Region II

July 24, 2019 Volume 4, Issue 13

Preparedness and Resilience Bulletin: Empowering People and Communities

Over the past few years, the FEMA Region II Internship Program has grown rapidly. Several divisions in FEMA have been recognizing the student interns as valuable assets and incorporating them into various projects within their teams. Officially called Student Volunteers, the interns have become vital assets to FEMA Region II’s daily operations. Divisions in Region II that have and continue to utilize the talents of these students including Preparedness, Mitigation, Response, Grants, and the Office of Regional Administrator. Who are these student interns? FEMA has simple eligibility criteria for selecting interns: they must be a U.S. citizen, and they must be currently enrolled as an undergraduate or graduate student at a college/university. Interns are normally hired for a Fall, Spring, or Summer semester and are expected to work a minimum of 15 hours per week. A great advantage of the work schedule is its flexibility, which prioritizes and accommodates for the interns’ class schedules. FEMA may also offer interns to extend their internship into a second semester. One consideration to keep in mind is the length of the hiring process. Extensive security clearance procedures require a minimum of eight weeks; as such, interviews for the positions start roughly three months prior to the projected start date.

During the internship program, interns become involved in various projects. Interns are placed into either team-based or individual projects, based on the supervisors’ discretion. Students are also encouraged to propose and develop their own projects once they become familiar with the needs of their assigned division. Supervisors conduct midterm and final evaluations of the interns to guide and help them develop their skill sets. Throughout the internship, students have an extensive networking opportunity within the FEMA community, as well as the emergency management industry. The success of the program is evidenced by the increasing number of interns becoming full-time employees at FEMA. Michelle Dolinar, who recently graduated from NYU with a Master of Science in Global Affairs and was a former Peace Corps volunteer, has worked as an intern for the Preparedness Division before converting into a full-time CORE position. CORE, or Cadre of On-Call Response/Recovery Employees, are

those hired to work for a limited time, normally between two to four years, or longer if their position is renewed. “Members of the Human Resources and IT teams, and everyone else who assisted with onboarding,

FEMA Region II Internship Program

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were all well-prepared and sufficiently practiced in order to help out and get me what I needed to begin my CORE position,” Michelle said. She further added that her internship experience provided her with “the opportunity to work with intelligent, passionate and dedicated members of the FEMA family,” which continues to help her in her new position. Nate Psota was also an intern at Region II before he became the Lead Data Analyst in the Mitigation Program Management Branch in October 2016. Having first learned about the internship through his university’s career website, he joined as an intern and worked on various projects, including updating the Regional Continuity Plan, doing background research for the Community Flood Resilience Toolkit, and helping draft a Notice of Funding Opportunity for the Toolkit. “The most valuable aspects of my internship were the opportunities to interact with Regional staff and better understand the different roles of the various Divisions and Branches,” Nate recalled about his experience. He also shared some advice with current/prospective interns: “I would advise interns to engage and work with as many individuals as possible. Ideally, across multiple Divisions. This will allow for a person to gain exposure to the different components of FEMA and increase the intern’s professional networking circle. It is important to also have a deliverable by the end of the internship that can be used during future interviews as proof of experience gained.”

Past interns have also demonstrated great success outside of FEMA and the public sector. Ruth Anne Holiday is currently a consultant at Hagerty Consulting, a private emergency management consulting firm for businesses. She previously served as an intern for the Grants and the Preparedness Divisions in 2016 and later went to accept a CORE position in the Recovery Division. As an intern, she had the opportunity to be involved in multiple projects across the Region, such as developing the New Jersey Community Flood Resilience Toolkit, mentoring Youth Preparedness Council members, and helping facilitate various preparedness workshops. Like many in her cohort, she saw the greatest value in the connections made with the people of FEMA. “Despite no longer working at FEMA, I truly can continue to lean on those I built relationships with while in Region II.”

Student interns continue to be an integral part of the FEMA community. This opportunity benefits both the students and their assigned teams through building knowledge and relationships. If you are interested in joining the Region II internship program, send your resume to Russell.fox@fema.dhs.gov.

On Tuesday, August 7th, millions of neighborhoods around the country will be stepping out for a night of community building with their local police department. Held annually since 1984, National Night Out is an annual community-building campaign that promotes police-community partnerships to help make our neighborhoods safer, more caring places to live. It seeks to strengthen the relationship between neighbors and law enforcement, fostering a true sense of community.

National Night Out

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Founded in March of 1981, the National Association of Town Watch (NATW) is the nation’s premier non-profit crime prevention organization dedicated to the development and promotion of crime prevention in communities across the nation. NATW is a network of law enforcement agencies, neighborhood watch groups, civic groups, state and regional crime prevention associations, and concerned citizens. Through that network, NATW was able to launch the annual National Night Out campaign, now entering its 36th year. Communities will enjoy barbeque and bounce houses, face painting, food, and fun while meeting leaders and personnel from local precincts as they interact with neighbors, community members, and local businesses with the common goal of partnership and safety. In addition to police departments, National Night Out events are great opportunities for non-profits, local government, and community groups like CERT teams to come together with the neighborhood as well. National Night Out is a great time for safety demonstrations, seminars, youth activities, visits from emergency personnel and exhibits. For more information on National Night Out or to register your own event, visit https://natw.org or contact your local Office of Emergency Management or law enforcement agency.

Region II Staff in a Community Near YOU!

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Coming Soon to Region II

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PrepTalk: "Storytelling to Promote Action"

Today, FEMA released "Storytelling to Promote Action”. In their PrepTalk, The Big One Podcast team shares why they developed “The Big One: Your Survival Guide” podcast, which features stories about people in Southern California preparing for the possibility of a 7.8 magnitude earthquake that could occur within the next 30 years.

The Big One Podcast Team is comprised of the 89.3 KPCC Southern California Public Radio team. This includes host, Jacob Margolis; producers, Arwen Champion Nicks and Misha Euceph; and manager, Megan Garvey. Listen in as they discuss how to tell stories that compel people to prepare for disasters. The PrepTalk video and additional resources are available on the FEMA website. Additional PrepTalks from the April 2019 symposium in Santa Rosa, Calif. will be released in the coming months. Youth Preparedness Council Members Reflect on Project Accomplishments FEMA’s Youth Preparedness Council (YPC) brings together young leaders interested in disaster preparedness. YPC members meet with FEMA staff, share preparedness information, and complete preparedness projects. On July 16-17, 2019, the YPC members attended the YPC Summit in Washington, DC. This event provides a chance to reflect on accomplishments and prepare for next year.

Over the past year, three teams of YPC members completed national-level preparedness projects. Each team focused on one of FEMA’s critical missions. These include citizen responder programs, youth preparedness education, and financial preparedness. The YPC members worked together to manage the projects from start to finish. They also promoted the project’s successes to the public. Read more. FEMA Blog: FEMA Funded Grant Program Teaches Kids Fire Safety When the flames started in a Los Angeles family’s kitchen, two parents were able to extinguish it with baking soda. It was a technique their 11-year-old son had taught them only weeks before, after his second MySafe: LA class. These classes are funded by the FEMA Fire Prevention & Safety Grant. To read more about this grant success story, visit the FEMA Blog.

FEMA Podcast Episode 41: National VOAD Listen in on this discussion with the National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (NVOAD) President Greg Forrester and FEMA’s Voluntary Agency Coordination Branch Chief Liz Gibson on how the NVOAD fosters a more effective delivery of services to communities affected by disaster and their coordination with FEMA to help people before, during and after disasters.

The FEMA podcast is an audio program series available to anyone interested in learning more about the Agency, hearing about innovation in the field of emergency management, and listening to stories about communities and individuals recovering after disasters.

FEMA News

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Be Ready Business (Utah) Community-Based Organizations (CBOs) provide many important services. For example, CBOs can be foodbanks, shelters, and daycare centers. They may also be other small and medium-sized businesses. CBOs support individuals and communities during “blue sky” days. They also play a role in disasters. Many CBOs can provide lifelines to their communities. This month, we are highlighting Be Ready Utah’s Be Ready Business. Be Ready Business helps small and medium-sized businesses prepare for emergencies. This helps them continue to provide essential services to their customers. FEMA Revises Tribal Consultation Policy FEMA has updated the FEMA Tribal Consultation Policy, which guides how FEMA engages tribal governments with regular and meaningful consultation and collaboration on policies and programs that have tribal implications. The policy was updated to reflect current authorities, best practices, tribal input, and recommendations from the Governmental Accountability Office (GAO) report titled "Tribal Consultation: Additional Federal Actions Needed for Infrastructure Projects (GAO-19-22)".

Nuisance Flooding With hurricane season now here, it is a good time to look at something that may fly under the radar, nuisance flooding. While many people worry about the big storms they forget that nuisance flooding is on the rise as well, and projects to only increase as time goes on. Nuisance flooding is minor tidal flooding that occurs at high

tide. Typically, its impacts are minor as sea walls are overtops, local roads are flooded, and storm water systems begin to get stressed. While these problems are minor, they do have financial impacts, and are becoming more of an issue. Last year, the U.S. tied the record for number of high tide flooding days. The impact was most profound in the Northeast, which had a median of 10 days of nuisance flooding. There have been more than 40 locations that have been identified by NOAA as having annual rates of high tide flooding rapidly increasing, with an additional 25 other locations increasing at a more gradual level. Oceanographer for NOAA’s Center for Operational Oceanographic Products and Services William Sweet predicts that in 2019 the national high tide flood frequency will double from the year 2000, with the Northeast seeing a 140% percent increase, the Southeast 190%, and the Western Gulf of Mexico 130%. By 2030 the projections show 7 to 15 days of high tide of flooding and increasing to 25 to 75 days by 2050. Sandy Hook, and Atlantic City are both in the top 10 U.S Areas with an increase of nuisance flooding, with a total of 24 to 25 days each.

Mitigation Matters

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Another compounding impact is “perigean spring tides” also known as “king tides”. These are increased tidal flows due to astronomical factors. When the Moon’s orbit is closest to the Earth, and the Earth and Moon align with the Sun (creating a new a full moon) the combined gravitational force creates in higher tides than normal. It is predicted that by 2100 king tides will happen on top of another 1 to 8 feet of sea level rise. Hurricane Sandy’s impact was even more devastating due to a full Moon, however it could have been even higher if it happened during a king tide.

Businesses have already begun to feel the pinch. The City Dock neighborhood of Annapolis, Maryland have seen water rise over a foot, with waterfront floods occurring frequently, with the flooding occurring almost entirely by tide. Customers now have issues accessing the local businesses as they have issues driving near, parking, and walking to the location. Researchers have found that minor flooding has cut visits by nearly 40 percent, moderate by 60, and major by 90 percent. In 2017, the area had some degree of flooding during 44 days of the year. Another study by Stanford University in the Journal Science Advances estimates the economic impact of a 2 percent hit, and businesses fear that this will only get worse as time goes on. The issue is not just that nuisance flooding and king tides are costly and have impacts, it is that they can serve as catalysts for much greater impacts when combined with other events such as small storms, Nor’easters, and hurricanes. This means that even smaller storms can result in greater flooding, reducing the time between flood events. While sea level continues to rise, so will the high tide, as climate.gov states “today’s flood will become tomorrow’s high tide.”

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Join FEMA Partnership Day On Thursday, July 25, FEMA and the National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (National VOAD) will host Partnership Day. This event recognizes and builds awareness of valuable services and support provided by voluntary, faith-based, and community partners to disaster survivors before, during, and after disasters. For additional details, please contact FEMA.

FEMA Seeks Feedback on NFIP Revisions to Payment Methodology On July 8, FEMA published an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in the Federal Register (Notice) entitled “Revisions to Methodology for Payments to Write Your Own (WYO) Companies.” In the notice, FEMA outlines the current Write Your Own payment methodology, which provides historical documentation of actual payment amounts. Additionally, this notice proposes methodologies consistent with the Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2012’s requirement to modernize means of payment to private insurance companies. All comments on this notice must be submitted by September 6. Public Safety Officer Medal of Valor Nomination Open

The Public Safety Officer Medal of Valor is the nation’s highest public safety honor that can be awarded to emergency medical personnel, firefighters and law enforcement officers. This award honors federal, state, local and tribal public safety officers who have demonstrated exceptional bravery, risking serious injury or death, in the line of duty. Agency heads may submit multiple nominations to honor several officers or to

honor one officer for multiple separate events. For help in writing your nominations, read the nomination guidelines and stories of past recipients at the Medal of Valor website. The Bureau of Justice Assistance is seeking nominations for the Medal of Valor now through Wednesday, July 31, 2019. Nonprofit Security Grant Program The Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 Nonprofit Security Grant Program (NSGP) Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) has been released. FY 2019 NSGP will provide $60 million to support security related investments and activities for nonprofit organizations that are at high risk of a terrorist attack. Eligible nonprofit organizations must apply for FY 2019 NSGP through their State Administrative Agency (SAA). A list of SAA points of contact is available at: http://www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/documents/28689?id=6363. Nonprofit organizations may not apply directly to FEMA for FY 2019 NSGP funds. The FY 2019 NSGP Notice of Funding Opportunity and all related documents are available at: https://www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/documents/178521. For more information, please contact fema-gpd-pdsb@fema.dhs.gov.

Important Deadlines

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Register for the 8th Annual Building Resilience through Private-Public Partnerships Conference

July 23-24, 2019 - 9am - 5:30pm, Washington, DC As disasters continue to increase in frequency and level of devastation, we will examine the opportunity for the private sector to take a leading role in preparing, coordinating, and responding to disasters. With the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation as a leading resource and voice for businesses and their social and community interests, we expect more than 300 business, government, and civil society leaders to participate in this event. Read more.

Affordable Housing Alliance, Financial Peace University Workshop Thursday, August 1, 2019, 6-8 PM ET, 3535 Route 66, Parkway 100, Building 4, Neptune Township, NJ 07753 This workshop will show you how to master budgeting, paying off debt, and build wealth it includes 9 video lessons taught by financial experts Dave Ramsey, Rachel Cruze and Chris Hogan. Once a week for eight weeks you will be provided with nine videos that will guide your financial decisions and planning. You will receive course materials designed to help you apply each principle and lesson to your own budget. Become a budgeting pro with the corresponding Everydollar Plus App, budget forms, tools and calculators to help you pay off debt. Register today for free and get ready to start living a life without money-stress!

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Update Conferences Northern CA Conference – September 9-10th, 2019, InterContinental Hotel, San Francisco Southern CA Conference – September 12-13th, 2019, Four Points by Sheraton LA Hotel, Los Angeles Join the Pacific ADA Center's annual ADA Update Conferences in San Francisco and Los Angeles. The

conferences will feature four (4) learning tracks: 1. Employment 2. Responsibilities of State & Local Governments

(Title II of the ADA) 3. Responsibilities of Public Accommodations (Title

III of the ADA) with special sessions on Health Care 4. Emergency Management and Transportation Issues

Nationally recognized subject matter experts will share recent ADA & state law developments and information. Early bird conference rate expires August 12, 2019. Requests for accessibility accommodations must be received by August 23rd, 2019. Cancellation requests made before August 18th, 2019, will be eligible for a refund, minus a $25 processing fee. Contact the Pacific ADA Center at support@adapacific.org for questions.

Other News

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Emergency Preparedness Tips

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Burlington County Flooding Event Deployment On June 19th and 20th, Burlington County received over 5 inches of rain in less than 6 hours. Many parts of the county were under water, requiring evacuations and reception sites. Burlington County COAD, working with their voluntary agencies including CERT immediately began planning for cleanup kit distribution sites for affected residents. When the magnitude of the disaster became evident, the COAD began planning to run a MARC (multi-agency resource center) to help residents. Again, CERT came to the rescue, staffing the MARC tasks for two days helping to escort residents to each of the agencies providing services to the flooding victims. Without the involvement of all the county municipal and county teams, we would not have been able to provide these needed services to our residents. Between the two events, over three different dates, CERT members provided over 500 manpower hours to help assist residents of our county.

CERT Corner

Working with the Red Cross to distribute clean up kits. Source/Burlington County OEM

Staff registered and escorted residents through the MARC process. Source/Burlington County OEM

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Keeping lines of Communication Open – CERT and Ham Radio CERT members know that communication during an emergency is vital. Don Lewis of the Alexandria Radio Club in Virginia wants CERTs around the country to know how amateur radios can help.

Amateur radios, also known as ham radios, are useful tools. Lewis, who is trained in CERT, explained at a recent “Amateur Radio Field Day” that ham radios are more powerful than regular radios. They aren’t incredibly expensive, and they have a wide range of uses. Read more. India’s Hali Hai Spring Colors festival Hoboken CERT assisted Hoboken OEM, Hoboken First Responders and festival organizers manage crowds of 2500 visiting the annual, "Hali Hai" Indian Festival of Colors, in Hoboken.

CERT members positioned at entrances and exits to direct visitors through the Hoboken PD screening process and assisted elderly and Access Functional Needs visitors throughout the event.

If you have events you would like to share please email them to deborah.costa@fema.dhs.gov

The Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) program educates volunteers about disaster preparedness for the hazards that may impact their area and trains them in basic disaster response skills, such as fire safety, light search and rescue, team organization, and disaster medical operations. CERT offers a consistent, nationwide approach to volunteer training and organization that professional responders can rely on during disaster situations, which allows them to focus on more complex tasks. Through CERT, the capabilities to prepare for, respond to and recover from disasters is built and enhanced.

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National Emergency Management Executive Academy (NEMEA) Overview/FY20 Application Process

The National Emergency Management Executive Academy (NEMA) is a component of the Emergency Management Professional Program (EMPP). The Emergency Management Institute (EMI) created the NEMA to provide a comprehensive and cutting-edge curriculum as the setting for senior emergency management executives to come together to explore contemporary emergency management challenges. The program hones strategic leadership and critical thinking for senior executives involved with multi-jurisdictional, national, and international emergency management policy development and decision-making responsibilities. The program is a competency-based executive education experience that requires working collaboratively on projects and participating in activities with a capstone team to address some of the wicked problems in the emergency management field. Suggestions for a specific emergency management challenge to be addressed by an executive cohort as an Executive Academy capstone project may be submitted to: https://training.fema.gov/empp/executive.aspx. For more information, visit our Emergency Management Professional Program (EMPP) website (https://training.fema.gov/empp/executive.aspx). E0427 Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) Program Manager This course prepares participants to establish and sustain an active local CERT program. Read more in Training Opportunity 1452. Multiple Dates, 2019, Emmitsburg, MD. E0428 Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) Train-the-Trainer This course prepares participants to deliver the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) CERT Basic Training course. Read more in Training Opportunity 1451. Multiple Dates, 2019, Emmitsburg, MD. E0389 Master Public Information Officer Program – Part Three (MPIOP) This is a three-course series that prepares public information officers for an expanded role in delivering public information and warning using a strategic whole community approach. Read more Training Opportunity 1487. Multiple Dates, 2020, Emmitsburg, MD. L0363 Multi-Hazard Emergency Management for Higher Education August 6-8, 2019, 8 AM-4 PM, City University of New York (CUNY), New York, NY This FEMA course in partnership with CUNY and NYU is designed for personnel who are responsible for creating, reviewing, implementing and exercising emergency operations plans (EOPs). The target audience for this course is people who have traditional response or strategic experience, but minimal experience with emergency management planning. The course will highlight the importance of comprehensive planning, as well

Educational/Training Opportunities

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as the important relationships that must be established during a response to emergencies involving institutions of higher education. Register here. Treating PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder) and Suicide Risk Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a well-established risk factor for suicidal behavior. This course reviews data that support the safe and effective treatment of PTSD among those with suicide risk, identifies common myths about individuals with PTSD and suicide risk, and describes recommendations for empirically-supported trauma therapies to treat suicidal patients with PTSD. View here.

REVISED 1462 FEMA Emergency Management Institute Monthly Instructor Applicant Webinars Thursday, August 1, 2019, 3-4 PM EDT FEMA’s Emergency Management Institute (EMI) is the emergency management community’s flagship training institute, and provides training to Federal, state, local, tribal, volunteer, public, and private sector officials to strengthen emergency management core competencies for professional, career-long training. This monthly webinar is an extended opportunity, in addition to the Tuesday weekly EMI briefs, for anyone interested in becoming a contract instructor for EMI. This webinar will take you through: What is a contract instructor, Benefits to becoming a contract instructor for EMI, Selection criteria, The application process. Hurricane Michael Recovery Advisories from the FEMA Mitigation Assessment Team (MAT) Wednesday, August 7, 2019, 12-1:145 PM ET Hurricane Michael’s flooding and high-winds in 2018 resulted in extensive damage to all types of buildings in the Florida panhandle. FEMA recently released Hurricane Michael Recovery Advisories (RAs) and has scheduled three webinar sessions in August to discuss the advisories. These RAs are intended to assist various stakeholders in rebuilding more resiliently by providing design and

Webinars

Training Calendars FEMA: https://training.fema.gov/emicourses/schedules.aspx NJOEM: http://ready.nj.gov/training/schedule.shtml NJOHSP: https://www.njhomelandsecurity.gov/calendar NYDSES: http://www.dhses.ny.gov/training/calendar/ DHSOBP: https://cdp.dhs.gov/obp

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construction guidance to help minimize damage from future storm events. Registration is required for these webinars. Anticipating the Unexpected - Preparing Your Organization for Critical Incidents Thursday, August 8, 2019, 3-4 PM EDT Critical incidents can present themselves at any time and in some cases escalate to more serious emergency situations. “Anticipating the Unexpected” will share planning strategies and best practices for emergency and business continuity planning for you to reference as you develop and modify plans for your organization. Workplace Violence, Active Shooter Preparedness for Managers Wednesday, August 14, 2019, 3-4 PM EDT This presentation which focuses on management, both with respect to facilitating workplace violence prevention and managing the aftermath of an incident. During this presentation topics to be discussed include: basic statistics, business impact, legal exposure, security guard responsibilities, organizational responsibilities, workplace violence program development processes, and training considerations. Investigation Process in a Corporate Setting Wednesday, August 28, 2019, 3-4 PM EDT How companies investigate alleged misconduct or illegal activity is more important in today’s business environment than ever before. It is vital that investigations are conducted in a consistent, logical and legal manner to protect not only the company’s interests, but reputation as well. This webinar provides a corporate investigations framework developed over the past 20 years and offers practical advice on how an investigation is initiated, the partnerships involved during an investigation, pitfalls to avoid during an investigation, and the investigation process.

Recreational Boating: Stay Safe on the Water With more than 11 million recreational vessels registered in the U.S., millions of Americans are enjoying time on and in the water. In 2017, the U.S. Coast Guard reported 4,291 boating incidents that resulted in 658 deaths, 2,629 injuries and about $46 million in property damage. Stay safe by being prepared and using the appropriate equipment, whether enjoying a ride on a motorized boat, paddling a kayak or wakeboarding. Read more.

Leave the Fireworks to the Experts Summer is synonymous with barbecues, parades and fireworks. The National Safety Council advises everyone to enjoy fireworks at public displays conducted by professionals, and not to use any fireworks at home. They may be legal, but they are not safe. Read more.

Must Reads

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Preparing for and Responding to Heat-related Emergencies Employers should confirm that worksite emergency procedures include sufficient information to address hot weather emergencies. If workers report or supervisors observe signs or symptoms of heat-related illness, stop activity immediately. Take action while waiting for help. HEAT STROKE IS A MEDICAL EMERGENCY. CALL 911 immediately if a worker shows any signs of heat stroke. Read more. New School: A Modern Approach to Disaster Risk Reduction and Resilience Education for Children When children have the chance to understand hazards and identify local vulnerabilities and capacities, they can play a central role in disaster risk reduction and resilience. This report, part of the Research Counts: Children and Disasters Special Collection, describes how children are agents of change who have specific capacities to reduce disaster risk in their households, schools, and communities. A key mechanism for harnessing those capacities is school-based disaster risk reduction and resilience education (DRRRE), which the report details. Read more. Psychological Preparedness for Natural Hazards Incorporating psychological preparedness into existing disaster preparedness policies and practices has the potential to help individuals cope with the psychological distress experienced during or after a disaster, and to foster long-term resilience. This 43-page paper details how the incorporation of aspects of psychological preparedness into disaster preparedness measures will strengthen disaster management practices overall. Bio-Hazard Disaster Risk Governance through Multi-Agency Cooperation The intention of this 40-page paper is to provide an understanding of the characteristics that distinguish biological disasters from other disasters, examine biological hazards, and propose a structure for agencies to mitigate bio-risks. It discusses how it is hard to predict not only when a biological event will occur, but also what sort of biological agent will cause a disaster, leading to which specific kind of scenario and whether it will be induced naturally, accidentally, or intentionally. Evacuating Under Fire: Children with Special Healthcare Needs in Disaster This report, part of the Research Counts: Children and Disasters Special Collection, describes how planning for children with special healthcare needs and their families can help mitigate the negative impact of disasters. Emergency kits and emergency plans are necessary for all families, and especially important for families of children with these needs. The report also provides links to additional suggested tools. Teens in a Toxic Environment: Lessons from 2010 Deepwater Horizon Spill This report, part of the Research Counts: Children and Disasters Special Collection, discusses how environmental disasters can impact teens in ways both different and similar to how they impact adults, and details the results of interviews with teens after the 2010 BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill closed beaches along the U.S. Gulf Coast. It describes the disruptions to family and peer connections, toxic contamination, and economic impacts that affected older children.