Tuesday, October 17th Presentations

USDA is much more than just Emergency Support Function 11!  Did you know that USDA supports hazard mitigation, community recovery, and critical infrastructure protection?  This presentation will illustrate some of USDA’s wide-ranging disaster missions and provide attendees with information about USDA programs that are available for all phases of emergency management.

This presentation will cover our study which aimed to investigate the ecological nature of extremism online. Cognitive radicalization is defined as a gradual, nonlinear adherence to an ideology or movement to a degree of great extremity. A sizable number of empirical investigations into the processes of cognitive extremism have revealed social exclusion, cognitive inflexibility, and perceived threats to one’s ingroup as significant predictors for one’s propensity to experience cognitive radicalization. In this study, the construction of a far-right ecosystem was successful using a sample of posts each with separate narrative domains. Most of the content expressed anti-black racism and pro-white sentiments. Many posts expressed an overt disdain for the recent progress made regarding the United States, and the United Kingdom’s expansion of civil liberties to people of color (POC). Implications for PVE/CVE will be discussed. 

The private sector owns and operates most of the critical infrastructure and key resources that are relied upon during large-scale and complex incidents. They also have access to systems and inventories of resources that many public sector entities may not have. The key to overcoming atypical resource needs during an incident is to have well-established relationships and lines of communication with private sector partners. Join this session to learn how to integrate the private sector into your emergency management program.

This session will use concepts from the National Fire Academy’s Leadership in Supervision curriculum and apply them to Pennsylvania’s diverse emergency services landscape. Using discussion focused instruction, attendees will create a personal plan as a supervisor or leader based on thinking perspectives presented. We will discuss current challenges and present tools to increase  personal effectiveness. 

Whether you have had experience with it or not, you/your agency is going to need to procure equipment and/or services at some point. Climate change is driving more severe natural disaster events everywhere, changing the risk landscape and new threats arise like cybersecurity that you will not have in house expertise to help your community prepare. The goal of this session is to make your emergency management program better by helping you succeed every time you procure equipment or a service. A logical process will be laid out and discussed.

This session will provide information on conducting a shelter simulation exercise that involves the disabilities and access and functional needs community.  With the “whole community” approach you will learn about how to conduct this exercise and more importantly how to identify weaknesses in your sheltering plan and improve upon them using additional organizations and/or resources.

Mental health – the elephant in every Emergency Services station and dispatch center. Mental health – the taboo subject no one talks about. Well, not anymore. We’re going to have a talk about why Matt had a bout of depression that nearly ended his life. We are going to talk about some of our brothers and sisters who are no longer with us because they lost their battle with their demons. What is the extent of the problem? What’s being done about it? We’re going to talk about the stigma, and how to break it. We’re going to learn how to cope, how to be resilient. Above all, we are going to learn it’s ok to not be ok, and it’s ok to talk about all of this. Because this time, the life we save may be our own.

This presentation provides an in-depth analysis of the challenges faced during the event and the strategies employed to overcome them. Attendees will gain insights into managing large-scale projects, including logistical constraints, resource allocation, and unforeseen circumstances. By drawing from real-world experiences, the presentation highlights the significance of adaptability, resilience, and effective problem-solving in the face of adversity. It showcases the role of a proactive mindset, strong teamwork, and strategic planning in successful event management. Additionally, participants will receive actionable takeaways, enabling them to enhance preparedness, strengthen risk management strategies, and improve project execution for future events. Ultimately, this thought-provoking session serves as a source of inspiration and guidance, equipping individuals and organizations with the necessary tools to thrive in challenging circumstances.

The Special Medical Response Team (SMRT) is a volunteer non-profit emergency services organization focused in providing good medicine in bad places.  As SMRT approaches its 40th anniversary, its focus and capabilities have grown.  With its inception to provide advanced life support to the mining industry in its underground environment through a contract with the DEP Bureau of Mine Safety, the Team has grown to now sponsor the Pennsylvania State Medical Assistance Team (PA-SMAT) through an agreement with the Pennsylvania Department of Health (PA-DOH) Bureau of Emergency Preparedness and Response (BEPR) and assistance from the regional Healthcare Coalitions (HCCs).  SMRT additionally is a participating agency for rescue technicians under the Helicopter Aquatic Rescue Team (PA-HART) sponsored by Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency (PEMA).  The Team supports the capabilities of the Pennsylvania Urban Search and Rescue Strike Team (PA-ST 1) and serves as a participating agency for members to the Pennsylvania Urban Search and Rescue Task Force 1 (PA-TF 1).  With the support through all these relationships, SMRT is able to provide specialized assets and personnel to assist the emergency organizations across the Commonwealth to care for its citizens and support the healthcare system.  

In emergency management it is very important to build partnerships in the communities we serve. This session is designed to discuss the importance of partnering with Community Organizations such as the Rotary, Masons, Elks, American Legion and others in order to support your disaster response and recovery operations. Learn how these organizations can build upon the great work they all do while at the same time supporting your emergency management mission.

As more frequent disasters occur, FEMA has looked to multiple methods to build communities back more resilient for future weather events under the Public Assistance and Hazard Mitigation programs. During a declaration, Section 406 under the Stafford Act authorizes Public Assistance to fund certain cost-effective Hazard Mitigation measures in the repair of event damaged structures to prevent repetitive damage in the future.  This presentation will go over previous examples and potential avenues future applicants could consider for integrating Section 406 Hazard Mitigation into their recovery process.

Unless you specifically had a need to study it somewhere during your schooling or career, chances are that radioactive and nuclear hazards are a little bit vague and your understanding of them may be limited. This session is intended to give you a strong starting point for planning for or responding to a radiological incident or accidental release in your community. In addition to providing a baseline of essential information, there will be time set aside for questions and a list of resources for emergency managers will be provided.

In a post-COVID-19 pandemic world, there are many threats that exist in public health. Our world is more interconnected than it has ever been, and with that ease of travel, comes the ability for emerging infectious diseases to affect the world in a short time period. Beyond pandemics and diseases, the effects of climate change threaten to change the way that public health delivers services. Extreme heat will become an issue that is pervasive across the United States. Flooding will continue to leave communities, and their vital health services crippled, and will occur with increasing frequency. Manmade incidents such as acts of violence on healthcare providers, cyber attacks on health care institutions and more are leading to workforce shortages. However, our all-hazards planning, and continued relationship building coming out of the pandemic response sets us at a place to address these issues head-on in Pennsylvania, with the collaboration of our colleagues in emergency management.  

For over two decades, the emergency management community and other government officials have articulated a growing need for real-time, detailed, actionable, street-level Flood Inundation Maps (FIM) depicting the extent, depth, and infrastructure impacted by flood waters. This year the National Weather Service (NWS) Offices in State College, Pittsburgh, Binghamton, and the Middle Atlantic and Ohio River Forecast Centers are part of an initiative with the NWS National Water Center to be one of the first regions in the country to provide FIM services to our regions, including the state of Pennsylvania. Our presentation will give an overview of NWS FIM services and how to use this information to help make decisions.    

While many people have had experience with natural disasters, far fewer have experience with Environmental- Technology Caused Disaster. This presentation will help participants expand their awareness of what an Environmental- Technology Caused Disaster is and how a community can respond to it. The experienced leaders will be joined by PAVOAD Communications Coordinator, Karl Jones, who also serves as the co-convener of the national United Church of Christ Environmental-Technology Disaster Working Group.  Environmental- Technology Caused Disasters can be slow to develop, slow to recognize, and their impact can be felt for generations. They also can happen quickly and without warning. In either case, they can devastate a community. This presentation will provide an overview of Environmental- Technology Caused Disasters and suggest appropriate response strategies, based on real-life situations.