It is always gratifying when one of our FEMA team members is recognized by another organization for their outstanding work. So it gives me great pleasure to let you know that Mary Hudak, External Affairs Director for Region IV, received the Distinguished Service Award from the National Hurricane Conference on Tuesday, March 27. It is well deserved recognition for her passion to improve crisis communication in emergency management so that survivors of disasters get the information they need.

Her nomination, which was written by Region IV Administrator Phil May and supported by Administrator Craig Fugate and Associate Administrator Bill Carwile, points to some of her outstanding achievements in how she has impacted the community of emergency managers in such a positive way. Here is an excerpt from her nomination:

Over the course of her more than 30 years of emergency management service, Mary Hudak has shown tireless dedication to excellence in serving those whose lives have been affected by disaster.

In addition to her work with FEMA, her support for the National Hurricane Conference over the years has been unwavering. She has served on both the Planning Committee and the Public Education/Media Committee for years and has been instrumental in getting subject matter experts to participate—from leaders in emergency management, to local and national media personnel, to crisis management specialists— Mary has been a driving force in support of the NHC. Her efforts have added immeasurably to the knowledge base of local, state and federal emergency managers across the country in strategic messaging and crisis communication. Her work has improved the quality of public information and messaging to disaster survivors all around the country and not just with hurricanes but with floods, tornadoes and earthquakes. Mary has trained, mentored, coached, advised and taught literally thousands of emergency managers and communicators throughout the country, both “on the job” in her work with FEMA, as well as in settings such as the National Hurricane Conference.

The impact of her work is nearly impossible to measure because those who have learned so much from her carry it forward as they teach, coach and mentor others. Mary has literally touched the lives of thousands upon thousands through her mentoring and work in support of disaster survivors.

On behalf of the entire FEMA team, thank you, Mary. Your leadership and dedication to your work – and to every disaster survivor you’ve worked tirelessly to serve – stand as a model for all who work in emergency management. Well done!

Just a reminder to everyone that FEMA does not provide emergency alerts (emergency, weather or otherwise) as this is a local responsibility. So we’re asking everyone to beware of phishing emails or websites claiming to provide official FEMA information or FEMA emergency alerts, as these sites are not operated by FEMA and can be harmful to your personal information or computer. If you are wondering how you can receive legitimate weather alerts, check out our blog post for a great list of weather alert sources.

Here’s a short blurb to explain phishing, not to be confused with fishing in a river or lake:

What is Phishing?
Phishing is an attempt by an individual or group to solicit personal information from unsuspecting users by employing social engineering techniques. Phishing emails are crafted to appear as if they have been sent from a legitimate organization or known individual. These emails often attempt to entice users to click on a link that will take the user to a fraudulent web site that appears legitimate. The user then may be asked to provide personal information such as account usernames and passwords that can further expose them to future compromises. Additionally, these fraudulent web sites may contain malicious code.

For more information on phishing visit U.S. CERT.

Also, the agency’s official website is fema.gov (notice the dot gov ending) and we created a page that has a complete list of all official FEMA channels (social media sites, collaboration forums, smartphone apps, text message programs, etc) for transparency and clarity.

If you are ever unsure whether or not a website is an official FEMA website and you can’t find any information about it on fema.gov, please send an email to FEMA-New-Media@dhs.gov and the team will get back to you.

Posted by: Rachel Racusen, Director, Public Affairs

With the new year underway, we have been talking a lot recently about how families, businesses, and communities can make a New Year’s resolution that’s easy to keep: resolving to be ready for disasters in 2012. Earlier this week, we shared some advice on how to get you and your family prepared by staying informed, making a family plan, building an emergency kit, and getting involved.

Today, we wanted to show you an article written by The Daily Ardmoreite which highlights how one state is taking this New Year’s resolution idea one step further. The Oklahoma Office of Homeland Security urged its citizens to “Resolve to be Ready” in 2012, but also offered an easy way for people to accomplish that resolution – with a free training program called “Map Your Neighborhood” to get citizens involved in making emergency plans for their community.

Here are a few highlights from the article:

“Map Your Neighborhood” is a free training program that assists in organizing emergency plans for neighborhoods. Kim Carter, Oklahoma Homeland Security Director, said the program teaches neighborhood leaders “how to walk their neighbors” through a simple step-by-step process to customize an emergency plan for their area.”

Carter also called emergency kits for homes, vehicles and workplaces the “first step” for individual and family preparedness.

“Instead of being fearful of the unexpected we hope to build confidence by helping Oklahomans prepare for a variety of emergencies,” Carter said. “By following a few simple steps in advance, you can minimize the impact an emergency can have on you, your family or your business.”

Check out the full article here, and view a list of suggested items for your emergency supply kit. And if you haven’t already, think about some ways you can get involved by checking with your community and state emergency management offices. For more ideas on how to Resolve to be Ready in 2012, visit Ready.gov/resolve.

Between March and May of 2010, severe storms and floods devastated many parts of Tennessee, Kentucky, Nebraska and Rhode Island. While Commerce’s Economic Development Administration (EDA) is not a first responder to such disasters, the agency quickly got to work assessing the damage and connecting with local leaders regarding their needs as they began to pick up the pieces and rebuild. Recognizing the critical role that EDA can play for these communities, Congress provided $49 million in supplemental funding for EDA to award to these states to help them in their recovery efforts.

Last week, businesses in Tennessee got some good holiday news, when EDA announced its investment of $5.8 million to help build critical infrastructure to support Tennessee businesses and jobs and to develop a strategic marketing strategy to grow the Nashville hospitality sector following the floods of 2010.

These grants will assist in Tennessee’s recovery and redevelopment efforts by funding the necessary improvements that will ensure the resilience of physical and economic infrastructure and include:

• $2 million to the Jackson Energy Authority to build core sewer infrastructure to protect major regional employers, including the Jackson-Madison Hospital and numerous industrial and manufacturing businesses, from flooding. The project is expected to result in the retention of 9,690 jobs, according to grantee estimates;

• $1.49 million to the city of Dyersburg to help build an elevated water storage tank that will improve water capacity for manufacturing and industrial businesses and will serve new tracts of land being developed outside of the flood plain to accommodate business needs. The project is expected to save 433 jobs, create 200 jobs and generate $4 million in private investment, according to grantee estimates;

• $1.3 million to Conexion Americas of Nashville to help build the Casa Azafran Community Center, which will provide expanded business startup or expansion assistance to Latino small business owners and aspiring entrepreneurs;

• $1 million to the Nashville Convention & Visitors Bureau to implement a regional marketing strategy that will support the city’s economic recovery by promoting the hospitality industry, which lost hundreds of millions of dollars in the wake of the flooding that impacted the city in 2010.

In announcing the grant, U.S. Commerce Secretary John Bryson said “The Obama administration is committed to helping communities impacted by natural disasters rebuild stronger and smarter to protect businesses and jobs. These critical EDA investments will provide the infrastructure needed to help keep businesses running and workers productive in the event of future floods, expand vital business assistance to Nashville’s Latino community and help Nashville revitalize its critical hospitality sector to create new jobs.”

In May 2010, President Obama signed the Tennessee Disaster Declaration and ordered Federal aid to supplement state and local recovery efforts in the area struck by severe storms, flooding, straight-line winds, and tornadoes beginning on April 30, 2010, and continuing. The president's action made Federal funding available to help individuals and business owners recover from the effects of the disaster.