The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) are once again partnering for National Flood Safety Awareness Week, March 12 -16. This is a time for individuals, families, businesses and communities to understand their risk for flooding and take precautions to protect their families and homes in the event of flooding.

“Floods can happen at any time, anywhere across the United States, which means we all need to be prepared now,” said FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate. “There are simple steps everyone can take to prepare for flooding, such as developing a family emergency plan, having an emergency supply kit and protecting your home or business from flooding by obtaining a flood insurance policy.”

Flood Safety Awareness Week is an excellent time for individuals and communities to understand their flood risk and implement precautions to mitigate the threat to life and property. “Flooding is the leading cause of severe weather-related deaths in the U.S., and this is especially tragic since many are preventable. Of the nearly 100 flood-related fatalities each year, most occur as people attempt to drive on flooded roads. In many cases, the water is either too deep or moving too fast for drivers to maintain control of their vehicle, and in extreme cases the roadway may be washed away entirely,” said Jack Hayes, director, NOAA’s National Weather Service, which produces an array of flood outlooks and forecasts, including watches and life-saving warnings. “Remember, if confronted with a water-covered road follow National Weather Service advice: Turn Around, Don’t Drown.”

NOAA will issue the 2012 U.S. Spring Outlook and flood assessment on March 15.

FEMA and NOAA will provide the public with key information related to flood hazards, and ways to protect yourself and your property each day of National Flood Safety Awareness week. Read http://blog.fema.gov/ throughout the week to stay informed and to get involved. Additional resources can be accessed online at the Flood Awareness Landing Page.

For more information on flood safety tips and information, visit www.ready.gov. For information on how to obtain a flood insurance policy, visit www.floodsmart.gov.

The Red Cross in Racine is planning a preparedness workshop March 22 from 11 a.m. – 12:3o p.m. At the free event, you can learn the facts you need before, during and after a disaster or emergency situation occurs.

The workshop will be held at the Racine Red Cross office, 4521 Taylor Ave. in Racine. If you would like to attend, please RSVP to tabberta@wi-redcross.org or call 262-554-9997 x11.

The Kenosha County Public/Private Partnership is holding training events in March on business security issues, and in April on preparing for severe weather.

The March training, called “Alarms and CCTV,” will be held March 14 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Uline Corporate Facility in Pleasant Prairie. April 11 will be the date for “Preparing for Severe Weather,” also 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Guttormsen Recreational Center in Kenosha.

For more information or the registration form, download the training brochure.

• Kenosha PPP brochure

The Wisconsin Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) Alliance is holding a Preparedness Training Conference May 11-12 at the Plaza Hotel in Wausau. The conference is designed for:

• MRC unit members and others interested in MRC
• Wisconsin Emergency Assistance Volunteer Registry (WEAVR) members
• Volunteer Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD) members
• Local public health, emergency management, and hospital personnel interested in
  volunteer resources

This statewide training conference offers courses for those wishing to complete Tier I courses for Medical Reserve Corps, advanced courses for those who would like enrichment, and anyone interested in learning more about public health emergency response volunteers. The conference also includes veterinary topics for volunteers.

The conference also celebrates the 10 year anniversary of the National Medical Reserve Corps.

For detailed information on the conference sessions, or instructions on how to register (registration is free), download the conference brochure.

• Download MRC conference brochure

FEMA’s Citizen Corps is sponsoring the latest in its Community Preparedness webinar series titled “Engaging Your Community in  Preventing Terrorism.”

On March 6, webinar attendees will  learn about various strategies and resources to improve their community’s awareness and likelihood of reporting suspicious activity that may be related to terrorism.

Presentations will feature the Nationwide Suspicious Activity Reporting Initiative (NSI), the Department of Homeland Security’s “If You See Something Say Something™” campaign, the National Sheriffs’ Association’s USAonWatch/ Neighborhood Watch program and new research and a resource guide from FEMA and the International Association of Chiefs of Police.

Presenters will discuss how law enforcement agencies, community partners, and the general public can work together to foster a public that is more informed, aware, and ready to report suspicious activity related to terrorism.

The webinar was rescheduled from its original date of February 15.

For more information or to register for the webinar online, check out the webinar page on the Citizen Corps website.

FEMA’s Emergency Management Institute is offering a series of online courses that deal with emergency preparedness and public-private partnerships. These independent study courses are self-paced and free. Courses include:

Introduction to Public-Private Partnerships
This course provides an introduction to the role of public-private partnerships in emergency preparedness and planning. The goal of this training is to establish a common vocabulary for public sector agencies and private sector organizations interested in utilizing partnerships to improve response, recovery, and resilience.

Protecting Your Home or Small Business From Disaster
The purpose of this course is to provide a foundation of knowledge that will enable participants to identify hazards that pose risk to home or business, and learn about protective measures that can reduce or eliminate those long-term risks to people and property.

Community Preparedness: Implementing Simple Activities for Everyone
The purpose of this course is to present a model program for community preparedness. In addition, resources materials are available to help organizations conduct simple preparedness activities for everyone.

Retail Security Awareness: Understanding the Hidden Hazards
The purpose of this course is to make people involved in commercial retail operations aware of the actions they can take to identify and report suspicious purchases or thefts of products that actors could use in terrorist or other criminal activities.

For more course offerings, check out the FEMA Independent Study Program page.

A video from North Dakota State University about the advantages for local businesses of making a disaster plan.

Electricity and natural gas are two of the most common hazards at an emergency scene. The Wisconsin Utilities Association (WUA) is partnering with Callan and Associates to offer the “Responding to Utility Emergencies” course. The online training program covers the dangers that first responders must deal with when utilities are involved at an emergency.

The free course includes:

• interactive media to make the course more engaging for students
• national training standards with learning objectives and activities
• tracking capabilities to allow responders to take a test and receive certification of completion
• ongoing updates to make sure responders have latest information

No matter which utility serves your area, the We Energies link contains a link to the Responding to Utilities Emergency training.
For more information, or to register for the course, go to:
http://www.we-energies.com/firstresponders

The 45th Annual Governor’s Conference on Emergency Management and Homeland Security is set for March 15-16 at the Radisson Paper Valley Hotel in Appleton.

Presenters at the conference will cover a wide range of topics. For a detailed list of all the speakers and breakout sessions, download the PDF brochure: http://www.emergencymanagement.wi.gov/2012_Brochure_Final.pdf

Registration for the conference will be taken online through the Wisconsin Training Portal. Please create an account and register for the conference at https://www.trainingwisconsin.org/. Once on the site, you can find the conference and pre-conference trainings. please find the dates March 14-16 on the Schedule Calendar. March 14 is the preconference day, followed by the conference on March 15-16.