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Hospital-based disaster preparedness center opens in Utah
A 7,000 square-foot disaster preparedness center opened in Salt Lake City; the center is a fully-equipped environment with eighteen patient rooms, medical training mannequins, training classrooms, disaster simulation labs, and a secure supply area; the key is that the preparedness training is done in a working environment
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Steps organizations should take to prepare for disasters
Even if your company has not been affected by tornados, tsunami waves, or wildfires, all employers need to be prepared for the mayhem that natural disasters cause
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Scientists: Deepwater Horizon exposed gaps in deepwater oil spill knowledge
On the second anniversary of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, a national team of scientists warns that inadequate knowledge about the effects of deepwater oil well blowouts threatens scientists’ ability to help manage comparable future events
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Chinese monopoly on rare Earth metals a challenge for green economy
In order for clean technologies to contribute significantly to reducing greenhouse gases, the world would require an increase of neodymium and dysprosium – two of the seventeen rare Earth elements — of over 700 percent and 2,600 percent, respectively, in the next twenty-five years; the supply of these metals is currently increasing at 6 percent a year, and is under threat from China
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The bicycle's next frontier: disaster response
Cities in seismically active regions are examining their emergency response policies in the wake of the March 2011 tsunami in Japan; the city of Portland, Oregon, as well as citizen-led Neighborhood Emergency Teams(NET), have been including the cargo bike in their emergency response plans
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Haiti implements national plan for disaster risk reduction
The government of Haiti and the UN Development Program launch Haiti’s National System for Disaster Risk Reduction program; the UN says this is one of the first times that a developing country has taken advance measures to reduce the vulnerability of its people and economy to future earthquakes
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Better policies needed to reduce radiation exposure in nuclear accidents
A new study says that offsite policies and plans should be put in place to reduce the exposure of the public to radiation in the event of a nuclear power plant accident
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If Japan-like disaster happened in U.S., results would be far worse
An estimated 20,000 people died or are still missing after a massive earthquake-induced tsunami struck Japan on 11 March 2011, yet some 200,000 people were in the inundation zone at the time; experts say that if the same magnitude earthquake and tsunami hits the Pacific Northwest, the death toll will be much higher because of the lack of comparable preparation; that 90 percent rate could be the number of victims, not survivors
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New app helps Queensland coordinate volunteers
Researchers from the University of Queensland have developed a new smartphone app to help mobilize and coordinate volunteer efforts during major disasters
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Next-gen weather satellites to improve tornado warnings in South
More than a quarter of the 1,688 twisters confirmed across the United States in 2011 occurred in the four-state region of Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, and Tennessee – and most of the 73 tornadoes hitting the United States in January 2012 occurred in those four states; southern tornadoes are especially insidious and challenging to track, and NASA’s weather satellites are now paying special attention to them
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Nebraska debates disaster housing fund
Legislators in Nebraska are currently debating a law that would create a $2.5 million temporary housing fund for families who lose their homes in natural disasters
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Study finds majority of Americans unprepared for disasters
According to the latest survey by the Persuadable Research Corporation, half of the poll’s respondents believe they are unprepared for a disaster
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Union University bolsters emergency response with GPS 911 system
In an effort to bolster its emergency response capabilities Union University in Tennessee recently installed an enhanced 911 system
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Apps, digital tools to help cope with disasters
The Department of Health and Human Services has posted on its Web a list of apps and digital tools which would help individual cope with disasters and the challenges disasters pose
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FEMA grant helps UW create disaster plan
The University of Wisconsin is currently hard at work developing a comprehensive disaster preparedness plan with the help of FEMA
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