FEMA releases $100 million in EMPG-S funding for ongoing COVID-19 pandemic (and our customizable preparedness book qualifies under this grant and many others)

On 14-Apr-2020 DHS and FEMA announced a funding notice for an additional $100 million in supplemental Emergency Management Performance Grant Program funds.

The EMPG-S money is available to all 50 states and 6 territories as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, and FEMA will award funding to support COVID-19 preparedness and response; development of tools and strategies for prevention, preparedness, and response; and ongoing communication and coordination among federal, State, local, tribal, and territorial partners throughout the response.

A customizable tool that qualifies under EMPG (and other grants) is our 266-page preparedness and first aid manual (and PDF ebook) that can be customized with extra pages to include local plans, COVID-19 specific data and messaging or any other information agencies, businesses, schools and others want included for recipients.

For over 20 years many local, state and federal agencies and nonprofits have used our customizable book for communities since it qualifies as public education under most grants and provides tremendous in-kind and community match. Plus proceeds benefit the U.S. First Responders Association.

Fedhealth is a sole source, small business registered on GSA’s SAM database, the Ariba Supplier Network and many state and local procurement systems, and we can provide sole source or other documentation needed for work plans, to commit funds, straddle budgets, etc.

Learn more about our customizable preparedness and first aid book or ebook, and download a free 59-page PDF portion of it (that includes some data about coronaviruses and other infectious diseases, family plans, kits, disaster topics and more) at www.fedhealth.net.

And call Fedhealth at 520.907.2153 or email info@fedhealth.net if we can assist with your preparedness and communications needs for your employees, students, customers and communities.

(We’ve extended our hours and working 7 days a week during this outbreak.)

Resources for those in the path of Hurricane Sandy

Hurricane Sandy is predicted to bring drenching rain, major storm surges (4 to 11 feet above ground level from Maryland to Rhode Island) and winds that could hit 80 mph along the east and northeast parts of the U.S.

Remember … 9 out of 10 hurricane deaths are due to storm surge so please pay attention to evacuation orders.

Weather.com is reporting the hurricane force winds may continue across multiple states for about 36 hours and the intensity of this massive storm is causing great concern. Plus you compound Sandy with two winter storms heading east and merging in with this tropical activity … thus you have the “Perfect Storm” (or “Frankenstorm” as NOAA forecaster Jim Cisco first labeled it).

Some suggested tips from Weather.com…

Everyone:

• Needs to complete preparations by sunset Sunday

• Needs to be prepared for extended period without power (we’ve heard up to 10 days or more)

Coast:

• Follow orders from local officials and know if you need to evacuate due to coastal flood threat

• Prepare your home/property for frequent hurricane gusts and flooding

Inland:

• Prepare your home/property for occasional hurricane gusts

• Know if you are in an area prone to flooding from rainfall

• Beware of the potential of lakeshore flooding on the southern end of the Great Lakes as far west as Chicago

Also download a 60-pg free ebook in PDF at with Emergency Plan Checklists (including tips for pets and livestock), suggestions about assembling Home, Car or Office kits and more. And please share this data with others.

Also visit your City or County web site to find a link to your Emergency Management, Emergency Services or Homeland Security office to stay current on latest updates. Some local and state offices offer text alerts or have Twitter accounts so you and your loved ones can stay current on warnings.

If you can’t find your local EM site, the following state offices along the east coast all had safety information about Hurricane Sandy as of Sunday 9am PDT 28-Oct-2012. Obviously other states not listed here have helpful data too and a complete list of State and Territorial Emergency Management agencies can be found on fema.gov.

Delaware Emergency Management Agency
(302) 659-3362 or Tollfree 1-877-SAY-DEMA
Hurricane Sandy Hotline – (800) 464-4357
www.dema.delaware.gov

District of Columbia Homeland Security & Emergency Management Agency (DC HSEMA)
(202) 727-6161
http://hsema.dc.gov FB http://www.facebook.com/HSEMADC

Connecticut Department of Emergency Management & Homeland Security
(860) 256-0800 or Tollfree 1-800-397-8876
http://www.ct.gov/demhs FB https://www.facebook.com/CTEMHS
Hurricane Sandy News & Information http://www.ct.gov/sandy

Maine Emergency Management Agency
(207) 624-4400
www.state.me.us/mema and www.maineprepares.com

Maryland Emergency Management Agency
(410) 517-3600 or Tollfree 1-877-MEMA-USA
www.mema.state.md.us FB http://facebook.com/mdmema

Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency
(508) 820-2000
http://www.mass.gov/mema FB https://www.facebook.com/MassachusettsEMA

New Hampshire Homeland Security and Emergency Management
(603) 271-2231
www.nh.gov/safety/divisions/hsem/ ReadyNH www.nh.gov/readynh/

New Jersey Office of Emergency Management
(609) 963-6900
http://www.ready.nj.gov FB https://www.facebook.com/READYNEWJERSEY

New York State Emergency Management Office
(518) 292-2200
www.dhses.ny.gov
New York City OEM http://www.nyc.gov/oem FB https://www.facebook.com/NYCemergencymanagement

North Carolina Emergency Management
(919) 733-3825
www.ncem.org Ready NC http://www.readync.org FB https://www.facebook.com/NCEmergencyManagement

Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency
(717) 651-2001
www.pema.state.pa.us and http://www.readypa.org/ FB https://www.facebook.com/pages/ReadyPAorg/120150131052

Rhode Island Emergency Management Agency
(401) 946-9996
www.riema.ri.gov

Vermont Emergency Management
(802) 244-8721
http://vem.vermont.gov/ FB https://www.facebook.com/vermontemergencymanagement

Virginia Dept of Emergency Management
(804) 897-6500
http://www.readyvirginia.gov/ FB https://www.facebook.com/VAemergency

Additional Resources:

National Hurricane Center  www.hurricanes.gov

Ready.gov Hurricanes pg  www.ready.gov/hurricanes

Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety Hurricane pg http://disastersafety.org/hurricane/

FEMA’s mobi page  or free app

American Red Cross www.redcross.org