This is the latest technology to come to television news organizations trying to improve their sharing of information visually. Check out the video at the end of this article, Miami CBS station to debut virtual reality studio  I’ve seen this already on the CBS evening news as they give national weather forecasts. The video I mention gives you a better idea of how a studio looks—basically, walls of green screens.

When you suffer a loss from a catastrophic fire, that is not the time to investigate the history of your insurance company’s payment of claims. I reminded my daughter 30 years ago when she found a cheaper auto insurance company that she also needed to consider their track record for paying claims. A few years after being married to her husband, he said, “The best thing about being married to Emily is USAA” (an insurance company—I have had for over 50 years).

It has been an accepted fact that climate change is real and that it is impacting the frequency, severity and I add, duration of natural disasters. You can measure that in numbers for how many disasters there are today and how the costs of disasters have skyrocketed in recent years.

This will add up to about 25% of the entire workforce, which includes the National Weather Service (NWS). I don’t know about you, but if I cut 25% of my staff, I could not maintain the same level of services that I had provided before.

Many times, people think about the disaster response and recovery only in terms of what government does. Another major contributor to disaster relief in all cases comes from the nonprofit sector. In this podcast we have an example of what one individual with a vision and mission can accomplish. Check out the Disaster Zone Podcast: Disaster Accountability Project

Jason McNamara, a former Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Chief of Staff offered some ideas for reforming FEMA, given the establishment of a council to do that very thing. I’ve blogged on the council before. I’m still waiting to hear about the composition of that body, the only thing we know is it will be chaired by the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Secretary of Defense (DOD).

Back a few weeks (dog weeks at that) I shared the idea that there is nothing sacred to cost cutters and the Federal Emergency Management Institute (EMI) could be in jeopardy. So today there is this from the Washington Post, FEMA cancels firefighter training amid uncertainty over Trump cuts  While it says “Fire” it also includes all emergency management classes being cancelled for the time being.

As emergency managers we know that one, if not the key factor, in being successful in our career and profession is gaining and maintaining strong interpersonal relationships. Those are numerous with a wide variety of people representing a plethora of organizations that range from government to business and the nonprofit sectors. I’d also add the “Fourth Estate” with that being the media.

I had the opportunity to chat on Friday with Jason D'Souza the host of a Canadian Broadcast Corporation (CBC) radio program All Points West, a show originating from Victoria, BC.  The topic was Canada-US relations in the case of a natural disaster on the West Coast you can listen to the eight minute segment at the link.

I picked this up from a LinkedIn posting. You can see what she shared with our federal elected representatives about the future of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). While this is all good and well and shall I say “normal” I don’t think Congress is where the action is at, and where the “action will be taken” except for her suggestion to overhaul the Stafford Act. However, that is not the priority with the Administration of today.

I’ve noticed that more journalists are connecting the dots when it comes to disasters and emergency management. See this New York Times article, As Layoffs Continue, Federal Workers Face Sluggish Job Market

There is nothing like hearing from someone who has walked in your shoes, when it comes to disaster recovery. Post fires, Los Angeles will now be decades in the rebuilding that which was destroyed. Please see the LinkedIn posting below. This is from Brent Winder who has worked very closely in the work to help Christ Church recover from a large and very destructive earthquake. Last year I had him as a guest on my Disaster Zone Podcast Post Earthquake: Managing the Situation in Christchurch NZ https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/post-earthquake-managing-the-situation-in-christchurch-nz/id1752742252?i=1000664479064 He had great advice that he shared there and now today, there is his advice for Los Angeles.

The inevitable has come to pass. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has started saying goodbye to a thousand or more staff, see this New York Times article, Senior Leaders Are Leaving an Already-Depleted Disaster Agency

There are only a few federal agencies immune from the personnel cuts being made across the board here in the United States. The National Weather Service (NWS) is not one of them.

I have to say that it is pretty unusual for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to be in the news as much as it has been—without a major disaster happening.

Many a politician does not give a hoot about emergency management and disasters until their jurisdiction is in the crosshairs of a disaster. Then, even the most ardent critic of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is suddenly calling on that agency to do its job to help their jurisdiction. FEMA’s future.

I’ve always been interested in history and how groups of people have willingly been oppressed without “fighting back” in any form or fashion. For those of you at the state and local levels, if you think that a 30-40% staff reduction at the federal level won’t impact you—think again. Not to mention what happens when entire classes of grants are reduced or completely eliminated. Rather than bemoan your fate when it comes, do something today to be proactive

There are many things that are “up in the air” right now when it comes to how government will function in the near term. One of them is the National Weather Service  (NWS) and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) are both in the news with “glimmers” of what might yet happen.

See this NY Times article, The Way Hurricanes Kill Is Changing. Helene Shows How   The basic message is freshwater flooding brought on by excessive rains are now killing more people than hurricane storm surges of the past.