2006 tornado drill
VDEM and the National Weather Service are co-sponsoring the statewide tornado drill, March 14 at 9:45 a.m. Gov. Tim M. Kaine has proclaimed that day to be Tornado Preparedness Day, when schools, businesses and residences practice their tornado emergency plans. Virginia’s public schools are required to participate in at least one tornado drill per year.

All NWS offices serving Virginia will issue a tornado drill warning, a tone-alert broadcast on NOAA Weather Radios that starts the coordinated statewide test of the Emergency Alert System. The EAS test will be broadcast on television, radio stations and cable systems. More information about the drill will be available on the VDEM Web site on March 2.

Preparedness for kids
The Department of Homeland Security has created an emergency preparedness program aimed specifically at children called Ready Kids. A separate campaign from the Federal Emergency Management Agency's "FEMA for Kids," Ready Kids is an extension of DHS' Ready campaign, which also includes Ready Business and Ready America and addresses the Latino community with a sister campaign called Listo. Ready Kids is designed to be a tool for parents and teachers to teach and prepare children for natural and man-made emergencies. Television ads, school programs and other events will begin this month.

Partnering with businesses
The Old Dominion chapter of the Association of Continuity Planners would like to invite local emergency managers throughout the state to attend monthly meetings. The ACP is a nonprofit group of public and private business professionals who participate in contingency, business recovery, crisis management, emergency management or disaster recovery planning. Meetings are held the third Tuesday of each month throughout the state. Guest speakers and lessons learned address topics such as communications recovery, hazardous materials, media management, disaster response and bomb threats and procedures. Visit the ACP Web site for more information.

VDEM RSS feed and photo archive
Up-to-the-minute news and information is now available from VDEM's new RSS feed. RSS, or Really Simple Syndication, is a convenient way to keep up with agency news, new Web site content and, in times of emergency, emergency information. Once you subscribe to VDEM's RSS feed, this information will be delivered to your computer's desktop automatically.

VDEM also redesigned and updated its online photo archive. The archive is now easier to browse through subject and event categories and it meets Internet accessibility standards. Photographs of Tropical Storm Gaston damage and the Big Stone Gap water shortage have been added.

SAR teams recognized
VDEM search and rescue personnel deployed two K-9 strike teams to assist with recovery operations in the 9th Ward of New Orleans in the weeks following hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Individuals from search and rescue teams throughout the state volunteered their skills and time, and VDEM coordinated the deployment. The chief of special operations at the New Orleans Fire Department and the commander of Southeast Louisiana Task Force One sent a letter and plaque recognizing VDEM and the K-9 teams for their assistance. New Orleans fire personnel who were involved in the recovery operations have indicated that they will attend VDEM search and rescue training to learn more about the management techniques and technology used to track field resources and assignments.

Best practices...
Norfolk TsunamiReady
Norfolk, Va. last month became the first locality in the Commonwealth and only the second on the East Coast to achieve certification as TsunamiReady. The TsunamiReady program is designed to educate local emergency management officials and their constituents and to promote a well-designed tsunami emergency response plan for each community. TsunamiReady promotes tsunami hazard preparedness as an active collaboration among federal, state and local emergency management agencies. It is a sister campaign to StormReady, a designation awarded to nine localities in Virginia, including the cities of Chesapeake, Danville, Hampton, Newport News, Norfolk and Virginia Beach, and the counties of Fairfax, Gloucester, Loudoun and Prince William. More information about the application process is available on the National Weather Service Web site.

Training...
Public Safety Response to Terrorism online request
First responder organizations throughout the state can now request PSRT classes online. The free, Virginia-specific PSRT Awareness Level, Management Considerations, Tactical Considerations and Hazmat Team Operations classes are available year-round and some fulfill continuing education credit. VDEM can schedule classes to meet each organization's needs and students can use Homeland Security Grant Program funds to facilitate attendance. For more information, contact Ken Clark in VDEM's Terrorism Training Program at (804) 897-6500, ext. 6572.

Produced by the Virginia Department of Emergency Management
10501 Trade Court, Richmond, Virginia 23236