AMU Emergency Management Public Safety

EDM Week in Review May 30, 2016

Emergency and disaster management week in review for May 30, 2016

A weekly recap of handpicked emergency and disaster management news, along with analysis and interpretation from our team of experts.


Hurricane Season

June 1st marked the [link url=”https://amuedge.com/hurricane-season-begins-whats-in-store-for-the-2016-season/” title=”beginning of hurricane season for the nation“], with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) indicating that there is a 45 percent chance of a normal season. El Nino conditions have weakened, however, which usually means [link url=”http://www.cnn.com/2016/06/01/weather/2016-hurricane-season-3-things-to-know/” title=”La Nina patterns will begin to influence weather“] and could produce conditions more favorable for hurricane development, such as reduced wind shear over the Atlantic. The recent absence of any major hurricanes making landfall has officials concerned that people have become complacent, so they are asking [link url=”https://amuedge.com/hurricane-season-begins-june-1st-are-you-prepared/” title=”communities and residents to be prepared“].

[relink url=”https://amuedge.com/lowering-disaster-risk-with-emerging-technology/” url2=”https://amuedge.com/hurricane-season-begins-june-1st-are-you-prepared/” url3=”https://amuedge.com/risk-mitigation-the-best-investment/”]


Texas Flooding

At least six people died in [link url=”http://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/31/us/6-dead-in-texas-floods-and-more-rain-is-coming.html” title=”flooding due to severe rain across Texas,”] and authorities were searching for an 11-year-old boy in Kansas who was [link url=”http://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/31/us/6-dead-in-texas-floods-and-more-rain-is-coming.html” title=”swept away in a flooded creek in Kansas.“] The Brazos river rose to 54.37 feet overnight Tuesday to Wednesday, and authorities in Fort Bend County rescued at least 40 people due to the flooding.  More than 100 people took advantage of 15 area shelters. The floodwaters pushed ants, snakes, and debris [link url=”http://www.usatoday.com/story/weather/2016/05/31/deadly-texas-flooding-continues/85184320/” title=”into communities and area businesses“] and stranded farm animals and livestock. Emergency management officials warn that it will take time for waters to recede from the flooding and people should use caution. Just two years ago, the [link url=”http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/authorities-woman-dies-swept-austin-39494620″ title=”Brazos River had been impacted by an area drought,”] causing it to run dry in some areas.

[relink url=”https://amuedge.com/study-climate-change-is-affecting-distribution-of-global-water-resources/” url2=”https://amuedge.com/water-water-everywhere-except-maybe-where-you-need-it-revisited/” url3=”https://amuedge.com/water-management-too-much-or-too-little/”]


Alaska

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), one U.S. state in particular is bearing the brunt of climate change: [link url=”https://amuedge.com/alaska-is-heating-up-at-a-record-pace/” title=”Alaska.“] Alaska, on a statewide basis, has been [link url=”https://amuedge.com/alaska-is-heating-up-at-a-record-pace/” title=”warming at a rate of +5.3°F per century since 1950.“] This beats temperature increases from other U.S. states by a wide margin.

[relink url=”http://edmdigest.com/adaptation/the-american-refugee/” url2=”https://amuedge.com/noaa-a-hot-summer-is-forthcoming/” url3=”https://amuedge.com/record-breaking-arctic-melting-expected-this-summer/”]


Cybersecurity

Global news agency Reuters obtained federal cybersecurity reports through a Freedom of Information Act request, and recently published its findings based on those reports: [link url=”https://amuedge.com/more-than-50-cybersecurity-breaches-at-u-s-federal-reserve-in-4-years/” title=”310 incident reports were logged by the Federal Reserve’s cybersecurity team“] over a four-year span from 2011 to 2015. Of the 310 overall incidents, the Fed’s cybersecurity team [link url=”https://amuedge.com/more-than-50-cybersecurity-breaches-at-u-s-federal-reserve-in-4-years/” title=”classified 140 as hacking attempts,”] and 51 as information disclosure incidents.

[relink url=”https://amuedge.com/report-government-organizations-rank-last-in-cyber-security/” url2=”https://amuedge.com/education/cyber-security-the-true-greatest-threat-to-our-future/” url3=”https://amuedge.com/new-global-cyber-alliance-identifies-phishing-as-top-cyber-security-risk/”]


Airlines & Airports

[link url=”https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/trafficandcommuting/tsa-says-most-airport-security-lines-werent-so-bad-over-memorial-day-weekend/2016/05/31/a537e9f8-2731-11e6-b989-4e5479715b54_story.html” title=”Wait times at the nation’s airports over the holiday weekend were reportedly only 10-30 minutes“], with just one airport, in Kansas City, MO, reporting a longer wait time — of about 75 minutes. After being placed under increased scrutiny by Congress following the airline crashes overseas, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) took criticism regarding its extremely long lines that were causing thousands of passengers to miss flights. Procedural changes, including the use of airline employees for non-security related positions, and the shifting of personnel to some of the nation’s largest airports, by TSA Administrator, Peter Neffenger, has reduced wait times at most airports.

[relink url=”https://amuedge.com/egyptair-flight-804-brings-renewed-focus-on-tsa-in-u-s/” url2=”https://amuedge.com/a-not-so-direct-flight-egyptair-804/”]

Kimberly Arsenault serves as an intern at the Cleveland/Bradley County Emergency Management Agency where she works on plan revisions and special projects. Previously, Kimberly spent 15 years in commercial and business aviation. Her positions included station manager at the former Midwest Express Airlines, as well as corporate flight attendant, inflight manager, and charter flight coordinator. Kimberly currently holds a master's degree in emergency and disaster management from American Public University.

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