Disaster Zone

Building for disaster resilience requires a concerted effort to build disaster resilient buildings with new building materials and siting buildings in the right location to limit the impact of natural hazards. Evan Reis, Executive Director for the US Resiliency Council shares how they are working to improve building codes and construction methods and processes. He also touches on how equity and social justice can be applied to the construction of disaster resistant buildings. The book Resilience—The Ultimate Sustainability is mentioned as a reference for you. Lastly, if you like this podcast you can hear more from Evan via a Webinar you can find at this link The Pathway to Resilience and Carbon Neutrality. Dynamis, a leading provider of information management software and security solutions, is a sponsor of this podcast.Eric Holdeman is a professional emergency manager who is passionate about providing information that can help families, businesses & governments become better prepared for disasters of all types. Hear first hand expert insights from Eric on his Podcast, Blog & EricHoldeman.com.

One segment of our community that is using drones more and more includes the television media. This podcast is an interview with Greg Thies, News Operations Manager at King Television in Seattle, a NBC affiliate. In this podcast we learn about what the safety and operational protocols are in use to provide the safe operation of drones by the media. There is also information on how they approach working with first responders when they arrive on a disaster site. The working relationship between media and the broader emergency management community can always be improved by communicating about what each organization is looking to achieve. This episode is sponsored by The Blue Cell, a by design crisis and consequence management consulting firm with a primary focus on education and training for government at all levels, non governmental agencies and private sector entities engaged in incident and emergency management activities.Eric Holdeman is a professional emergency manager who is passionate about providing information that can help families, businesses & governments become better prepared for disasters of all types. Hear first hand expert insights from Eric on his Podcast, Blog & EricHoldeman.com.

T-Mobile is now the second largest wireless carrier in the United States. Their recent merger with Sprint has given them some significant advantages in coverage and emergency and disaster capabilities. This interview is with Craig Martinez, a public safety advisor to T-Mobile with a long background in law enforcement. In the interview we discuss the many strong attributes that T-Mobile now has to support first responder agencies, police and fire—including being able to provide free cellular service in some instances, based on the wireless plan selected.  This podcast is sponsored by T-Mobile for Government, providing innovative connectivity solutions that help government better serve citizens by enabling agencies to work more intelligently, efficiently, and securely. Their mobile device management solutions help safeguard sensitive data and their network is ideal for unlocking game-changing loT technology.  T-Mobile provides 24x7x365 support, so they are ready to help you when communications are critical.  It all starts with America’s largest, fastest, and now according to a third-party rating service umlaut, it is the most reliable 5G network, as well as the tools that help you take advantage of 5G.  T-Mobile offers an amazing customer experience and outstanding value—with no tradeoffs.  They have the most reliable 5G according to umlaut based on crowdsourced user experience data (Sept 2020 to Feb 2021). They also have the fastest 5G according to Opensignal Awards based on average speeds (USA: 5G User Experience Report April 2021). See 5G device, coverage, & access details at T-Mobile.com. Eric Holdeman is a professional emergency manager who is passionate about providing information that can help families, businesses & governments become better prepared for disasters of all types. Hear first hand expert insights from Eric on his Podcast, Blog & EricHoldeman.com.

Los Angeles World Airports, which includes LAX is the 3rd busiest airport in the world by passenger volume. In this podcast I interview Justin Pierce who is the Emergency Management Director there. We talk about the challenges and opportunities he faces with such a large enterprise system. Besides going into the details of his emergency management program we also discuss the future of the emergency management profession to include NextGen Emergency Managers.    This episode is sponsored by Bent Ear Solutions which offers comprehensive capabilities and deep industry knowledge necessary to help you solve the most complex issues of your organization. We advise public and private organizations on an all-inclusive approach to disaster preparedness that addresses governance, planning, operational procedures, technology implementation, training, and exercises in order to achieve a successful and sustainable program.Eric Holdeman is a professional emergency manager who is passionate about providing information that can help families, businesses & governments become better prepared for disasters of all types. Hear first hand expert insights from Eric on his Podcast, Blog & EricHoldeman.com.

While climate change and disasters are mentioned frequently in the popular media, most of the information being shared is about climate mitigation that has to do with reducing the amount of carbon being emitted into the atmosphere. There is little discussion of climate adaptation. This podcast looks specifically at adaption as a strategy that can be implemented now and can provide immediate results to reduce climate related damages. George Haddow, Senior Advisor with Adaptation Leader is the guest.This podcast is sponsored by T-Mobile for Government, providing innovative connectivity solutions that help government better serve citizens by enabling agencies to work more intelligently, efficiently, and securely. Their mobile device management solutions help safeguard sensitive data and their network is ideal for unlocking game-changing loT technology.  T-Mobile provides 24x7x365 support, so they are ready to help you when communications are critical.  It all starts with America’s largest, fastest, and now according to a third-party rating service umlaut, it is the most reliable 5G network, as well as the tools that help you take advantage of 5G.  T-Mobile offers an amazing customer experience and outstanding value—with no tradeoffs.  They have the most reliable 5G according to umlaut based on crowdsourced user experience data (Sept 2020 to Feb 2021). They also have the fastest 5G according to Opensignal Awards based on average speeds (USA: 5G User Experience Report April 2021). See 5G device, coverage, & access details at T-Mobile.com.Eric Holdeman is a professional emergency manager who is passionate about providing information that can help families, businesses & governments become better prepared for disasters of all types. Hear first hand expert insights from Eric on his Podcast, Blog & EricHoldeman.com.

There are more and more women entering the profession of emergency management or thinking about a career in this field. This podcast is an interview with Curry Mayer, Director, City of Seattle’s Office of Emergency Management. Curry has worked in both California and in Washington State as an emergency manager and also worked as a consultant. In this interview we talk about the opportunities and challenges that come with the profession and also how women can make a difference working in this field of endeavor. There are more and more opportunities for women to excel in the field of emergency management as shown by Deanne Criswell being the first Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Administrator. This episode is sponsored by The Blue Cell, a by design crisis and consequence management consulting firm with a primary focus on education and training for government at all levels, non governmental agencies and private sector entities engaged in incident and emergency management activities.Eric Holdeman is a professional emergency manager who is passionate about providing information that can help families, businesses & governments become better prepared for disasters of all types. Hear first hand expert insights from Eric on his Podcast, Blog & EricHoldeman.com.

There are earthquake risks in about every corner of the United States. This podcast looks at earthquakes in Western Washington State. Bill Steele, Director of Communications and Outreach at University of Washington, Pacific Northwest Seismic Network is interviewed. In addition to talking about plate tectonics and the three different types of earthquakes the region is subject to, there is a discussion about the most recent work to institute a ShakeAlert System here in Washington State.Dynamis, a leading provider of information management software and security solutions, is a sponsor of this podcast.Eric Holdeman is a professional emergency manager who is passionate about providing information that can help families, businesses & governments become better prepared for disasters of all types. Hear first hand expert insights from Eric on his Podcast, Blog & EricHoldeman.com.

Everyone has a boss. Emergency managers are no exception. Sometimes the position of emergency manager reports to a senior appointed official like the public works director or the fire chief. Others report directly to an elected official, mayor, fire chief or county commissioners. I was fortunate to work for a senior appointed official—a Deputy County Executive. This podcast is an interview with Paul Tanaka, my former boss. In this episode I probe Paul, who is retired now, for information about how he viewed emergency management as a function and what the relationship should be between an emergency manager and his direct supervisor. I also asked Mr. Tanaka about people who think that being an emergency management director brought with it certain political risks for their employment that they are concerned about. This episode is sponsored by Bent Ear Solutions which offers comprehensive capabilities and deep industry knowledge necessary to help you solve the most complex issues of your organization. We advise public and private organizations on an all-inclusive approach to disaster preparedness that addresses governance, planning, operational procedures, technology implementation, training, and exercises in order to achieve a successful and sustainable program.Eric Holdeman is a professional emergency manager who is passionate about providing information that can help families, businesses & governments become better prepared for disasters of all types. Hear first hand expert insights from Eric on his Podcast, Blog & EricHoldeman.com.

Food insecurity is a huge issue in the United States, and it got worst during the coronavirus pandemic. One organization at the center of coordinating and providing food to people who need it is Feeding America. This podcast is an interview with Vince Davis, Director of Disasters Services for Feeding America. In our conversation we discuss their role in providing support to day-to-day food bank operations throughout the United States. Then, we also go into the role the organization plays in disasters. The coordination that is needed by governments with state and local food banks is something that Vince emphasizes. The goal is to have these relationships in place before there is a disaster.This episode is sponsored by The Blue Cell, a by design crisis and consequence management consulting firm with a primary focus on education and training for government at all levels, non governmental agencies and private sector entities engaged in incident and emergency management activities.Eric Holdeman is a professional emergency manager who is passionate about providing information that can help families, businesses & governments become better prepared for disasters of all types. Hear first hand expert insights from Eric on his Podcast, Blog & EricHoldeman.com.

Michele Wucker is an author, speaker and strategist on the topic of risk. Her most recent book is You Are What You Risk: The New Art and Science of Navigating an Uncertain World  This podcast interviews her about her expertise and questions are centered on topics of interest to individuals and emergency managers when it comes to disasters. This would be an excellent text for courses in emergency management to educate people on the topic of risk, so we can manage it ourselves and address programmatic and public education efforts with a more informed position. Dynamis, a leading provider of information management software and security solutions, is a sponsor of this podcast.Eric Holdeman is a professional emergency manager who is passionate about providing information that can help families, businesses & governments become better prepared for disasters of all types. Hear first hand expert insights from Eric on his Podcast, Blog & EricHoldeman.com.