Emergency Response


USFA, NVFC Release Volunteer Fire, Emergency Services Guide

The U.S. Fire Administration (USFA), working with the National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC), has issued a revised Health and Wellness Guide for the Volunteer Fire and Emergency Services.

Fairfax, Va., mobile communications/command unit

Free CHEMTREC Training Video Offered to Emergency Responders

"This free training video is a must-watch for all first responders," says Tim Butters, who chairs IAFC's Hazardous Materials Committee and is assistant chief of the Fairfax, Va., Fire Department. The city's police and fire departments placed this new 30-foot Mobile Communications/Command Unit in service this month.

CDC Publishes Inaugural Emergency Response Report

CDC's Coordinating Office for Terrorism Preparedness and Emergency Response (COTPER) has released its inaugural report on CDC activities in public health emergency preparedness, titled Public Health Preparedness: Strengthening CDC's Emergency Response.

helicopter ambulance

EMS Helicopter Hearing Moves to Safety Equipment Today

A recent spate of crashes brought this industry's safety into focus once again. The four-day hearing that began yesterday in Washington, D.C., is examining the industry's performance, risks, oversight, funding structures, and record. This Ben Saladino photo shows a helicopter operated by CareFlite, which is a party to the hearing.

Accessing the Void

When a confined space disaster strikes, an urban search and rescue team responds. Vital to its success is its medical personnel's approach.

Better Procedures Raised SCA Survival in Japan

Training citizens in CPR and letting EMS personnel use AEDs in the field without physicians' online oversight improved response time and increased bystander-initiated CPR, according to research reported in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

First ASSE Webinar of Safety Professionals Handbook Authors Today

The event, from 11 a.m. to noon Central, opens the series with Editor Joel Haight participating and a focus on successful management of safety engineering work.

Company Paying $1 Million for Role in Defective Bulletproof Vests

This settlement is part of a larger federal investigation of the body armor industry's use of Zylon fabric.



CDC Emergency Preparedness Director Now in Charge

The Wall Street Journal reported Friday that Richard Besser, who headed CDC's public health emergency preparedness and response functions, has been named acting director of the agency in place of Dr. Julie Gerberding.

Tax Credit Proposed for Installing New Mine Safety Equipment

Rep. Brad Ellsworth, D-Ind., introduced the bill with colleagues from West Virginia and Texas. NMA says it would accelerate development of training and rescue capabilities.

EMTs transporting an injured patient

MMWR Paper Explains 2006 EMS Decision Scheme

This information should help communities understand and utilize the scheme, which is an algorithm used by about 800,000 EMS personnel nationwide to decide the most appropriate destination for injured patients.

PNNL to Test Commercial Radiation Detectors

Department of Homeland Security has accepted PNNL to test and evaluate commercially available radiation detectors through its new GRaDER program -- Graduated Radiation and Nuclear Detector Evaluation and Reporting. PNNL is the first U.S. laboratory to be accepted to play this role.

Disaster Preparedness Survey Finds Milwaukee Lagging Behind

A recent survey by Medical College of Wisconsin researchers of more than 1,800 patients seen in the Froedtert Hospital Emergency Department revealed that Metro Milwaukee residents may not personally be as well prepared for disasters as the rest of the country.

automobile air bag system

Study of 20,000 Crash Victims Shows Air Bag/Belt Combo Vital

Only 14 percent of drivers and front-seat occupants in the crashes were protected by both a seat belt and an air bag. The study showed that combination is associated with a lower risk of a spine fracture.

CDC Revises Field Triage Guidelines

Key revisions include vehicle crash damage criteria that can help determine which patients may require care at a trauma center.

OSHA Moves to Revise Fit Test Procedures, Seeks Comments

The proposed revisions would allow certain machine-based fit tests to be conducted more quickly and increase the required score for passing them.

Get Moving on Disaster Plans, Chamber Business Group Urges

To the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's Business Civic Leadership Center, better preparedness is a way to reduce and perhaps minimize damaging business interruptions.

Surgical Safety Checklist Drops Deaths, Complications

An international pilot study involving the Toronto General Hospital (TGH), a teaching hospital affiliated with the University of Toronto, and other hospitals from around the world, has found that using a Surgical Patient Safety Checklist significantly reduces surgical complications and mortality.

A drawing of the new I-35W St. Anthonys Falls Bridge in Minneapolis (courtesy of MnDOT)

FHWA Offers Lessons Learned in Rebuilding I-35W Bridge

This drawing, featured in the FHWA newsletter and credited to MnDOT, depicts the new St. Anthony's Falls Bridge in Minneapolis.

Inauguration Transportation Plan Calls for Road Closures, Restricted Zones

Public transportation to all inaugural events is encouraged as many streets in and around the Capitol and the Mall area and bridges into/out of the city will be closed to private automobiles for much of the day. Metrorail will operate rush-hour service for 17 consecutive hours on Jan. 20, from 4 a.m. to 9 p.m., and will operate on a non-rush hour schedule for two extra hours until 2 a.m.

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