April 25, 2007

Shootings at Virginia Tech
Gov. Tim Kaine declared a state of emergency April 16 in response to the shootings at Virginia Tech, which resulted in 33 fatalities and numerous injuries. Virginia State Police assumed incident command, and other state agencies worked closely with local and federal authorities to support campus officials as they responded to the tragedy. The Department of Social Services established a family assistance center to provide counseling and other services to the families of those killed. VDEM managed the Joint Information Center and coordinated fulfillment of requests for state resources. Recovery continues, with the focus shifting to supporting students as they returned to class this week.

The governor has appointed retired VSP Superintendent Col. Gerald Massengill to lead the independent review of the initial response to the shootings. The panel will also include former U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Tom Ridge, and nationally-recognized experts in higher education and mental health also have agreed to serve. The review will be completed this fall.

Virginia Emergency Response Team Exercise 2007
Response personnel from state and local government and volunteer groups are reviewing and practicing the skills needed during an actual emergency in a three-day, statewide exercise April 24-26. Though the Virginia General Assembly mandates VERTEX to occur annually, this is the first time the exercise will exceed one day.

Response agencies and local government representatives are role-playing their emergency operations functions from the state and local government emergency operations centers. No field exercises will take place. The Virginia Emergency Operations Center is fully staffed to simulate the Commonwealth’s response to a major hurricane.

Region III jurisdictions will conduct a tabletop exercise in conjunction with VERTEX, and northern Virginia localities and federal partners will conduct the Regional Response exercise in support of VERTEX on April 26. The Fusion Center is participating in Noble Resolve, a concurrent exercise run by the U.S. Northern Command April 23-25.

Updated cumulative initial damage assessment form available
VDEM's Mitigation and Recovery Division has developed a new, more complete cumulative initial damage assessment form for submission to the Virginia Emergency Operations Center following a disaster. This form, discussed in the current series of Damage Assessment Workshops throughout the state, should be used in place of any earlier version of the form. To submit the form, fax it to the EOC at (804) 674-2419 or e-mail it to veoc@vdem.virginia.gov within 72 hours of an event. This new form will be posted to WebEOC and the Disaster Recovery Center on www.vaemergency.com in the near future.

Please contact Deb Mills, Larry Braja or Mark Slauter at (804) 897-6500 for more information.

VNG conducts hurricane exercise
The Virginia National Guard 29th Infantry Division Headquarters conducted the Hurricane Howard simulation April 9-13, an exercise that tested the division's response to a major hurricane. More than 100 key staff and planners from the 29th ID used the training to practice supporting civilian law enforcement and first responders in evacuation, sheltering, debris removal and security operations. Representatives from the Virginia Department of Transportation, local American Red Cross chapters and VDEM assisted with the simulation.

New chief executive for the American Red Cross
After more than a year without a permanent leader, the American Red Cross board has confirmed Mark W. Everson, the commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service, as its new chief executive. The appointment follows legislation passed in Congress this month that restructures the organization, reducing the size of the board and changing the way board members are nominated.

Read more on the ARC Web site: http://www.redcross.org/pressrelease/0,1077,0_314_6586,00.html.

New planning templates for businesses
The Virginia Business Emergency Survival Toolkit now offers new disaster planning templates online. The Old Dominion Chapter of the Association of Contingency Planners, a nonprofit organization of public and private sector professionals responsible for disaster recovery planning, designed the templates specifically for the toolkit to streamline the planning process for businesses. VDEM and Virginia Citizen Corps developed the toolkit to help businesses of all types prepare for disasters. A free, printed pocket-sized version is also available from the Public Affairs Office at (866) 782-3470.

Visit the Virginia Business Emergency Survival Toolkit on VDEM's Web site: http://www.vaemergency.com/business.

NIMS training
All Incident Command System courses offered by VDEM and the state departments of Criminal Justice Services, Fire Programs and Forestry meet the current NIMS requirements for all disciplines, including law enforcement, fire, emergency medical services and other first responders and emergency planners. It is not necessary that the training requirements be met through a federal source. The NIMS National Standard Curriculum Training Development Guidance (October, 2006) provides an evaluation checklist for training to ensure that it meets federal standards.

Emergency management/response personnel who have already been trained in ICS do not need retraining if their previous training is consistent with DHS standards. If it has been five or more years since training has been completed, then individuals should retake the ICS-100 and ICS-200 courses.

To access the NIMS National Standard Curriculum Training Development Guidance, visit VDEM's online NIMS resource page: http://www.vaemergency.com/programs/nims/index.cfm. Contact the NIMS Integration Center by telephone at (202) 646-3805 or by e-mail at: NIMS-Integration-Center@dhs.gov.

Conferences...
Virginia Search & Rescue Council SAR Conference 2007
April 27-29 at the Sheraton Park South in Richmond
The Virginia Search and Rescue Council is sponsoring a search and rescue conference. All SAR responders, including law enforcement and fire and rescue personnel, volunteers, and CERT members, are encouraged to attend. Full conference registration is $85 and includes dinner Saturday evening.

For additional information and registration, please visit the SAR Council Web site: www.vasarco.org.

Training...
Homeland Security Exercise and Evaluation Program Mobile Training Course
May 15-18 at the Sheraton Park South in Richmond
This 3.5-day class is for individuals that are directly involved in the planning, design and evaluation of training exercises. The intermediate-level training course incorporates exercise guidance and best practices from the HSEEP Volumes. It is an interactive course that allows participants to share personal lessons learned and best practices while gaining practical experience. In addition to the instructor-led course presentations, the course includes small group activities, videos, group discussions and introductions to HSEEP and related initiatives.

One additional feature of this training session is the "Train-the-Trainer" component. The Commonwealth is interested in creating a cadre of personnel that can later provide this training to other students throughout the state.

Participants are required to complete IS-120a, An Introduction to Exercises before attending the HSEEP Mobile Training Course. IS-120a is available online at http://hseep.dhs.gov. To register for the HSEEP Mobile Training Course, visit VDEM’s online Training Calendar at http://www.vaemergency.com/train/spec_opps/hseep.cfm.

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