Informational Notes for First Responders and Officials

Bulletin #51 – May 24, 2004

SEMA’s Homepage: sema.dps.mo.gov

Holden Requests SBA Disaster Assistance for Cass County
On Friday, May 21, 2004, Governor Bob Holden sent a letter to the SBA asking for a disaster declaration for citizens and businesses sustaining flooding damages in Cass County from the May 18th storms. Initial damage assessments estimated that more than 50 homes in Lake Annette and Freeman were flooded. The SBA plans to send an assessment team to Cass County on Monday. In order to qualify for a low-interest (3%) loan from the SBA, at least 25 homes or businesses must have sustained uninsured damages totaling at least 40% of the value of the property.

KC, Cass & Cooper County Response to May Flooding
A strong Storm system with heavy rains moved through the State from West To East, roughly along the Interstate 70 Corridor during the night of 18 and 19 May. The storm produced 1 to 8 inches of rain.

Kansas City/Jackson County: The city reported that 22 stranded motorist rescue operations occurred at low-lying roads. One apartment was evacuated as a precaution.

Cass County: reported most severe damage at Lake Annette and Freeman areas. EMD reported 4-5 homes were evacuated and another 35-50 homes were damaged. Shelters were opened.

Cooper County : reported over 6 inches of rain, flash flooding, and power outages in Pilot Grove. A culvert on Route HH was washed out.

State/Volunteer Agency Actions: SEMA dispatched a Damage Assessment team to the Freeman/Lake Annette area of Cass County to conduct an Initial Damage Assessment of the area. MoDOT crews helped clear of debris and re-opened roads. American Red Cross, Salvation Army and other volunteer agencies are providing sheltering and assistance to families.

NOTE: Emergency Management Directors and Local Officials are encouraged to enter local situation reports and damage information on SEMA website: sema.dps.mo.gov then the Disaster Forms link in the Blue sidebar. The forms may also be downloaded and faxed to SEMA at (573) 634-7966. These forms help SEMA’s Operations Branch and the Planning & Disaster Assistance Branch compile information for the Governor’s Office, directing state resources and possible federal assistance (if a statewide disaster). Remember, you can call the SEMA Duty Officer (573) 751-2748 after business hours or on weekends.

Communications Capability Study Meetings Set
Titan Corporation has been contracted by the State of Missouri to develop a strategy for regional/statewide interoperability communications capability. The intimate goal is to create an interoperable radio environment that meets everyday communications needs yet will be able to handle communications requirements during large-scale emergencies. Titan Corporation will host a series of seven regional meetings the first two-weeks in June to complete a comprehensive communications survey in Designated Focus Areas to validate individual needs, current resources and capabilities. The regional meetings will be held in St. Louis, Kansas City, Springfield, Central Missouri, Cape Girardeau (New Madrid Fault Zone), Rural (north and south) and State Agencies.

Life Saving Road Tour Provides Citizen Corps Awareness
The Lifesaving Road Tour(tm) is a non-profit organization designed to provide nationwide emergency care awareness, training and services. With a customized RV outfitted with staff and training equipment, the Life Saving Road Tour provides AED, CPR, Disaster and Safety Training and Community Safety and Preparedness Demonstrations wherever they go. They are presently on a coast-to-coast tour stopping off in your states to provide safety training all along the way.

The schedule and the towns they are visiting are listed in the attached web link: http://www.letskeepthebeat.com/rvtour.html Please feel free to contact Al Kalbach, Director of the Life Saving Road Tour at 1-866-776-0088 (or email above) for more information on dates and locations for the road tour.

NGA Discontinues Contacting Fire Departments for National Database
In response to questions raised by the IAFC, the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) announced it has asked contractor Explore Information Services to discontinue its “National Fire Station Survey.”

“When we were not satisfied that the information would be held secure, we asked our members to suspend their response.” said Garry Briese, IAFC executive director

The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency has discontinued the survey and is reorganizing its plans to obtain and secure the information. The IAFC will be working with the NGA of the survey.

There may be many other surveys in process. The IAFC received information concerning another survey requesting sensitive operational information. Until we receive specific verification of the operational security of this information, we recommend not completing the survey sent by Techni Graphic Systems, Inc. or any other surveys at this time.

FEMA Home Study Course IS 700 Is Now Available:
An Introduction to the National Incident Management System (NIMS)

Presidential Directive-5. HSPD-5 directed the Secretary of Homeland Security to develop and administer a National Incident Management System (NIMS). NIMS provides a consistent nationwide template to enable all government, private sector, and nongovernmental organizations to work together during domestic incidents. This course introduces NIMS and takes approximately three hours to complete. It explains the purpose, principles, key components and benefits of NIMS. The course also contains "Planning Activity" screens giving you an opportunity to complete some planning tasks during this course. The planning activity screens are printable so that you can use them after you complete the course.

This course: describes the key concepts and principles underlying NIMS; identifies the benefits of using ICS as the national incident management model; describe when it is appropriate to institute an Area Command; describes when to institute a Multi-agency Coordination System; describes the benefits of using a Joint Information System (JIS) for public information; identifies how NIMS affects preparedness; describes how NIMS affects how resources are managed; describes the advantages of common communication and information management systems; explains how NIMS influences technology and technology systems; and describe the purpose of the NIMS Integration Center.

This is an Interactive Web-based Course – New this interactive web-based course is located in the National Emergency Training Center Virtual Campus at another location. When you click the link above, you will be routed to that location. If you have not registered at the Virtual Campus before, you need to hit the "New Student" button when it appears and follow the instructions. Once you are registered, you can select "Course Catalog" at the top of the screen and then select "IS-700" from the list.

You will enroll when you complete the online answer sheet for the final exam. Please Note: The security FEMA provides on the EMI Independent Study Courses requires Netscape version 4.76 or above, and Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.5 or above. Both browsers are available as free downloads.

National Earthquake Awards of Excellence 2004 Deadline June 15
The 2004 National Earthquake Conference will be held in St. Louis September 26-30 at the Adam's Mark Hotel. Part of the planning for this Conference includes the National Awards of Excellence. (See www.earthquakeconference.org, and then click on "Awards.")

There are six award categories: Mitigation, Response & Recovery, Plans/Materials, Research, Multi-Jurisdictional Planning, and Outreach Programs. The deadline for application is Tuesday, June 15.

Building Cultural Competency: Arab, Muslim and Sikh Americans
5 Video Conferences Training Sites Available May 28

The U.S. Department of Justice Community Relations Service (CRS) will sponsor an awareness and protocol seminar for law enforcement officers, fire and rescue professionals, support service workers, educators, diversity trainers, local officials and community leaders from the Central Region ( Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska). The seminar, focusing on Arab, Muslim, and Sikh awareness - will be held on May 28, 2004 at 8:20 a.m. – 12:20 P.M. as a multi-site videoconference.

The presentation will originate from the campus of the University of Missouri- Saint Louis with five remote sites participating: University of Missouri Columbia, Academic Support Center, Room 20 POC: Julie Middleton, middletonj@umsystem.edu, 573-882-3407; Springfield-Greene County Library Center POC: Kathy Clancy, kclancy@works.state.mo.us, 417-874-8111; Adams Mark Hotel, St. Louis, MO POC: Shiela Musaji, sheilamusaji@aol.com, 314-291-7250; University of Missouri St. Louis, Room University Center-62A, located near the JC Penney Bldg. on North Campus POC: Diana Rehagen at Continuing Education – 314-516-6590; and Penn Valley Community College, Kansas City, MO POC: Majeeda Baheyadeen, Majeeda_Baheyadeen@kcmo.org, 816-513-1836.

The main objective of this training is to provide law enforcement and others with information about the cultural and religious background of the Arab, Muslim and Sikh population. Through a “train the trainer” approach, we hope to build a cadre of trainers who can deliver the Connecting Cultures' training program module on Arab Americans, American Muslims and Islam back in their communities.

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