jen Otremba:                        Taking care of the employee and the family goes a long way. Bryan Strawser:                   Mind you, we don't work for companies that treat their teams that way. Jen Otremba:                        No. Nor would we recommend them. Bryan Strawser:                   We wouldn't recommend doing that, either. The other thing that came up in the post-recovery stage is, look, after the dust settles and you get into recovery, you start to see the stories of the impact of a hurricane on people. We saw stories of ... We had the police officer in Houston that drowned trying to get to work. Jen Otremba:                        Yeah. Bryan Strawser:                   We know of other situations where people who were trying to help were killed or seriously injured. You also just see these images of great devastation, and you're wondering how can you help? Your help is needed. You can make donations of cash. Jen Otremba:                        To reputable sources. Bryan Strawser:                   To reputable sources. The Red Cross is one. The American Logistics Aid Network, or ALAN, is another that's run by a friend of ours, Kathy Alan Fulton. They really work to get logistics ... They really manage logistics for companies to get aid into an impacted area. There's tons more of reputable orgs, you can go to the national VOAD, Volunteer Organizations Assisting in Disasters' website, and there's a whole list of what they need if you really want to give goods, or where else you can give cash. The worst possible thing you can do is just show up. Jen Otremba:                        Yeah, it seems like the best thing. Like, "They must need my help. I'll just show up there and they can point me in the right direction." But there are issues to that. You show up there, and you're at the local EOC, and they are already overwhelmed and swamped with everything they need to do. Though you think that you're helping, you're really not. Now they have somebody else they have to move out of there. Don't just show up. There are plenty of organizations that you can volunteer through and they will deploy you. They're going to be working in partnership with those local areas and being able to to determine where is the best place for you to help. Bryan Strawser:                   Red Cross. American Logistics Aid Network. National VOAD. All can help you find the right place to donate, but self-deploying, as we call it, and just showing up, or collecting teddy bears or whatever the item is and just showing up is bad. Jen Otremba:                        Yeah. Bryan Strawser:                   It's not going to help. It will cause more problems than it will solve. Jen Otremba:                        Yep. Then following those organizations, like the American Red Cross, they're going to have, logistically, understand and know what supplies they need and where to disseminate them too. Otherwise, you're just sending stuff that unfortunately would then later have to be destroyed and it's not actually getting to the people that need it. Bryan Strawser:                   Right. Jen Otremba:                        Those are kind of the lessons learned, at least that I can think of right now. Bryan Strawser:                   Yep. I think those are all good. Hurricane Irma's coming. Take it seriously. It's Monday, the storm track will shake out Tuesday and Wednesday.  I would say by the end of the day Wednesday, tomorrow, or by Thursday afternoon/evening we're going to have a really good idea of where this is going. Heed the local warnings. If they tell you to evacuate, get out. There's nothing in your house worth sticking around for in the face of something like this that's coming your way. If we can help- Jen Otremba:                        We're here to help Bryan Strawser:                   We're here to help. Take a look at bryghtpath.com/hurricanes. We have a little bit of information on the services that we can provide that might help you as a hurricane approaches Florida, the southeastern United States. If you're there, good luck. Jen Otremba:                        God bless.

EOC blockaded in-place 501(c)(3) rescue forces eager to collaborate with government agencies to save lives in peril due to Hurricane Florence. Dr. Perrodin interviewed Katie Pechon and Jamie Hough of Triton Relief Group to obtain true, at times horrific, accounts of rescue efforts attempting to assist the Carolinas. WHAT IS TRITON RELIEF GROUP? Triton Relief Group (TRG) is a non-profit, registered, 501(c)(3) organization committed to our goal of providing a helping hand, where it's needed, through rescue, charity, donations and support. TRG has morphed from rescue to providing relief efforts; delivering food, water, medicine and much more. It has a huge store of experience and wisdom with several members with military training and numerous special certifications. WHAT IS A 501(c)(3) AND WHY DOES THAT MATTER? Being "501(c)(3)" means that a particular nonprofit organization has been approved by the Internal Revenue Service as a tax-exempt, charitable organization. "Charitable" is broadly defined as being established for purposes that are religious, educational, charitable, scientific, literary, testing for public safety, fostering of national or international amateur sports, or prevention of cruelty to animals and children. Triton Relief Group ensures that all donations to support the organization are diligently routed to supporting the boots-on-ground efforts of the rescuers – from diesel fuel to meals for weary rescuers. As the organization skillfully uses technology, it has very little overhead and dispatchers work from their homes, not an office complex. WHAT HAS IMPROVED IN RESCUES SINCE LAST YEAR? Katie quickly noted the technology app, Zello, has sharply improved to allow for confidential communications and that TRG follows FEMA response protocols preventing an overlap of rescue dispatches with other agencies. TRG also has a more efficient ticket system and conducts background checks on all members. Despite these gains, significant barriers arose… WHAT IS WORSE THAN RESCUES LAST YEAR? Katie and Jamie, a boat captain who had conducted numerous rescues in Hurricane Harvey, agreed that government EOC, or Emergency Operation Centers, were passively refusing to cooperate with TRG – to the point where TRG had numerous boats in the Carolinas before flooding impacted communities. It's difficult to determine the root bottlenecks in EOC as state governors were openly supportive of not-for-profit rescue forces assisting local municipalities. Through his first-hand stories, Jamie expressed frustration that local governments would call for help, but then refuse to accept it and not explicitly state concerns of liability or, as Dr. Perrodin suggests, perhaps FEMA's EOC's stubbornness was due to the agency's unwillingness to admit that it could not maintain the “social contract” of the government being able to protect its citizens. Dr. Perrodin believes the hesitation resides at the federal level of FEMA EOC and is manifested at sub-levels through informal directives.  The 10th Amendment appears to have supported previous large-scale civilian rescues forces on 09/11/01 and again with Hurricane Harvey in 2017 - both of those with much less technical resources, expertise and scalability of Triton Relief Group. WHAT IF WE OUTLAW CIVILIAN RESCUE FORCES? David warns that if civilian rescue forces are no longer allowed to exist that our country becomes immediately weaker and less able to mobilize and scale in response to sentinel disasters. HOW CAN FEMA SURVIVE? Katie noted that her organization is not trying to work against EOCs. I argue that FEMA has become outdated and should be struck from the record and a totally new agency installed in its place to embrace the inventory of, and connecting of, all available resources. I even have a name for the new agency: National Emergency Inventory and Activation Network (NEIAN). SUPPORT TRITON RELIEF GROUP! I urge you to support TRG by visiting www.tritonrelief.org FOLLOW DR. PERRODIN: Twitter @SafetyPhD and subscribe to The Safety Doc YouTube channel & Apple Podcasts. SAFETY DOC WEBSITE & BLOG: www.safetyphd.com The Safety Doc Podcast is hosted & produced by David Perrodin, PhD. ENDORSEMENTS. Opinions are those of the host & guests and do not reflect positions of The 405 Media or supporters of “The Safety Doc Podcast”. The show adheres to nondiscrimination principles while seeking to bring forward productive discourse & debate on topics relevant to personal or institutional safety. Email David: thesafetydoc@gmail.com LOOKING FOR DR. TIMOTHY LUDWIG, PHD? Dr. Perrodin's “Safety Doc Podcast” negotiates school and community safety. To be informed about industrial safety, please contact Appalachian State University Professor Dr. Timothy Ludwig, PhD, at www.safety-doc.com.

Tommy Lee Jones's character in the movie Men in Black said "There's always an Arquillian Battle Cruiser, or a Corillian Death Ray, or an intergalactic plague that is about to wipe out all life on this miserable little planet..."  Be that as it may, in this episode, we discuss vector control with an important local partner we need to see more of in our planning, training, exercising and EOCs - your friendly neighborhood mosquito and vector control district.

This week, Jacob recounts the EOCs and Adam recalls an all-nighter!