Deshka Landing Fire Public Meeting – Thursday 8/22/19

Deshka Landing Fire Wildfire
Announcements – 12 hrs. ago

The Deshka Landing Fire will be the subject of an information meeting for interested parties at 6:30 p.m.on Thursday evening, August 22nd at the Willow Elementary School in Willow, Alaska. The meeting will start with a presentation about the status of the fire and the ongoing suppression efforts.

Personnel from the McKinley Fire along the Park Highway will also be in attendance to provide current information. Time will be available for one-on-one discussions with fire personnel.

For more fire information, please visit https://akfireinfo.com/ and https://m.facebook.com/AK.Forestry/

 

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My PI Alaska – National Youth Preparedness Initiative

This week in Anchorage, My PI National installs its 21st program and welcomes 14 new instructors for the initial deliveries of this three-time, national award-winning youth preparedness/youth leadership program in the the 49th state. We are excited to welcome My PI Alaska and see the passion of our instructors who no doubt see and believe in the promise of our youth.#MyPI #YouthPreparedness #PlanAhead My PI National UAA: University of Alaska Anchorage Alaska Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management

4 Willow CERT Members and Mat Su Borough Emergency Services people are training to be MyPI instructors in Youth Preparedness in the Mat Su Valley. Others are from UAA, the AK Military Youth Academy, Valdez and rural AK.  Photos to follow.

Keeping Lines of Communication Open–CERT & Ham Radio

[This article is from the July 2019 issue of the FEMA Individual and Community Preparedness Newsletter.]

Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) members know that communication during an emergency is vital. Don Lewis of the Alexandria Radio Club in Virginia wants CERTs around the country to know how Amateur Radio can help.

Amateur Radio is a useful tool. Lewis, who is trained in CERT, explained that ham radios are more powerful than regular radios. They aren’t incredibly expensive, and they have a wide range of uses.

Sometimes CERTs may need to work together throughout a large area. They need to be able to report things that they have found. They sometimes even need to request medical support. Using a radio is easier, safer, and more efficient than sending a person back with messages, says Lewis. Ham radios enable a CERT to communicate over much greater distances than standard radios. This can improve the level at which a CERT can coordinate. CERTs already use ham radios in exercises and they have extended their range and effectiveness.

The City of Berkeley, California’s CERT has already begun using ham radio in city-wide disaster drills. In the winter of 2018, they held a 24-hour mock disaster where they practiced their ham radio skills to better prepare their city. They were able to maintain communications in the whole city for the entire 24-hour exercise. This allowed them to relay critical information to citizens and disaster crews. They were also able to use hams to aid the city during a blackout in November of 2017. The CERTs used solar powered batteries in their ham radios. This allowed them to function even when power and phones were down.

Amateur Radio protocols are also built into Pasadena, California’s emergency management system. The area experiences earthquakes several times a year. The quakes can destroy cell towers and phones lines in an instant. Amateur Radio can be a huge asset during a disaster like this, so Pasadena has a network of radio operators trained to provide communications at any time they need. They can contact hospitals or fire stations to better serve their community. Ham operators can even aide families in contacting one another once a disaster has passed.

Are you interested in learning how to operate a ham radio of your own to serve your community? Then the Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) may be for you. They are a group of radio operators who volunteer for various disasters and public service events. They can provide guidance for training, equipment, and licensing.

Emergency Management Professional Program Recommended Reading List

Please join us on July 17, 2019, 3:00 pm, EST (11:00 am Alaska time); the Emergency Management Professional Program will discuss “EMPP Book Club of the Quarter”.  Please click this link,  EMPP Recommended Reading List Cover Title and Author (508 compliant), to view a PDF copy of the recommended reading list.

Login link: 

EMI e-Forums https://fema.connectsolutions.com/emieforums (log in as a guest)

Our Adobe Connect EMI e-Forums http://www.adobe.com/products/adobeconnect/apps/adobe-connectmobile.html are accessible for those on the go.

Conference call-in:

800-320-4330, PIN 107622

For questions, contact:  Contact Emergency Management Institute

https://training.fema.gov/contactus/sendcomment.aspx

FEMA’s Emergency Management Institute hosts a series of e-Forums entitled, “One Link, One Bridge, Many Voices.” E-Forums are 1-hour, moderated webinar discussions that provide an opportunity for EMI and the emergency management community to discuss matters of interest on national preparedness training. On July 17, 2019, EMI will host “The Emergency Management Professional Program Recommended Reading List and Book Club,” e-Forum. The e-Forum will highlight why the Emergency Management Professional Program (EMPP), consisting of the National Emergency Management Basic, Advanced, and Executive Academies, developed a recommended professional reading list to further enhance the profession of emergency management.

 

Panel members Carol McMahon and Lindsey Means will discuss the role of the reading list in their ongoing professional development and what they learned from listening to other students provide an overview of their selected book during the 2^nd course of the National Emergency Management Advanced Academy (NEMAA).  They will also discuss the advantages of creating a body of knowledge through the recommended reading list, as well as what the book club can do to contribute to the professional development needs of the emergency management community.

 

The EMPP provides a progressive framework for emergency managers to acquire the knowledge, skills, and abilities to enhance their professional development needs required to meet the challenges of a dynamic and complex emergency management environment. The entire EMPP curriculum is designed to provide a lifetime of learning for a career in emergency management. The National Emergency Management Basic Academy is designed to develop the next generation of emergency managers. The National Emergency Management Advanced Academy provides professional development in contemporary concepts and issues for mid-career emergency managers. The National Emergency Management Executive Academy challenges the Nation’s emergency management executives through the application of critical thinking, visionary strategic planning, and managing the complex real-world problems in today’s emergency management environment.

“The EMPP Recommended Professional Reading List (professional reading list) is designed to encourage continual learning by career emergency managers.

 

The professional reading list supports the FEMA Strategic Plan, Goal 1: Build a Culture of Preparedness* by contributing to the ongoing professional development needs of the emergency management community. The professional reading list also serves to create a body of knowledge that allows emergency managers to enhance the knowledge, skills, and abilities required to meet the challenges of a dynamic and complex emergency management environment.

 

The Book-of-the-Month Club serves to enhance the professional development of emergency managers through the analysis and discussion of topics relevant to the practice of contemporary emergency management. Continual learning through the Book-of-the-Month Club allows emergency managers to share practical experiences with their peers, and to help one another be better prepared and add value to their organizations. Conducted in a virtual environment, the Book-of-the-Month Club provides a forum for participant-driven, facilitated discussions, and aims to create a body of knowledge to address the current and emerging issues and trends in the contemporary emergency management environment.

Meeting: Mat Su Community Organizations Active in Disasters, 6 pm, Willow Community Center, Thursday, July 18, 2019

Mat Su COAD is an umbrella organization of agencies or groups that are not part of formal emergency response system but help communities in emergency preparedness and response to and recovery from disasters.  All are welcome.

COAD info flyer 2018

New wildfire reported about 1 mile north of Montana Creek Fire; evacuations in progress

Click here for the original story.

Update 6:35 p.m. – The Malaspina Fire burning near Talkeetna is now estimated at 60 acres.  Firefighters say one structure was lost.  South Malaspina Loop Road, Montana Creek Road, Makuskin Road, and Yoder Road have all been evacuated.

Crews are getting help from water scooping aircraft, air tankers dropping retardant, and Blackhawk helicopters dropping water on the fire, which began at about 3:30 p.m.  In addition, the Baker River Hotshots and the White Mountain Type 2 Initial Attack crew were sent from the nearby Montana Creek Fire to respond to the Malaspina Fire. Smokejumpers are en route from Talkeetna. The Joint Base Elmendorf Richardson Task Force is on scene. Mat-Su Borough engines and water tenders are being staged for structure protection.

Update 5:19 – Makuskin and Yoder Roads in Sunshine are being evacuated due to the Malaspina Fire.

A photo of the Malaspina Fire (#451) as seen from the air on initial attack at 4:25 p.m. Photo by Tim Whitesell/Alaska Division of Forestry

The Alaska Division of Forestry is responding to a new wildfire about a mile north of the Montana Creek Fire on South Malaspina Loop in Sunshine, near Talkeetna.

Evacuations are now in progress for residents on South Malaspina Loop and Montana Creek Road.

The new fire, called the Malaspina Fire (#451), was reported at about 3:30 p.m. and has grown to an estimated 10 acres, according to the Alaska Division of Forestry.

The fire is burning in black spruce and is sending up a large column of smoke. The fire is moving toward Montana Creek Road.

Air tankers, smoke jumpers, helicopters, and local engines are responding. Firefighters are putting together a plan to protect structures in the path of the fire.

 

Mat-Su Emergency Management Shared Post

June 27 at 5:28 PM ·

Alaska fire season is amongst us and with the recent burn suspension in the Mat-Su Borough as well as the high fire danger the state is experiencing, the Mat-Su Borough Office of Emergency Management would like to take this time to talk about the nationwide Ready, Set, Go! Program. The Ready, Set Go! Program works with other programs such as Firewise and is designed to inform individuals who live in areas known as high risk for wildland fires how to best prepare themselves and their properties during wildland season. The program is a result of a nationwide discussion on how to protect lives and harden homes in Wildland Urban Interface (WUI) areas. WUI are areas where houses are built close to or within natural terrain and flammable vegetation.

The Ready, Set, Go! Program was developed to share information to residents on what they can do to successfully prepare for wildland fires. Follow the simple steps to help do your part in being prepared:

1. Ready – Be Ready: Create defensible space by clearing brush from your home and structures.

2. Set – Be Alert: Know how to receive the latest news updates and information on fires occurring in your area. Have your emergency kit, communication plan, and prepare a personal wildland fire action plan.

3. Go – Act Early: Follow your personal wildland fire plan and cooperate with local authorities during an evacuation and re-entry process.

For more information go to:

http://www.wildlandfirersg.org/Resident