FEBRUARY 2019 multco.us/em
Multnomah County Office of Emergency Management Monthly Newsletter
Multnomah County Office of Emergency Management (MCEM) compiles this monthly email to provide information related to emergency management activities across Multnomah County and beyond.
Earthquake Awareness Month

February is Earthquake Awareness Month. With the 319th anniversary of the Cascadia Earthquake on January 26, our bilingual preparedness advocates carried out three community outreach events in Russian and Spanish to commemorate Cascadia Earthquake Preparedness Day .

Below is a link to an article marking the anniversary.
Flu season has returned to the Portland Metro area

Click on the above video or the button below to learn more.
Volunteers listen to a briefing prior to filming.
Disaster Resource Center Set-up

Approximately 25 community members were present to assist with the filming of a mock Disaster Resource Center (DRC), part of a larger effort to train DRC staff and volunteers.
Upcoming Community Conversations

Civic Life, in collaboration with our community partners, invites Portlanders to help us create a roadmap of what communities need to grow and thrive. Conversations will center around our city today and the ways communities can help shape the work of City government. The feedback from these conversations will inform the process of revising City Code Chapter 3.96 that defines the work of our bureau.

Upcoming events include:
  • February 5, English
  • February 7, Spanish
  • February 9, Somali
  • February 12, Russian

For information regarding location, time, and host, use the following link. Food and childcare will be provided at each event. For language and ADA accommodations, please contact Sabrina Wilson at least 5 days before the event at (503) 823-6740 or email sabrina.wilson@portlandoregon.gov
Image of panel discussion at PSU.
Equity in Emergency Management Draws A Crowd

It was standing room only at the panel discussion which took place at Portland State University.
SPIRE Grant applications due by March 1, 2019!

The State Preparedness and Incident Respo nse Equipment (SPIRE) Grant Program provides equipment to local governments and other recipients for emergency preparedness. The program funds the purchasing and distribution of equipment, including vehicles and other property, to be used during an emergency to decrease the risk for loss of life and property damage.

For the SPIRE Grant Guidance and Equipment List, click here . To download the SPIRE Project Worksheet, please click here .

Info is also available on the OEM website .
California Wildfire Recovery Website

Following the destructive wildfires in California, the City of Paradise made a web- portal available to the public with real-time imaging and mapping information.

The web-portal hosts information regarding evacuation zones, building/facility assessment status, before/after imaging, and on-going debris removal efforts.
This is an excellent example of real-world response and recovery technology in use. This news story provides more detailed information.
Welcome to our newest employees!
Sophia Grimm is joining us as an Emergency Management Planner. Prior to coming to Multnomah County, Sophia spent four and a half years as a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Public Health Advisor/Field Staff. She was first assigned to the Wyoming Department of Health where she helped establish the state’s first Injury Prevention Program. She was later promoted within CDC and transferred to the North Carolina Division of Public Health where she worked in Public Health Preparedness and Response. In this role, she developed and operationalized response plans, acted as a liaison between the CDC and the State, and responded to Hurricane Florence in 2018 and Zika Outbreak in 2016. 

Sophia received her Bachelor’s Degree in Public Health from Oregon State University and will soon graduate with her Master’s in Adult and Postsecondary Education from the University of Wyoming.

Sophia can be reached at sophia.grimm@multco.us.
Dave Lentzner has joined Multnomah County as an Emergency Management Planner. Most recently, Dave spent nearly three years with the Oregon Department of Land Conservation and Development in Salem as a Natural Hazards Planner, including the last two years as Oregon’s Risk MAP Program Coordinator. In those roles, Dave worked statewide to promote community-based hazard mitigation and served as the primary state contact for FEMA flood mapping projects. Before moving to Oregon, Dave also worked for the Illinois State Water Survey in Champaign, Illinois and with the North Carolina Department of Emergency Management in Raleigh, North Carolina. 

Dave received a Master’s Degree in Regional Planning from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill and grew up in Livermore, California. 

Dave can be reached at david.lentzner@multco.us .
Events & Workshops

  • February 7, Portland, OR: African American Town Hall on Mental Health and Addiction. For more information and to register, click here.

  • February 14 @ 10:00 AM: Complex Coordinated Attacks Webinar. More details and registration here.

  • March 5, 8am-12pm, Portland, OR: RDPO Disaster Sanitation Symposium. For more information, click here. To register, click here. Please contact Justin E. Ross (justin.ross@multco.us) with any questions.

  • March 5-7, Canyonville, OR: 2019 Northwest Spring Security Conference. Register here.

  • May 4: Wildfire Community Preparedness Day. Communities can apply for money to fund their wildfire risk reduction activities. Applications are due by March 1. To learn more, please visit the National Fire Protection Association page here.

  • July 19-20, Portland, OR: URM Seismic Resilience Symposium. View the website for the agenda, speaker info, and registration. 

  • November 15-20, Savannah, GA: International Association of Emergency Managers 67th Annual Conference. Opportunities for breakout speakers are available. Applications for speakers are due by February 15th. For more info, please click here.
Training & Exercise Opportunities

  • February 6, 10:30 am, Oregon City, OR: Infant Feeding in Emergencies Basic Training. For more info and to register, click here.

  • February 6-7, McMinnville, OR: G0400 Advanced Incident Command for Command and General Staff – Complex Incidents. Register here.

  • February 7, Portland, OR: Multnomah County OpsCenter Drill - February 2019.

  • February 11-15, Salem, OR: L0950 NIMS ICS All-Hazards Position Specific Incident Commander. Register here.

  • February 13-14, Clackamas, OR: MGT-319 Medical Countermeasures POD Planning and Response. View the course announcement for additional information and to find out how to register.

  • February 16-17, Aurora, OR: ICS-300 Intermediate ICS for Expanding Incidents. Prerequisites: IS100 and IS 200. Please pre-register by sending an email to I.Rosenberg@orwg.cap.gov with your name and affiliation.

  • February 19, Beaverton, OR: Bloom Doom Table Top Exercise (TTX) Warm-Up. For more information and to register, please click here.

  • February 26, 9:00 am, Hillsboro, OR: Infant Feeding in Emergencies Basic Training. For more info and to register, click here.

  • February 26, 5:30 pm, St. Helens, OR: Infant Feeding in Emergencies Basic Train the Trainer Training. For more info and to register, click here.


  • February 28, 9:00 am, Vancouver, WA: Infant Feeding in Emergencies Basic Train the Trainer Training. For more info and to register, click here.

  • March 1, 10:00am, Portland, Oregon: Disaster Preparedness: A Primer. County staff can find the course through the Workday portal. External individuals should contact the MCEM Training & Exercise Coordinator.
Jobs
Click the button below to see a list of available EM positions.
MCEM Planning Intern Jaye Cromwell at the Equity in Emergency Management Panel.
Many thanks to RDPO for compiling many of the events, trainings, and job items listed in this newsletter.
Have something you'd like to include in one of our future newsletters? We'd love to hear from you! To have your upcoming trainings, exercises, events, or other announcements added, please reach out to Robert Quinn ( robert.quinn@multco.us ).

Have feedback about our newsletter? Please click here to take our survey.
Office of Emergency Management
MULTNOMAH COUNTY
Phone: 503-988-6700
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