Sunday, October 15th Presentations

This presentation provides an overview of drones and their importance in emergency management. It begins with a definition of drones and a brief overview of drone technology, emphasizing how drones can aid in emergency situations. The presentation then highlights the different types of drones used in emergency management and the advantages of each. The advantages of drones in emergency management include speed, safety, cost-effectiveness, flexibility, and versatility. Applications of drones in emergency management include search and rescue operations, damage assessment, wildfire management, flood response, tornado and hurricane response, chemical and biological disaster response, and earthquake response. The presentation also covers the legal and regulatory issues for drones in emergency management, including federal aviation administration regulations, state and local regulations, and privacy issues. The presentation includes case studies of drones used in emergency management during Hurricane Harvey, California wildfires, Nepal earthquake, and Fukushima nuclear disaster, and the future of drones in emergency management. It concludes by discussing the advancements in drone technology, the challenges and opportunities, and the integration of drones with other technologies. Overall, this presentation provides a comprehensive understanding of the role of drones in emergency management and how they can benefit communities during emergencies.

Adopting a social equity (SE) centered framework in emergency management will strengthen integrative emergency management and help build resilient communities of color. Emergency management organizations have not embraced SE as an actionable dimension capable of providing effective preparedness strategies to enhance resilience within marginalized communities. The Federal Emergency Management Agency Whole Community Approach is supposed to strengthen security, safety, and build resilience in an all-of-nation concept. This approach will not work while inequities exist within marginalized communities. However, social disruptions are local therefore the responsibility rests on local jurisdictional governments to ensure assessments are performed revealing the equitable needs of the community in the event of a disaster. Further, disasters like Hurricanes Katrina, the Flint, Michigan water disaster, and the COVID-19 response disproportionately impacted communities of color reflecting inequity within emergency management preparedness. Further, proliferation of environmental injustices has increased all-hazard exposure in Black communities. Though the federal government has defined equity it is the responsibility of each subordinate jurisdiction to embrace a fair and equitable and distributive culture in emergency management. This can be accomplished by applying social equity criteria.

During an emergency, communication is vital. It can mean life and death. It is important that people know what is happening when it will happen, and what steps they are expected to take. Traditional information channels leave dangerous gaps in communication. Interpreters are left off camera shots, non-qualified interpreters are used, captions are not always used and this leaves the deaf and hard of hearing populations at extreme risk. We will address best practices, dos and don’ts as well as effective communication in uncontrolled environments. First responders, agencies and attendees will walk away with better understanding of how they can communicate to ensure deaf and hard of hearing receive information.

This program will discuss the various information local emergency responders (Police, Fire & EMS), as well as code enforcement staff can provide to assist with your emergency operations plan.

In this presentation, we will introduce the regional civil rights advisor and provide an overview of civil rights authorities, focusing on the mission and vision of FEMA’s Office of Equal Rights. We will emphasize the cadre’s survivor-focused approach and their collaboration with state, local, tribal, and territorial partners to uphold civil rights in emergency situations. Additionally, we will discuss the importance of civil rights compliance in public-facing events, aiming to address any disparities or inequalities that may arise and create an inclusive environment that respects the rights of all individuals involved. Lastly, we will introduce the Community Assessment Tool, a valuable resource for evaluating the needs and priorities of communities affected by emergencies. This tool helps us understand the unique challenges faced by different communities, enabling us to tailor our response accordingly. Overall, this presentation covers the regional civil rights advisor, the Office of Equal Rights’ mission and vision, collaboration with partners, civil rights compliance in public events, and the Community Assessment Tool, all contributing to FEMA’s commitment to upholding civil rights and ensuring equal treatment for all.

Response to an Ice Jam in 2018 that stranded more than 300 residents.  Facing the Challenges of what took place on a holiday weekend and how overcoming those challenges can lead to challenges in the future based on how the Ice Jam was resolved and what the future expectations are to resolve such situations.

The United States’ bulk electric grid is vulnerable to various threats, including natural events like coronal mass ejections, hurricanes, and extreme cold, as well as human-caused events like physical and cyber-attacks. Coronal mass ejections can cause damage to unprotected electrical equipment and the grid itself through induced current, as seen in historical events like the Carrington event and the Quebec blackout. Recent impacts on the grid have been caused by extreme cold, which led to strain on generation resources, physical damage, fuel source disruption, and rolling blackouts. These incidents highlight the potential for Black Sky Events (BSEs), causing long-lasting power outages. Pennsylvania is collaborating with lifeline utility sectors to prepare for such disasters, aiming to identify interdependencies, strengthen partnerships, establish critical resource priorities, and improve communication methods. The presentation will discuss space weather impacts on Pennsylvania, the increased likelihood of significant space weather storms, and the effects of the December 2022 arctic outbreak on the electrical grid.

This presentation will show how emergency managers can “Meet the Challenge of Tomorrow” by working with educational institutions and first responders to instill a sense of safety and preparedness in educational institutions’ faculty, staff, and students.  Building this sense of safety within educational institutions will lead to a safer environment inside and outside of educational institutions.  Emergency managers can bridge the gap between educational institutions and first responders to help build solid partnerships.  A good working relationship between educational leadership and first responders will assist educational leadership with preparing for emergency situations and allow educational leadership and first responders to grow and learn from each.  This presentation will discuss some of the ways that I have incorporated this concept into my current position as Director of Campus Safety and Security at Shady Side Academy as well as discuss the importance of reaching out and building relationships with those in your community, especially first responders, prior to an incident or emergency taking place.  The presentation will show how emergency managers can bring together educational leadership and many professional areas (business continuity, disaster planners, homeland security professionals, etc.) to assist educational institutions with promoting safety and preparing for an incident.

Individuals with Disabilities and Access and Functional Needs are disproportionately affected by disasters. Emergency alerts and messaging may not be accessible to all individuals. Community members, including those with disabilities, may not be adequately prepared for emergencies and disasters. Resources available during a disaster may be inadequate to support those with disabilities, especially those who require specialized equipment or personnel to support their activities of daily living.
People with Disabilities should be included in Emergency and Disaster Preparedness. This necessitates the creation of partnerships between Disability subject matter experts and emergency management at all levels. This ensures that consideration for these needs is “baked into” everything we do instead of “layered on” as an afterthought.
Disability stakeholders are non-traditional disaster responders who may be able to provide resources you might never have imagined. Building partnerships pre-disaster will help you meet the needs of people with disabilities when it matters the most. In this session, you will learn how to identify and involve appropriate disability stakeholder groups to plan inclusively for the whole community. We will discuss best practices for training and exercises, planning, and response.

While recognizing that each employee is individual, broad traits have been observed about this the youngest individuals to enter the workforce: Generation Z. While Millennials were identified as driven, hyper-connected, and confident, your youngest employees are more likely to be uncertain, risk-averse, anxious, and fearful of adulthood. Instead of looking ahead to a world of opportunities, Gen Z often sees an uncertain future. It is encouraging to note that members of Gen Z are open-minded, curious, compassionate, excited to learn, and eager to make a difference in the world. Regrettably, they are also more anxious and depressed and exhibit a lower ability to cope with adversity than previous generations at the same age. 
Changes in this generation have come faster than other generations. How do managers successfully recruit, retain, mentor, and engage this generation of workers? Is it possible to align employer and Gen Z expectations regarding work expectations? Effective leadership is inextricably connected to change. Are you prepared to adapt to these unique and evolving challenges? This presentation will provide tangible content and immediate application related to these questions.

“A defining characteristic of Amish and Plain communities is their selective use of technology. The Amish believe that technology if left untamed, will interfere with traditions and separate close-knit communities. The choice to reject internet access and television in particular renders many common sources of weather information inaccessible and makes them especially vulnerable to hazardous weather. Over the last year, several National Weather Service offices including State College, PA have sought to narrow the communication gap with these communities and mitigate the self-imposed vulnerabilities they face.
This presentation will highlight two main areas of emphasis: improved dissemination given technological constraints and education/outreach activities with these communities. In order to provide accurate and timely forecasts and warnings, the NWS has developed automated forecast phone recordings for several Amish hotspots around Central Pennsylvania, is helping with the development of a NOAA Weather Radio for the Amish/Plain community, and is piloting the use of AlertPA to notify Amish families of impending weather. To improve preparedness for and response to impactful hazardous weather events, the NWS developed weather safety handouts that can be delivered to Amish and Plain communities through both in-person engagement and print media sources that these communities trust. “

This presentation will discuss two different recovery teams including their differences, similarities and how they work in their communities. The discussion will be interactive and will encourage others to think “outside the box” to develop and foster recovery teams in their communities/

Climate change makes natural disasters more frequent, severe, and costly. With the acceleration of the global climate crisis, preparation is critical to mitigating the long-term impacts on transportation systems.
In every project, the PA Turnpike Commission (PTC) adopts the 17 U.N. Sustainable Development Goals, prioritizing clean water, affordable and clean energy, and climate action. The PTC uses innovative approaches to building and maintaining sustainable roadways to reduce its carbon footprint and build resiliency.
Emergency management plays an essential role in identifying risks and reducing vulnerabilities. In the past several years, the PTC has undertaken a comprehensive assessment of its internal planning, operations, and best management practices related to extreme weather events and emergency planning and response. Its Extreme Weather and Climate Resiliency Report assessed internal planning, processes, and best management practices.
In addition, the Extreme Weather Management Playbook outlines the coordination, communication, and department response to extreme weather activity. These procedures focus on pre-event planning and during-event communication protocols to ensure flexibility to adapt to changing conditions. The key products in the Playbook include Department-specific checklists based on the weather event severity type that guide strategy implementation and communication steps.

This session will describe how a transition to a virtual EOC during the pandemic has led to the concept of not just future virtual EOCs, but leveraging this technology to work in a hybrid virtual/in person formats.  Establishing and merging EOCs from multiple levels of government and getting private sector and Non Government Organizations into the hybrid EOC will strengthen the public/private partnership that is needed to ensure that all stakeholders are represented.  Hybrid EOCs can easily transition through all phases of coordination, response and recovery efforts from incident occurrence through final demobilization and recovery, for both planned and unplanned events.

Last fall, Penn State Health’s west region hospitals experienced several significant incidents in a short timeframe, that required internal and external stakeholder response and coordination. Of the events that occurred, each one impacted the organization in different ways and for varying lengths of time.  However, there were several issues that were noted in each incident that created a need for the organization to formally review plans, policies and processes. Through best practices, the organization conducted and participated in After Action Review’s (AAR’s) internally and externally, where numerous improvements were recognized.  As a part of regulatory compliance and with a desire to improve, the organization worked to develop a way to validate improvement strategies and insure identified corrective action resolution.

The organization developed a consolidated correction action improvement planning process utilizing data and technology to track improvement status among varying and diverse stakeholders. The organization continues to build an understanding of areas of common reoccurrence across the different events with a goal of mitigating known issues, so they won’t reoccur.  The team leverages this resource to work alongside partners from across the organization, track progress of improvement action items and document compliance, with the goal of becoming a more prepared, compliant and resilient organization.