Emergency Management
EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT-NEWS
9/10/12: Pledge to Prepare: This September marks the ninth annual National Preparedness Month (NPM), created after 9/11 to encourage Americans to take steps to perpare for emergencies in their homes, schools, organizations, businesses, and communities. Read more in our Pledge to Prepare 2012 Press release.
8/14/12: Taylor Bridge Wildfire grows to 26,000 acres: Wind whipped a fire in Kittitas County overnight, causing it to advance from 2,800 to more than 26,000 acres in a matter of hours. Flames from the Taylor Bridge Wildfire, burning near Cle Elum, have destroyed more than 60 homes as of Tuesday morning.Another 450 homes have been evacuated as winds shifted northeast, blowing toward several pockets of homes and subdivisions. For more information, please see article. www.krem.com/news/166108396.html
4/11/12: No New Results with River Search: Yesterday, April 10th, Spokane County Sheriff's Office Emergency Operations Team spent the day searching for missing Fairchild Airman James Ramse-Lassiter. The team searched the Spokane River from the Bowl and Pitcher area in Riverside State Park to Nine Mile, then Long Lake. The (EOT) used three water vessels in the search and were assisted by the U.S. Border Patrol's helicopter. They did not locate any new evidence during their search.
3/18/12: 911 SCAM ALERT: Residents of Washington, Michigan, Pennsylvania and other states have reported receiving calls from someone requesting money for 9-1-1 services. The caller claims that residents must pay a fee to register their house in a 9-1-1 database so first responders can locate the home in an emergency. The caller also requests names and medical information from the residents. This is a scam. 9-1-1 services are funded through dedicated 9-1-1 excise taxes on telephone bills and by other local government funds. Any request for 9-1-1 funds over the phone is a fraud. Residents who receive these calls should hang up and report the suspicious call to their local police or sheriff’s non-emergency phone number.
2/24/12: Gov. Gregoire requests federal disaster declaration for winter storm damage: OLYMPIA—Gov. Chris Gregoire has asked President Obama to declare a federal disaster area in 11 Washington counties for damages and emergency response costs suffered during January’s severe winter storm. Link to additional information
2/7/12: "INFORMATIONAL" Evergreen State "Puget Sound Area" Earthquake Series 2012: A series of three exercises intended to test the response and recovery capability of local, state, federal, tribal governments, and private sector entities located within the eight-county Puget Sound metro area. Link to additional Information on Earthquake series
2/1/12: Good Morning Everyone. I've made some changes to the DEM webpage. Please look over the news and preparedness links in the next few weeks for updates and useful links. Thanks, Pete Hartmann
12/5/11: Foreign Animal Disease Tabletop Exercise (TTX) Summary Article: On December 5, 2011, 90 stakeholders from eastern Washington and some from Idaho State came together for a tabletop exercise (facilitated discussion) to consider the widespread effects of a Foreign Animal Disease (FAD). Article
11/9/11: NATIONWIDE EMERGENCY ALERT SYSTEM TEST (11 AM Pacific Standard Time):
At the Federal Communications Commission's June 9, 2011 Agenda meeting, Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau Chief Jamie Barnett, joined by representatives from FEMA and the National Weather Service, announced that the first nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System (EAS) would take place at 2:00 PM (Eastern Standard Time) on November 9, 2011. The purpose of the test is to assess the reliability and effectiveness of the EAS as a public alert mechanism. EAS Participants currently participate in state-level monthly tests and local-level weekly tests, but no top-down review of the entire system has ever been undertaken. The Commission, along with the Federal Emergency Management Agency, will use the results of this nationwide test to assess the reliability and effectiveness of the EAS as a public alert mechanism, and will work together with EAS stakeholders to make improvements to the system as appropriate.
5/24/11: NWS Flood Warning Update for Spokane Area: THE FLOOD WARNING CONTINUES FOR THE SPOKANE RIVER AT SPOKANE UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE * AT 12:45 PM MON THE STAGE WAS...27.0 FEET. * MINOR FLOODING IS OCCURRING AND MINOR FLOODING IS FORECAST. * FLOOD STAGE IS 27.0 FEET. * FORECAST: THE RIVER WILL CONTINUE TO RISE TO NEAR 27.2 FEET BY TUESDAY MORNING AND HOLD STEADY FOR MUCH OF THE WEEK. ADDITIONAL RISES MAY BE POSSIBLE THEREAFTER. * AT 27.0 FEET...SIGNIFICANT STRETCHES OF THE CENTENNIAL TRAIL BETWEEN MISSION AVENUE AND GREENE STREET WILL BE INUNDATED. MINOR FLOODING ALONG THE SPOKANE RIVER VALLEY IS POSSIBLE.