User Experience Enhancements: Improvements to Mobile Features and Access to Outreach Materials

As part of our continuing efforts to improve the user experience and respond to site visitor feedback, the Disaster Assistance Improvement Program (DAIP) recently implemented enhancements including a mobile version of the pre-screening questionnaire and a “Forms and Materials” page to provide disaster survivors with fact sheets and other printable information regarding disaster assistance.

Following a disaster, electricity and computers may not be available in many affected areas. Mobile devices are often the only means of communication or information access immediately following a disaster. With this in mind, DAIP developed an optimized version of the pre-screening questionnaire to make it easier for users with mobile devices such as the iPhone and Android to find and apply for forms of assistance (FOAs) they may be eligible to receive. Disaster survivors can not only take the pre-screening questionnaire to find FOAs for which they may be eligible, but also apply online for certain FOAs through the FEMA Disaster Assistance Center (DAC) and email the FOA results page for future reference. Users will be able to access the pre-screening questionnaire from a mobile device through the DAC landing page, which provides the user the option to access the optimized version of questionnaire or the full site.

A record number of disaster survivors, primarily from Hurricane Isaac, used www.DisasterAssistance.gov to apply for assistance, update their information and check the status of their application online. Read more about Hurricane Isaac survivors going mobile for assistance on the FEMA blog.

Another enhancement to the site is the addition of a “Forms and Materials” page. On this page, disaster survivors may download forms and access information about DAIP and the disaster assistance registration process. Informational materials specifically targeted to tribes, emergency managers, volunteers, students and disaster survivors are available—in downloadable PDF format. Disaster survivors may also download a “Disaster Assistance Registration Check List” to help them register with FEMA for disaster assistance, as well as the “Declaration and Release” form, which is critical to completing the disaster assistance registration process. Additionally, DAIP’s “Youth Materials” provide activities such as a crossword puzzle and word scramble to help students in elementary, middle and high school learn more about disaster assistance. Six youth preparedness programs in schools around the country include these activities in their curriculum to help students and families better prepare for, and respond to, disasters in their communities. DAIP will add the most up-to-date informational materials to the “Forms and Materials” page as necessary.

Hurricane Preparedness Week teleconference May 23, 2012 at 2pm EST

Please join us for a Hurricane Preparedness Week teleconference focusing on inclusive emergency preparedness with an emphasis on the access and functional needs of children and adults with disabilities.

DATE: May 23, 2012

TIME: 2pm Eastern (1pm Central, 12pm Mountain, 11am Pacific)

Number: 1-212-547-0466 or 800-593-0692

Passcode: Hurricane Preparedness Week

Captioning Link: http://fedrcc.us//Enter.aspx?EventID=1949933&CustomerID=321

In 2011, FEMA responded to 98 major disaster declarations. One of the biggest was Hurricane Irene which impacted 14 states and 35 million people.

Hurricanes don’t just bring wind and rain; they can also bring other severe problems such as lightning strikes, flooding, extended power outages, and can interrupt or destroy vital community resources, like public transportation.  These problems affect all Americans including people with disabilities and others with access and functional needs.

Hurricane season begins on June 1^st, 2012 and FEMA and the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) are partnering to help Americans become prepared for hurricanes and other types of severe weather.   As Administrator Craig Fugate often says, “FEMA is only part of the emergency management team.”  Key members of the team are the public.  That is why we are encouraging everyone to do their part and we’re asking your help as a member of the community to make this effort successful.

Please join Marcie Roth, Director of the Office of Disability Integration and Coordination (ODIC) and other senior leaders at FEMA to find out how you can help your community become better prepared for meeting the needs of the whole community during hurricanes and other types of severe weather.

During this preparedness week we are reminding  you to be a force of nature – Pledge to prepare at http://www.ready.gov/hurricanes, take action, and be an example by sharing what you have done with your friends, family, and coworkers.

The National Preparedness Report (NPR)

The National Preparedness Report (NPR) has recently been released. The Report was developed to meet the requirements of Presidential Policy Directive 8/PPD-8: National Preparedness which identifies significant progress the nation has made in areas of prevention, protection, mitigation, response, and recovery.  Overall the Report found that the nation has increased its collective preparedness, not only from external threats, but also for natural and technological hazards that face all communities as a whole.

National Hurricane Preparedness Week 2012 runs - May 27th through June 2nd

National Hurricane Preparedness Week 2012 runs from May 27th through June 2nd

 

http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/prepare/

 

History teaches that a lack of hurricane awareness and preparation are common threads among all major hurricane disasters. By knowing your vulnerability and what actions you should take, you can reduce the effects of a hurricane disaster. 

Hurricane hazards come in many forms, including storm surge, heavy rainfall, inland flooding, high winds, tornadoes, and rip currents. The National Weather Service is responsible for protecting life and property through issuance of timely watches and warnings, but it is essential that your family be ready before a storm approaches. Furthermore, mariners should be aware of special safety precautions when confronted with a hurricane. 

Download the Tropical Cyclone Preparedness Guide (PDF) or follow the links for more information. But remember, this is only a guide. The first and most important thing anyone should do when facing a hurricane threat is to use common sense.

The Next Generation 9-1-1 Advancement Act of 2012

The Next Generation 9-1-1 Advancement Act of 2012 [P.L. 112-96] was recently signed into law in order to establish a 9-1-1 Implementation Coordination Office responsible for the coordination of 9-1-1 services as well as the facilitation of grant programs for state, local and tribal entities providing these services. In addition, The House Homeland Security Committee recently passed The Integrated Public Alert and Public Warning System Modernization Act of 2011 [H.R. 3563] to establish common alerting protocols and operating procedures for warning systems. The Act stresses the accessibility of alerts by calling for the alert content to adapt to users’ needs, especially for people with disabilities, and for the dissemination of alerts to be subject to a users’ geographic location and personal preferences.

Los Angeles Settlement Requires Development of New Emergency Response Plans to Include People with Disabilities

Settlement: Disabled must be included in disaster plans

In a legal settlement with far-reaching implications, the city of Los Angeles agreed Wednesday to develop new emergency response plans that will consider care for the disabled.

The settlement, which calls for $2.1 million in payments to the law firms representing the disabled, is the largest so far won by disabled rights advocates seeking to have plans for earthquakes, fires, flooding and other emergencies reflect the special needs of the community.

"We have been trying to work it out with the city for years," said Sidney Wolinsky of Disability Rights Advocates of Berkeley, who brought the legal action along with the Disability Rights Legal Center of Los Angeles.

"This is the first case that we have been able to resolve after the judge ruled our way. It will be a precedent for us as we work with other cities.

"This has been a long-standing problem with agencies in not considering the needs of the disabled," Wolinsky said. "I think it has been a problem for emergency and disaster planning and has been one of those things that have fallen through the cracks."

Under the agreement, Los Angeles emergency planners will have to develop special plans for the disabled - there are an estimated 500,000 people with disabilities in Los Angeles - in case of an emergency.

Click here for the direct link to the article

Pass It On Center and Georgia Tech co-host the FEMA Think Tank for March 2012, Focuses on Disability Topics

Disasters can strike anywhere, anytime and can impact anyone, so everyone must be involved in emergency planning, mitigation, response, and recovery efforts. This is a message that FEMA’s senior leadership brings to the table at every opportunity.

Deputy FEMA Administrator Richard Serino drove this point home during the Think Tank conference call in Atlanta at the Georgia Institute of Technology, March 22, 2012. Introducing the topic to an audience of over 30 community leaders in the room and more than 500 callers nationwide, he stressed the benefits of the call.

“Talking with teachers, leaders in the access and functional needs community, non-profit and community organizers – all of which are the epitome of whole community – gives me, and everyone, a better understanding of the reality – on the ground,” Serino said.

Topics discussed during the call included a focus on the importance of having access to electrical power and alternatives during disasters, especially for individuals with disabilities and other types of access and functional needs. Carolyn Phillips, program director at Georgia’s Pass It On Center, Tools for Life, the state’s Assistive Technology Act Program, noted that as smartphones have many different types of alternating current electrical power adapters, medical and assistive devices also have the same variability.

To demonstrate this point, Liz Persaud, Phillips’s colleague from Tools for Life, brought the chargers she’d need to keep her equipment fully functional. It required a suitcase to carry all of the items and weighed over 30 pounds.

Other speakers noted that individuals need to proactively plan for major power losses by including alternate sources of power such as solar power or generators.

“We need to think more creatively about power and how we convert power for people with access and functional needs,” said Phillips. She also stressed the need for including power access issues in drills and assessing those outcomes in after-action reports.

Atlanta, Ga., March 22, 2012 -- FEMA Deputy Administrator Richard Serino opens the Think Tank conference call at the Georgia Tech Centergy Building in downtown Atlanta. Also pictured (L) Marcie Roth, FEMA Director of Disability Integration and Andy Altizer (c), Georgia Tech Director of Emergency Preparedness. The Think Tank forum is designed to engage our partners, promote innovation and facilitate discussion in the field of emergency management.

Atlanta, Ga., March 22, 2012 -- At the Think Tank conference call at the Georgia Tech Centergy Building in downtown Atlanta, FEMA Deputy Administrator Richard Serino discusses powering durable medical equipment following disasters with Carolyn Phillips, Director of The Pass it On Center. The Think Tank forum is designed to engage our partners, promote innovation and facilitate discussion in the field of emergency management.

Direct link: http://blog.fema.gov/2012/03/fema-think-tank-for-march-2012-focuses.html