Friday, October 28, 2011

NATIONWIDE EMERGENCY ALERT SYSTEM TEST

As part of our larger efforts to strengthen our nation’s preparedness and resiliency, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) will conduct the first nation-wide test of the Emergency Alert System on November 9th, at 2 p.m. eastern standard time.

Testing the Emergency Alert System plays a key role in evaluating and improving the systems we need in place to ensure our nation is prepared for all hazards and that people within its borders are able to receive critical and vital information through the system, should it ever be needed.

It’s important to keep in mind that this is not a pass or fail test of the Emergency Alert System, but an opportunity to improve the system on a national level. Below we have provided a template for both a press release and/or a newsletter that you can use in your organizations to help inform.

For additional information and FAQ’s, please visit the FCC Web Site. If you have additional FEMA-Private-Sector-Specific questions, please contact our Private Sector Division Office at: FEMA-Private-Sector@dhs.gov.

Friday, October 21, 2011

UMCD makes its last delivery of ton containers to UMCDF

UMATILLA CHEMICAL DEPOT, Hermiston, Ore. – The Umatilla Chemical Depot delivered the last stockpiled ton containers filled with mustard chemical agent today shortly before 11 a.m. to the Umatilla Chemical Agent Disposal Facility (UMCDF).

A brief ceremony highlighting the event took place near the depot headquarters with employees and invited public officials.

“Today’s milestone marks the first time in more than 40 years that chemical weapons will no longer be stored at the Umatilla Chemical Depot,” said Lt. Col. Kris Perkins, depot commander. “Thanks to the efforts of our work force, we were able to safely and compliantly store, secure and ship more than 220,000 chemical weapons. I am very proud of the work force and our community partners in working together to achieve such a historic milestone.”

Depot officials are projecting the last remaining ton containers will be disposed of by the end of October, 2011.

Chemical weapons were brought to the depot in 1962 and have been in storage since that time. Destruction of the chemical agent stored at the depot began in the fall of 2004.

Today’s final shipment of weapons comes 70 years after the depot’s formation on Oct. 14, 1941. The depot received its first conventional weapons on Oct. 27, 1941, two months before the U.S. entered World War II. All of the conventional weapons were shipped from the depot in 1994.
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