TV Emergency Information to be More Accessible Due to 21st CVAA: Weather Channel Gets More Time to Comply

On April 8, 2013, the FCC adopted additional rules to make emergency information on television more accessible to people who are blind or have visual impairments. These were issued as a result of the passage of the 21st CVAA and a longstanding demand of the COAT coalition. The new rules require an audio output of any emergency information that appears visually during a non-news program. Typically such emergency information is shown along the bottom of the TV screen during a regularly scheduled program and is typically in text and up to now has not been required to be made audible. The new rules require this text to be provided audibly on a secondary audio stream and goes into effect in two years. This should help many people with visual impairments learn about local emergency weather and other situations and should help save lives, time and reduce aggravation. The two year effectiveness date gives the industry plenty of time to figure out the technology to make this happen. Due to the usual begging and pleading we have come to expect, however, The Weather Channel got an additional six months to comply. That is, The Weather Channel has an additional 6 months to comply beyond the 2 year effectiveness date; and The Weather Channel on DIRECTV has an additional one year to comply.

In the same rulemaking, the FCC set up new requirements for equipment. That is, also adopted were new rules to ensure that certain equipment used to receive, play back, or record television programs is able to make secondary audio streams available such as audio that provides emergency information, as well as the video description that makes programs accessible to individuals who are blind or visually impaired. These rules also go into effect two years after they are published in the Federal Register.

http://www.coataccess.org/node/10140?goback=%2Egde_3080152_member_232855029                    

• Progress of the Bill

• Emergency Information and Services

FEMA SEEKS APPLICANTS FOR YOUTH PREPAREDNESS COUNCIL

ATLANTA – The Federal Emergency Management Agency is looking for youth leaders who are dedicated to public service, who are making a difference in their communities, and who want to expand their impact as national advocates for youth disaster preparedness.

Youth between the ages of 12 and 17 interested in strengthen the nation’s resiliency against disasters may now apply or be nominated to serve on FEMA’s Youth Preparedness Council. Participants will represent the youth perspective on emergency preparedness and share information with their communities.

Those interested may apply directly or be nominated by an adult by submitting a completed application form, a narrative, and a letter of recommendation. Visit www.ready.gov/youth-preparedness to access the application materials and instructions.

Applications and supporting materials must be received by midnight April 19, 2013.

Youth Preparedness Council members will attend the 2013 Youth Preparedness Council Summit and meet with emergency management leadership and national organizations dedicated to youth preparedness to discuss individual and community preparedness. Council members will participate in regular conference calls with FEMA and will complete a youth preparedness project of their choosing.

“Engaging youth is an integral step in preparing the nation for all hazards,” said FEMA’s Region IV Administrator Phil May. “Youth have a unique ability to influence their peers and families to be more resilient and play an important role in disaster preparedness, during and after a crisis.”

Benjamin Cooke of Memphis, Tenn., represented FEMA’s Region IV on the 2012 Youth Preparedness Council. He frequently spoke to diverse groups of youth about the need for emergency preparedness and volunteered at the Memphis Virginia Hospital. He has participated in community initiatives such as “Get Ready Shelby” and “Go Green Memphis.”

Share your personal story of survival during an emergency and/or or disaster

Marcie Roth, Director of FEMA’s Office of Disability Integration and Coordination, would like to share the request below from The Center on Disability at the Public Health Institute. The Center for Personal Assistance Services at UC San Francisco is collecting stories about experiences individuals with disabilities have endured in times of an emergency or disaster. If you or someone you know would like to share your story please follow the link provided below.

The Center on Disability at the Public Health Institute along with the Center for Personal Assistance Services at UC San Francisco is collecting emergency and disaster experience stories from individuals with disabilities who use personal assistance services (PAS).  We expect these experiences will lead to valuable lessons, techniques, strategies, and skills.

This is an opportunity to share what you have learned in surviving an emergency.

 

To participate, you must: 

• use one or more personal assistants (also known as an attendant or caregiver). This can be someone who you pay for, or someone who volunteers to assist you, including family members or friends. 
• have in the last 5 years (since 2008), lived through a large emergency such as, but not limited to, a storm, tornado, hurricane, earthquake, fire, flood, heat or cold wave, power outage, or chemical spill. By large emergency we mean an incident that effects a large physical area, affects many people and overwhelms local resources which leads to the state and possibly FEMA responding.
• be interested in helping others understand and learn from your emergency experience
• be willing to share your written or recorded story on the Center for Personal Assistance Services website

If this is all true for you, we would like to hear about your experiences.  Please go to http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/Emergency_Stories to give your experiences. 

If you complete the questions, which should take approximately fifteen to thirty minutes, you will be entered into a drawing for which 5 individuals will each win a $50 gift card.

If you have questions, please contact Lewis Kraus, Project Director at deputy@adapacific.org. 

Home Use Devices: How to Prepare and Handle Power Outages for Medical Devices that Require Electricity

As a home medical device user, it is important that your device works during a power outage and that you have a plan in place to ensure you know what to do. This booklet will help you have an established plan to obtain and organize your medical device information, take necessary actions so that you can continue to use your device, have the necessary supplies for the operation of your device, and know where to go or what to do during a power outage. If you use more than one medical device, complete a booklet for each device and ask your healthcare professional to help you.

Home Use Devices: How to Prepare and Handle Power Outages for Medical Devices that Require Electricity http://www.fda.gov/downloads/MedicalDevices/ProductsandMedicalProcedures/HomeHealthandConsumer/UCM252812.pdf

It's National Severe Weather Preparedness Week - (March 3-9, 2013)

Stay informed by having multiple sources for weather alerts - NOAA Weather Radio including adaptive weather radios for individuals with access and functional needs, NWS Weather Wire Service, Weather.gov, and Wireless Emergency Alerts. Subscribe to receive alerts www.weather.gov/subscribe.

WRERC Releases Survey for Emergency Communications for People with Disabilities

On February 7, the Wireless Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center launched a new survey on emergency communications to help improve accessibility of emergency response. The data collected will be used by the regulatory authorities and other professionals working to improve emergency response and disaster relief. To participate in this survey, visit:
http://www.wirelessrerc.org/content/newsroom/just-launched-2012-survey-emergency-communications-and-people-disabilities?goback=.anp_155773_1352655643906_1.gmp_155773.gde_155773_member_183349922.

The Disaster Distress Helpline, a program of SAMHSA, encourages you to 'prepare for coping'!

Program the DDH 1-800-985-5990 into your cell phone / land line address book for easy, 24/7 access in case you feel distress- like anxiety, fear, frustration -before, during or after any disaster. Also, offer to program the number into the phones of loved ones who may need help doing so, such as frail elderly. Before, during or after disasters, short of needing emergency 9-1-1 response, sometimes when we feel overwhelmed a phone call to a crisis hotline can help us feel calmer and more in control so that we can be better able to prepare, respond or move forward on the path to recovery following a disaster. Learn more about the Disaster Distress Helpline at http://disasterdistress.samhsa.gov!