This InfoGram will be distributed weekly to provide members of the Emergency Services Sector with information concerning the protection of their critical infrastructures. For further information, contact the Emergency Management and Response - Information Sharing and Analysis Center (EMR-ISAC) at (301) 447-1325 or by email at emr-isac@fema.dhs.gov.
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Vacant and abandoned buildings remain a threat of injury to the personnel of the Emergency Services Sector (ESS). The Emergency Management and Response—Information Sharing and Analysis Center (EMR-ISAC) re-examined this issue with the following results: These structures continue to attract vagrants, drug users, and homeless people; thieves still steal copper and fixtures, creating openings in walls and floors, and sometimes causing serious gas leaks; many of the buildings contain dangerous quantities of trash and combustibles; and they are frequent targets for arson. Compounding the risk is that these properties too often necessitate search and rescue efforts.
Tearing down vacant and abandoned buildings is time-consuming and expensive. Therefore, to mitigate the situation, some cities require owners of such structures to register them with the building and codes department for oversight. There are also municipalities where the fire department conducts annual inspections of all known vacant and abandoned properties to check for hazards, have combustibles removed, ensure the buildings are secured against illegal entry, and that they are clearly marked with special warning signs for the safety of citizens and first responders.
In every locality, responders should have access to accurate inventories of vacant and abandoned buildings so they can be considered for plans and operations. To inform ESS personnel about the inspection and dangers of blighted structures, the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) (PDF, 178 Kb) and the International Association of Arson Investigators created the Abandoned Building Project (PDF, 115 Kb), a free, downloadable training resource that includes community strategies, and a sample ordinance and Memorandum of Understanding documents. The program, with lesson plans and additional resources is available at interFIRE Online.
More insights on this matter are seen at the USFA Board Up Procedures and Techniques (PDF, 133 Kb) and the Rutgers Center on Public Safety (PDF, 193 Kb).
The EMR-ISAC recently learned that the Hazus Program website of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has a new look and additional features designed to improve its usability. Redesigned navigational tools, new links, and updated graphics and layouts help users access information more quickly and easily.
According to FEMA, Hazus is a nationally applicable standardized methodology that contains models for estimating potential losses from earthquakes, floods, and hurricanes. Hazus uses Geographic Information Systems (GIS) technology to estimate physical, economic, and social impacts of disasters.
Hazus software is used for mitigation and recovery as well as preparedness and response. Government planners, GIS specialists, and emergency managers employ Hazus to determine damage and the most beneficial mitigation approaches to minimize losses.
Technical assistance is available via the Hazus Help Desk at https://support.hazus.us. If you do not yet have login credentials for https://support.hazus.us, send an email to helpdesk@support.hazus.us to gain access. The Help Desk is available 24/7. Users can also call the technical hotline at 1-877-283-8789 as an alternative means of support.
“America is nearing a 100 percent saturation point with E10 [ethanol] in our nation’s fuel supply,” said the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) market development director. “As ethanol continues to flow across the country through railways and trucks into fuel retail stations, it is important for first responders in these areas to be well prepared and trained for ethanol-related emergencies.”
The EMR-ISAC observed in an ohsonline.com article that the RFA and numerous Clean Cities Coalitions announced they are hosting free Ethanol Safety Seminars in several cities this year. The sessions are mainly for responders, hazmat teams, safety managers, and Local Emergency Planning Committees (LEPCs).
The goal of the seminars is for attendees to gain a full ethanol emergency response training experience they can use immediately in the field and pass on to other first response teams.
Each safety seminar is conducted with the local Clean Cities Coordinator and is taught by a professional trainer with a background in firefighter/hazmat materials response. The RFA has been working diligently with the State Fire Academies to offer certificates of training or participation that can be used toward their local department’s training requirements.
Visit the Renewable Fuels Association Online Learning Site to register and apply for these seminars.
The Homeland Defense Equipment Reuse (HDER) Program is a partnership of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Department of Energy (DOE), serving state and local emergency responder communities. The mission of the HDER Program is to provide emergency responder agencies nationwide access to an inventory of items that are no longer needed by the Federal Government.
The EMR-ISAC verified that the available items are refurbished and provided at no cost to the recipient. The allocation of these items helps to ensure that first responders are equipped to properly detect, prevent, respond, and recover from a national security threat.
Approved registrants from state, county, local, district, and other emergency responder organizations may order inventory items as frequently as every month not to exceed six orders per calendar year. Only orders approved at the state level are reviewed by HDER personnel. Conducted on a “first come, first served” basis, processing is contingent on the approval of the HDER project manager.
Use this HDER form to register and acquire a new account.
The U.S. Fire Administration/EMR-ISAC does not endorse the organizations sponsoring linked websites, and does not endorse the views they express or the products/services they offer.
This INFOGRAM may contain copyrighted material that was not specifically authorized by the copyright owner. EMR-ISAC personnel believe this constitutes "fair use" of copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law. If you wish to use copyrighted material contained within this document for your own purposes that go beyond "fair use," you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.
DHS and the FBI encourage recipients of this document to report information concerning suspicious or criminal activity to DHS and/or the FBI. The DHS National Operation Center (NOC) can be reached by telephone at 202-282-9685 or by email at NOC.Fusion@dhs.gov.
The FBI regional phone numbers can be found online at www.fbi.gov/contact/fo/fo.htm
For information affecting the private sector and critical infrastructure, contact the National Infrastructure Coordinating Center (NICC), a sub-element of the NOC. The NICC can be reached by telephone at 202-282-9201 or by email at NICC@dhs.gov.
When available, each report submitted should include the date, time, location, type of activity, number of people and type of equipment used for the activity, the name of the submitting company or organization, and a designated point of contact.
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Happy New Year! Add this resolution to the top of your list: test all home smoke alarms each month - starting today! January 1, 2013 @ 10:04 AM ET
U.S. Fire Administration, 16825 S. Seton Ave., Emmitsburg, MD 21727 | USNG: 18SUJ00529652
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February 10, 2011 InfoGram