Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management Update ~ December 31, 2013 Information and Updates State of Colorado Hazard Mitigation Plan Update Approved by FEMA The Colorado Office of Emergency Management was notified this morning, December 31, that the State of Colorado Natural Hazards Mitigation Plan update was approved by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Region VIII. The letter stated, "FEMA completed a final review of the plan, officially adopted by the State of Colorado on December 31, 2013, and found the plan to be in compliance with Title 44 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 201.4, Standard State Mitigation Plans." The plan is approved for a period of three years to December 30, 2016. This plan approval confirms the continued eligibility of the State of Colorado to receive non-emergency Stafford Act funding including Public Assistance (Categories C-G), Fire Management Assistance (FMAG), and Hazard Mitigation Assistance (HMA) grant programs. All requests for funding will be individually evaluated according to the specific eligibility and other requirements of the particular program. The State of Colorado Natural Hazards Mitigation Plan must be reviewed, revised as appropriate, and resubmitted to FEMA every three years to maintain eligibility to apply for funding through the programs reference above. The updated Hazard Mitigation Plan will be located on the DHSEM website both on the Mitigation webpages and in the Resource library. CEMA Conference Registration Register today for the 2014 Colorado Integrated Emergency Management Conference online at www.cemacolorado.com. The website includes information on the conference agenda, how to be a sponsor and vendor facts. Colorado Emergency Preparedness Partnership: Save the Date for February Meeting On February 6, 2014, the Colorado Emergency Preparedness Partnership (CEPP), in conjunction with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), will hold its first meeting of 2014. Also, it will be CEPP's first meeting ever in Northern Colorado. This is joint CEPP/FEMA meeting will focus on the challenges that were encountered by counties, towns, families and businesses due to the September floods, as well as the hurdles that remain as part of the long-term recovery process. Experts from key private sector, public sector, charitable and faith-based organizations who played important roles during the wildfires, floods and their aftermath will discuss many of the challenges that had to be overcome in order to help community response and recovery. What worked? What didn't Colorado Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management Division Update
work? What lies ahead on the road to recovery for our businesses, neighborhoods and families? These issues will all be topics of discussion. The meeting will be held from 9 - 11:15 a.m. at The Ranch Complex in Loveland. Onsite registration with refreshments begins at 8:15 am, but to speed the registration process and to ensure there are ample refreshments, a registration link will be provided soon at www.thecepp.org. Last Day for Public Comment on the State Strategic Plan December 31 is the last day for public comment on the State of Colorado Homeland Security and AllHazards Strategic Plan. The plan and the comment form are located on the COEmergency website. Colorado Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management Strategic Plan The Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management (DHSEM) presented its first Strategic Plan at the staff strategic planning retreat last week. The plan is located on the DHSEM website in the Resource Library. This document guides the DHSEM vision to make Colorado communities safe, secure and resilient from all-hazard events including acts of terrorism.
Kudos and Congratulations Welcome to new OEM Staff The Office of Emergency Management welcomed Johan “Jo” Barrios to the Mitigation and Recovery Section on Monday, December 30. She joins the team as a Recovery Specialist. Barrios holds a master degree in Civil Engineering and worked for the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers as an Emergency Response Specialist and Assistant Program Manager. She brings a wealth of experience with flood infrastructure projects.
Educational Resources Mitigation Success Stories The links below will take you to mitigation success stories that were highlighted during the September 2013 flooding on the FEMA mitigation best practices webpage. Some of these were funded by the Flood Mitigation Assistance (FMA) and the Pre-Disaster Mitigation (PDM) programs through the Colorado Office of Emergency Management.
https://www.llis.dhs.gov/content/modular-home-high-and-dry-lyons https://www.llis.dhs.gov/content/adhering-floodplain-management-practices-saves-business-0 https://www.llis.dhs.gov/content/left-hand-creek-project-shrinks-flood-plain https://www.llis.dhs.gov/content/mitigation-alleviates-economic-impact-flooding-airport https://www.llis.dhs.gov/content/flood-mitigation-project-leads-saving-town-wellington https://www.llis.dhs.gov/content/top-game-floodplain-management https://www.llis.dhs.gov/content/combating-streambank-erosion-fountain-creek https://www.llis.dhs.gov/content/wetlands-natural-mitigation-source-during-colorado-floods Colorado Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management Division Update
https://www.llis.dhs.gov/content/computerized-warning-system-alerts-pueblo-residents
How to Response to Negative Social Media Comments How do you handle negative comments on your social media sites? Here are some great tips from Business Grow and @markwschaefer:
The first, and most difficult, step is to make sure your company culture is ready for this. Are they ready to make a commitment to respond to all complaints? It doesn’t have to be a full-blown response approved by the legal department, but it has to be a short and timely acknowledgment that the complainer has been heard. As I wrote recently, that takes care of 98 percent of the customer service problem! Demonstrate patience and empathy. Try to defuse the emotion by saying something like “Yes, I’d be upset if that happened to me.” Apologize if warranted. And, probably even if it isn’t warranted. Empower employees to solve the issue on the spot if it is something simple, or have the respondent offer to take the issue offline through a phone call or email. This is important because you do not want to be drawn into a prolonged public exchange. Follow up. Assess specifically what is needed to make the person feel better. If you drop the ball in this phase, expect the emotion and response to escalate. If the problem persists even after if you have offered a reasonable remedy, either escalate to skilled internal resources or abdicate based on the risk and legitimate severity of the problem.
Training Information Wildfire Academy Course: L952/ S403 All-Hazards Public Information Officer Course The L-952/S-403: All-Hazards Public Information Officer course will be offered January 13-17, 2014 at the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs, CO. This course meets the training requirements for a public information officer type 2 (PIO2). Topics include information organization and assignment, developing a communications strategy, information operations, creating a safe environment, effective media relations, incident within an incident, community relations analysis, documentation, demobilization, and transitioning. Student must pass a final exam. Pre-requisites for NWCG taskbooks: Introduction to Wildland Fire Behavior (S-190). All Hazards: ICS-100, 200/300. For more information and to register online visit: http://www.cwfima.com/ Class Fee: $69 until Dec. 15, after Dec. 15 $79. The course is part of the Colorado Wildland Fire & Incident Management Academy. Fire & Life Safety Educator I Certification Class The Fire & Life Safety Educators of Colorado are holding a FLSE I Certification class from January 20-22, 2014 at Arvada Fire Department. This is the only group providing this certification on behalf of the State. To register for the class visit their website at www.firesafetyeductors.org or download the course
Colorado Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management Division Update
registration form.
Training Announcements Training announcements are also available on the DHSEM website on the Office of Preparedness page. G270.4 - Disaster Recover for Local Government
South Central
01/11/14
G358 - Evacuation and Re-entry Planning
South Central
01/11/14
G191 - ICS/EOC Interface
South Central
01/13/14
G202 - Debris Management Planning for State, Tribal, and Local Officials
South Central
01/13/14
L950/S403 - All-Hazards Public Information Officer
South Central
01/13/14
L973 - All-Hazards Finance/Administration Section Chief
South Central
01/13/14
CSEPP: Community Recovery Plan Seminar
South
01/14/14
G775 - EOC Operations
South Central
01/15/14
ICS 400: Advanced Incident Command System
Northwest
01/22/14
Homeland Security Exercise and Evaluation Program (HSEEP)
South Central
01/23/14
Master Exercise Practitioner Program (MEPP)
North Central
01/27/14
G290 - Basic Public Information Officer
Southeast
02/11/14
CSEPP 101: Integrated Performance Evaluator Training Course
South
03/11/14
G775 - EOC Management and Operations
South
03/11/14
G775 - EOC Management and Operations
South
04/03/14
Colorado Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management Division Update
