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Message From Acting Director William P. Robertson

August 2018Illinois Emergency Management Agency

September is a big month in the world of emergency management.Our strength has been tested in the month of September, by way ofterrorists on September 11, 2001. Our response capabilities testedby Hurricanes Irma and Maria in September 2017. Perhaps this iswhy September is National Preparedness Month.

In Illinois, September’s IEMA Training Summit serves as a one-stop-shop for emergency and disaster preparedness. While we mayrepresent difference response disciplines, we share a common visionand our goals are the same: To ensure Illinois is safe, secure andresilient against all hazards.

We respond to floods, fires, tornadoes, and other natural disasters.We work tirelessly to help our citizens prepare and always be ready.That’s what makes the IEMA Training Summit great. Just like thegoals of National Preparedness Month, the IEMA Training Summitaims to strengthen our emergency response protocols through careful preparation, planning, and training.

At this year’s Training Summit, we have assembled countless breakout sessions that will provide invaluablehands-on training, thought provoking paneldiscussions, interactive presentations andmust-see lectures on topical issues in our worldtoday. These sessions are designed to offerprofessional growth that will help strengthenyour emergency response protocols. TheIEMA Training Summit also provides a uniquenetworking opportunity for first responders andemergency personnel from around the state.

Preparedness is the cost of doing business isa post-9/11 world, so let’s take this time toencourage all Illinoisans to be prepared fordisasters and emergencies in their homes,businesses, and communities.Preparedness is the key to fiscal responsibility,and it is the best way to save time, money,resources and lives.

In this issueLaSalle Exercise ...............................................2ChicagoFIRST Tabletop .....................................2Inside IEMA Info Corner.....................................3 Governor Applauds Shared Services...................4IEMA Joins WIPP Road Show.............................4New Earthquake Awareness Tool .......................5Kudos for Fire Donation.....................................5Earthquake PSA Coming Soon...........................6Grant Opportunities Available ............................7National WEA & EAS Test Scheduled .................7IEMA Summit....................................................8IEMA Highlights Historic Floods.........................9Message From President Lincoln .....................10

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IEMA Participates in Graded Exercise for LaSalle Nuclear Power PlantThe response plans for each of the six nuclear powerplants in Illinois must be demonstrated through a FEMA-graded exercise every two years. On Tuesday, August7, federal, state, local and utility representativesparticipated in the biennial exercise of the Illinois Planfor Radiological Accidents (IPRA) plan for the LaSalleStation nuclear power plant. The exercise testedparticipating organizations’ ability to effectivelyimplement plans to ensure public health would beprotected in the event of a radiological release from thenuclear power plant.

Owned and operated by Exelon Corporation, the LaSalleStation is located 75-miles southwest of Chicago. Thefacility has approximately 800 employees and providespower for more than 2.3 million homes in northern Illinois.

More than 300 people from various agencies andorganizations participated in the full-scale exercise atseveral venues, including the State EmergencyOperations Center (SEOC), the Radiological EmergencyAssessment Center (REAC), IEMA’s communicationscenter, the Joint Information Center (JIC), the UnifiedArea Command (UAC), the Radiological ResponseGroup (RRG), IEMA’s Mobile RadiochemistryLaboratory, as well as emergency operations centers inGrundy, and LaSalle counties.

FEMA’s draft report on the exercise will be available forreview in the coming weeks. The next evaluated nuclearpower plant exercise will be for the Quad Cities stationon December 4, 2018.

On August 15th, ChicagoFIRST facilitated a tacticaltabletop exercise exploring the complexities of a jointpublic and private sector response to a Geomagneticstorm resulting in power outages, communicationdisruptions and public safety concerns.Representatives from Chicago area criticalinfrastructure firms and government partners fromDHS, FEMA Region V, U.S. Treasury, Federal ReserveBank, Illinois Emergency Management Agency, IllinoisNational Guard, Cook County Homeland Security,Chicago Police and the Chicago Office of EmergencyManagement and Communications participated in thisexercise.

Ed Fenelon, Chief Meteorologist of the NationalWeather Service in Chicago, opened the exercise with

an overview of Space Weather, includingGeomagnetic storm science, forecasting capabilitiesand the potential outcomes of storms of varyingstrength. The exercise objectives includeddeveloping a common understanding of response andrecovery capabilities; assessing critical informationsharing; determining how public warning systems maybe used; and identifying coordinated response effortsbetween government agencies and private sector.

ChicagoFIRST is a nonprofit association that providescritical firms a collaborative forum to address privatesector resilience and emergency managementplanning and response with relevant local, regional,and national public sector agencies.

ChicagoFIRST Hosts Tabletop Exercise: A Geomagnetic Storm

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(Right) TheUnified AreaCommand (UAC)is activated at thePutnam CountyEMA Office withregional anddistrict personnelfrom various stateagencies toparticipate in the2018 LaSalleStation exercise.

(Top) DirectorRobertsonreceives a briefing from Mark Hannant and the RadiologicalResponse Group during the August 2018 LaSalle Station exercise.

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Damage AssessmentThe Illinois Emergency Management Agency isintroducing a new method of collecting damageassessments for individual assistance during adisaster. The Initial Damage Assessment (IDA) toolis designed to streamline the process of damageassessment set by the Federal EmergencyManagement Agency (FEMA) by simplifying thedata to determine both federal assistance andopportunities for mitigation. Now available online,IEMA provides two IDA forms for flood and non-flood damages which will assist local communities,municipalities and counties to easily submit andexpedite assessments for homes and businesses.

“The forms themselves have not changed a lot, butsome fields have been added to further clarifyinformation collected,” said IEMA IA Officer, JasonWilliams. “It’s important to note, this online tool willbe the only acceptable method of damageassessment (DA) submission to IEMA movingforward as a way to streamline the collectionprocess.”

How it works:

• Damage assessment teams will still need to godoor to door to attain DA information.

• Information can be collected via DA apps on asmart phone or tablet or entered into an excelspreadsheet

• Required data required can be found in thebelow IEMA link and is based off of FEMA’sassessment matrix.

• Once the information is all collected for the area,the sheets will need collected andimported/submitted in the new DA online tool.

• A copy of all of the data will go to the individualwho submitted it, the county EMA, the RegionalCoordinator and the IEMA IA Officer.

The Damage Assessment forms are available on thefollowing link:

https://www2.illinois.gov/iema/localema/pages/damageassessmentforms.aspx

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The Northwest Central Joint Emergency ManagementSystem was recently singled out by Governor BruceRauner and Lt. Governor Evelyn Sanguinetti as ashining example of local governments bandingtogether to share services, equipment and expertiseto increase government efficiency and save taxpayerdollars.

The Second Edition of the Journal of LocalGovernment Shared Service Best Practices (Journal),published by the Lt. Governor’s Office, promotes 20top examples of ways public entities are workingtogether to cut costs and reduce property taxes.Sanguinetti chaired the Governor’s Task Force onLocal Government Consolidation and UnfundedMandates.

The Joint Emergency Management System is acooperative effort by 10 communities to provideregional, shared emergency management services.As a result of the project, each community sees a costsavings of about $50,000 a year. Collectively, all 10municipalities are saving more than $600,000 a year.

“We as the Joint Emergency Management System are

honored to receive this shared service best practicerecognition. We hope that our program can serve asan example for other municipal or county entities bothin the state of Illinois and across the country as anotherway of providing effective and efficient emergencymanagement,” said Mick Fleming, joint emergencymanagement coordinator.

In total, 262 shared service examples were providedfor best practice consideration. Out of thoseresponses, 20 were selected to be published in theJournal.

“I commend these local leaders for finding innovativeways to deliver more efficient, effective, streamlinedservices for our taxpayers, and I encourage other localgovernments to follow their lead,” said Lt. GovernorSanguinetti. “I will continue to fight for legislation toallow citizens the ability to control costs andconsolidate units of government as they see fit.”

The Journal of Local Government Shared Service BestPractices Second Edition is available online, and canbe accessed through the Lt. Governor’s website.

Governor, Lt. Governor Praise Local Officials for SharingServices, Saving Taxpayer Dollars

IEMA’s Division of Nuclear Safety recently participatedin a unique traveling “road show” designed to furthereducate first responders and the public about thesafeguards in place to protect our communities fromradiological hazards.

A recent Department of Energy Waste Isolation PilotPlant (WIPP) Road Show included stops in Illinois, Iowaand Nebraska along the shipping route from ArgonneNational Laboratory near Chicago to the WasteIsolation Pilot Plant located near Carlsbad, NewMexico. This Road Show provided an opportunity forthe public to learn more about the rigorous WIPPtransportation protocols designed to ensure the safetransport of transuranic waste.

WIPP is the nation’s first deep-geologic repository forsafely isolating transuranic waste, a byproduct ofnuclear weapons research and production. Disposingof transuranic waste underground at WIPP protects

people and the environment. Since 1999, theDepartment of Energy has transported more than12,000 shipments of transuranic waste to the facility,including 192 shipments from the Argonne NationalLaboratory. IEMA’s role is to inspect and escort theseshipments of radioactive material as they travel ourhighways.

Since WIPP began operating in 1999, DOE’stransportation program has maintained an excellentsafety record, attributable in large part to the strictdriver qualifications; rigorous inspection requirementsfor trucks, trailers and packages; use of Type Bcontainers certified by the U.S. Nuclear RegulatoryCommission (NRC); and the close coordination andplanning with states that go into preparing for theseshipments.

A big thank you goes out to Joliet Junior College forhosting the 2018 Road Show.

Illinois Hosts Waste Isolation Pilot Plant Road Show

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IEMA to Unveil New Earthquake Awareness Tool at IEMA Training Summit

Help Continues for Northern Illinois Fire Victims

In 2017, the Illinois EmergencyManagement Agency (IEMA)and the Central U.S.Earthquake Consortium(CUSEC) unveiled the first-everin the Midwest interactiveearthquake kiosk. The kioskwas developed by a team ofearthquake and digital mediaexperts, including Dr. HarveyHenson from Southern IllinoisUniversity in Carbondale andScott Hodgson from theUniversity of Oklahoma.Located in The Science Centerof University Mall in Carbondale, this stationary kioskwas developed to help individuals learn how to reducedamage in their homes and prevent injuries during anearthquake.

Since then, IEMA and CUSEC have continued theircollaboration to discover new ways of promotingearthquake preparedness to the citizens of Illinois. Thestationary kiosk has undergone many updates sinceit was first unveiled to the public and now includesnew content including videos, audio, animations anda new Virtual Reality (VR) feature. Theseimprovements pale in comparison to the mostsignificant development, which is the creation of asecond kiosk which is now portable. The new

lightweight designedkiosk makes it easier totravel around the state toschools, civicengagements andcommunity events toincrease earthquakeawareness and helpIllinoisans learn moreabout the impacts anearthquake could have ontheir lives.

“We believe this mobilekiosk can be a keyinstrument in fueling

earthquake awareness for years to come,” said ActingIEMA Director William Robertson. “The recentimprovements made by CUSEC and SIU-Carbondaleprovide a more exciting way to improve the public’sunderstanding of earthquakes by showcasing realisticand engaging content for viewers.”

This new earthquake kiosk will be on display at theIEMA Summit at the Bank of Springfield Center onSeptember 4-6 in downtown Springfield. For moreinformation about the mobile kiosk, includingarrangements for your next event, contact IEMAEarthquake Program Manager, Jason Williams atjason.b.williams@illinois.gov.

Check out the new mobile earthquake kiosk at the 2018 IEMATraining Summit, Sept 4-6 in downtown Springfield.

The Illinois Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, inconjunction with the American Red Cross of Chicago& Northern Illinois, set up a Volunteer OperationsCenter to assist victims of a devastating apartment firein Prospect Heights on July 18th. As many as 1200people were expected to utilize the services providedby the Volunteer Operations Center.

Our hats off to the kindness and generosity of themembers of IEMA Region 4. Wendell Brewer and histeam purchased several necessary items anddonated them to the relief efforts at the VolunteerOperations Center.

Here’s how you can help: https://www.prospect-heights.il.us/CivicAlerts.aspx?AID=420. A Volunteer Operations Center was established to help the victims of

a July 2018 fire in Prospect Heights.

IEMA Partners with St. Louis Cardinals to PromoteEarthquake PreparednessSome of the largest earthquakes to ever occur in thecontinental U.S. happened in 1811-12 along the NewMadrid Seismic Zone (NMSZ) delivering a direct hit tosouthern Illinois. A similar earthquake today wouldcause widespread devastation to buildings, utilities,roads, bridges and other infrastructure, as well asresult in many injuries and deaths.

Recognizing the earthquake risk in Illinois, the IllinoisEmergency Management Agency (IEMA) along withits partners at the Central U.S. Earthquake Consortium(CUSEC), are taking steps to increase preparednessthrough the Great American Shakeout earthquakedrill, which will take place on October 18th at 10:18a.m.

To help increase participation in this earthquake drill,specifically at the K-12 schools in southern Illinois,IEMA solicited the help of the St. Louis Cardinalsmascot, Fredbird. Fredbird recently visited C.A.Henning School in the Triad School District to teachschool children what to do in the event of anearthquake.

ShakeOut teaches participants to “Drop, Cover andHold On” when they feel the ground shaking: “Drop”down to the floor, take “Cover” under a sturdy desk,table or other furniture, and “Hold On” to the furnitureitem and be prepared to move with it until the shakingends.

ShakeOut began in 2008 in Southern California as away to educate the public about how to protectthemselves during an earthquake, and the earthquakedrill is now held in 20 other regions both in the UnitedStates and around the world.

Look for Fredbird and the students of C.A. Henning ina new public service announcement that will hitairwaves and social media this October.

To learn more about the ShakeOut and earthquakepreparedness visit www.ShakeOut.org.

Be sure to register your school, business ororganization to participate on October 18th in theShakeOut drill across the U.S.At right, Fredbird and students from C.A. Henning Elementary Schoolstar in an upcoming public service announcement to encourage K-12schools participation in the upcoming ShakeOut Earthquake Drill onOctober 18th.

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Local governments have the opportunity in the comingmonths to apply for federal mitigation funding. TheFederal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) hasposted the fiscal year 2018 Notice of FundingOpportunity (NOFO) announcements for the FloodMitigation Assistance (FMA) and Pre-DisasterMitigation (PDM) competitive grant programs onwww.grants.gov. These NOFOs provide an overviewof the grant programs and details about FEMA'sfunding priorities and review process.

FMA grants are available to implement measures toreduce or eliminate risk of severe repetitive andrepetitive flood damage to buildings insured by theNational Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). In FY18,$160 million is available for FMA grants.

The PDM grant program aims to reduce overall risk tothe population and structures through mitigation, whileat the same time reducing reliance on federal funding

from Stafford Act disaster declarations. $235.2 millionis available for FY18 PDM grants. FEMA will use themajority of the PDM funding for mitigation projects,although mitigation planning is also an eligible cost.

FEMA will also offer a series of webinars in August andSeptember on the FY18 NOFOs for prospectiveapplicants, and tutorials on how to use the MitigationeGrants system that is used to process grantapplications. For the online portion, visithttps://fema.connectsolutions.com/nofo18/. For theaudio portion of the webinar, dial 1-800-320-4330 andenter conference code 338559.

The opening date for applications is October 1, 2018.All applications must be submitted to IEMA no laterthan December 18, 2018. For additional information,please email Sam Al-Basha, the State HazardMitigation Officer, at sam.m.al-basha@illinois.gov.

Federal Mitigation Funding Availability

A national alert test for both WEA(Wireless Emergency Alert) and EAS(Emergency Alert System) capabilitieswill take place on September 20th at2:18 p.m. EST. The Federal EmergencyManagement Agency (FEMA) will issuea Nationwide Wireless Emergency Alerttesting the Presidential WEAcapabilities. The test message will beavailable to all compatible cell phones.The nationwide WEA test will befollowed by a nationwide EAS testapproximately two minutes later.

The alert will come across your phonetitled, “Presidential Alert.” The timesand order of the tests are scheduledtwo minutes apart in order to minimizeconfusion. Once someone sees the“THIS IS A TEST” message on theirmobile phone, it is likely they will turn toradio or television for confirmation. Thegoal is to have a unified voice in the test messagingto decrease the chances of public apprehension.

More information about this upcoming test can befound online: https://www.fema.gov/news-

release/2018/07/23/nationwide-test-emergency-alert-system-be-conducted-september-20-2018.

This is a Test: National WEA & EAS Test Scheduled

FEMA will conduct a national test of the Wireless Emergency Alert and Emergency AlertSystems on Sept 20th.

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In collaboration with the State Fair theme, CelebrateIllinois: 200 Years of Amazing, the Illinois EmergencyManagement Agency constructed a display forLieutenant Governor Evelyn Sanguinetti’s tent focusingon historical floods. This informative display wasavailable for review at the Illinois State Fair inSpringfield and Du Quoin State Fair in Du Quoin.

2018 marks the 25th anniversary of the Great Flood of1993 along the Mississippi River, the 10th anniversaryof major Mississippi River flooding in 2008, and the 5thanniversary of the major flooding along the Illinois andlower Mississippi rivers in 2013. Each flooding eventseverely impacted thousands of Illinoisans.

“While Illinois residents are at risk for many hazards,flooding is the most frequent and recovery is oftenvery difficult for both residents and businesses,” saidacting IEMA Director William Robertson.

Following the 1993 flood, FEMA began makingfunding available to help states work with communitiesto buy frequently flooded properties and turn them intogreen spaces. Since that time, the state of Illinois hasbeen a national leader in flood mitigation efforts,acquiring approximately 4,500 homes and otherstructures.

IEMA’s state fair display recognizes these floodmilestones as a way to promote awareness of whathas been done to protect public safety, preventrepetitive flood damage to property, and helpcommunities save time and resources as it relates toresponse and recovery efforts.

Historic Floods Featured at Illinois State Fair

IEMA’s state fair display included historical pictures from 1993, 2008 and2013 floods, along with a mitigation success stories, and videos of theimpact floods have had on Illinois over the years.

2008

2013

1993

State of IllinoisIllinois Emergency Management Agency

For more information on this newsletter, contact:Rebecca Clark (Rebecca.B.Clark@Illinois.gov)

IOCI 19-0049 8-18 Web

Previous issues of Inside IEMA are available at:http://www.illinois.gov/iema/Info/Pages/Newsletters.aspx.

History tells us that no two battles are alike. Thetactics of cybercriminals are constantly evolving andthat’s why the Illinois Emergency ManagementAgency is encouraging safe practices while browsingthe internet.

Radio and televisions spots are airing statewide aspart of the Ready Illinois broadcast preparednesscampaign, which is aired in cooperation with theIllinois Broadcasters Association (IBA) PublicEducation Partnership (PEP) program. The spots willair on more than 200 Illinois radio stations and morethan 30 Illinois TV stations.

The spots feature Abraham Lincoln outside the WhiteHouse reviewing his five step battle plan for thecurrent cyber security war. Mr. Lincoln remindsviewers and listeners of the following steps:

1) If It’s too good to be true, it probably is;2) Hover your cursor over the links to determine the

true web address;3) Look for misspellings and poor grammar, which

are warning signs of fraud;4) Be suspicious of emails requesting urgent action;5) Never give away sensitive personal information.

“The Illinois Broadcasters Association appreciates thecontinued partnership in educating Illinois citizens viaour Public Education Program (PEP) allowing us tobring this latest campaign to radio and TV stationsthroughout Illinois,” said Dennis Lyle, IBA President.“While the underlying messaging is always serious, weappreciate IEMA's willingness to allow these IBA-provided campaigns to incorporate an entertainmentcomponent to each allowing the campaigns to standout among the many other public service-likecampaigns often seen or heard on broadcast media."

Previous PEP program campaign recordings havefeatured actress Marion Ross of television’s “Happy

Days” fame; TV and radio personality Steve Harvey;Alan Kalter, formerly of “The Late Show with DavidLetterman;” and TV spots written and/or produced byIllinois high school and college students.

Lincoln Addresses Cyber Security Battle

New this Fall: Look for a new radio and television public service adcampaign starring Fritz Klein as Abraham Lincoln discussing theimportance of Cyber Security awareness.