AMU Emergency Management Public Safety

EDM Wednesday Briefing: California Shooting, Haiti Recovery, Deadly Tram Accident, Election Protest

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Emergency and disaster management briefing for November 9, 2016

  1. A lone gunman, thought to be binging on cocaine, [link url=”http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-azusa-shooting-injuries-20161108-story.html” title=”opened fire in his neighborhood Tuesday afternoon”] in Azusa, CA. The suspect shot a women driving past in a van, killed an elderly male bystander, and shot another woman. Both women were airlifted to the hospital where they are currently listed in critical condition. [link url=”http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/Azusa-Shooting-Investigation-400452821.html” title=”Police were ambushed by the assailant”] when they arrived on the scene. The gunman was killed by police in the exchange of gunfire that ensued. The suspect reportedly worked for a city public works department in Orange County and was married with two children.

  2. Aid has been arriving in Haiti–[link url=”https://amuedge.com/aid-slow-to-arrive-in-haiti-after-hurricane-matthew/” title=”albeit slowly”]–since Hurricane Matthew slammed into its southern region, devastating the area and destroying homes, villages, and crops. Residents are frustrated by the lack of available supplies and assistance to help them rebuild their homes or gain shelter, and [link url=”https://amuedge.com/aid-slow-to-arrive-in-haiti-after-hurricane-matthew/” title=”many remain vulnerable”]. Funding remains the major hurdle in coordinating the challenging logistics needed to deliver aid to remote locations.
  3. In London, [link url=”http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3919150/Emergency-services-rush-scene-London-tram-derails-overturns-Croydon.html” title=”a tram overturned in a tunnel”] in Croydon near the Sandilands stop during heavy rain early Wednesday morning. At least eight people died and more than 50 others were injured. The British Transport Police, the London Fire Brigade, and the London Ambulance Service responded to the accident where at [link url=”http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-london-37919658″ title=”least two people remained trapped”]. Several passengers from the overturned tram are listed in critical condition at area hospitals. The rescue effort is ongoing.

  4. A [link url=”https://amuedge.com/post-disaster-dementia-instances-may-increase-for-elderly/” title=”recent study”] from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health suggests that dementia may be a potential health risk for the elderly following a disaster. The study focused on elderly residents of the city of Iwanuma in Japan, an area that was completely inundated by the 2011 tsunami. [link url=”https://amuedge.com/post-disaster-dementia-instances-may-increase-for-elderly/” title=”According to the study”], cognitive decline may increase in vulnerable people, especially among the elderly who are unable to have contact with their home, families, neighbors, and other informal social networks.
  5. [link url=”http://www.12news.com/news/local/arizona/show-low-suspect-barricades-self-after-shooting-kills-officer/349999109″ title=”An armed suspect shot a police officer”] outside a fast-food restaurant in Show Low, AZ on Tuesday around 1:30 local time. The suspect fled the scene but was said to be barricaded in a rental cabin late Tuesday night at Lake of the Woods Resort in Pinetop-Lakeside. Officer Darrin Reed died from his injuries. Officials reported that [link url=”http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona-breaking/2016/11/08/show-low-police-seek-man-linked-officers-shooting/93495824/” title=”Officer Reed was just weeks away from retiring”].

  6. In Murmansk, Russia, a white flash followed by a what sounded like a large explosion occurred at a local power station. Immediately following the incident, a [link url=”https://www.sott.net/article/333364-Massive-blackout-in-Murmansk-Russia-after-reported-blast-at-power-plant” title=”blackout encompassed large portions of the city”], including its central government office buildings. Firefighters were on the scene and officials stated that there was no threat to the public. As the [link url=”https://www.rt.com/news/365801-murmansk-blackout-power-station/” title=”world’s largest city furthest north of the arctic circle”], Murmansk is home to approximately 300,000 individuals. [relink url=”https://amuedge.com/november-is-critical-infrastructure-security-and-resilience-month/” url2=”https://amuedge.com/infrastructure-critical-to-americas-continued-economic-success/”]
  7. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) helped guard against [link url=”https://amuedge.com/threat-of-cyber-attack-looms-over-election-day/” title=”Election Day cyber attacks”] in 48 states. DHS employed defenses to guard against tampering with votes and the spread of misinformation. The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) also [link url=”https://amuedge.com/threat-of-cyber-attack-looms-over-election-day/” title=”monitored election processes”] in 28 states across the nation.
  8. While the list of Election Day concerns varied widely throughout the population, one remained constant: cybersecurity. However, the National Governor’s Association went out of its way to [link url=”https://amuedge.com/governors-confident-in-election-day-cybersecurity/” title=”express confidence”] in various state’s ability to fend off cyber attacks. They noted the [link url=”https://amuedge.com/governors-confident-in-election-day-cybersecurity/” title=”decentralized process”], with voting mostly being administered at a local level, and the differing storage and processing of data by individual states, as major hurdles in a coordinated cyber attack.
  9. A protest erupted in Oakland, CA following the announcement that Donald Trump was the new president-elect of the U.S. [link url=”http://www.ktvu.com/news/ktvu-local-news/216414961-story” title=”Protestors blocked freeways and caused BART to shut down”] its 12th street station. Cars were reportedly set on fire and other vehicles had windows broken. As the protestors moved onto the streets, [link url=”http://www.foxnews.com/us/2016/11/09/protests-erupt-in-california-after-trump-wins-election.html” title=”one woman was struck by a car”], causing the California Highway Patrol to shut down Highway 24 temporarily to tend to the woman who allegedly suffered major injuries. [relink url=”https://amuedge.com/post-election-civility-lets-save-our-nation/” url2=”https://amuedge.com/are-we-now-in-a-civil-war/”]

Kimberly Arsenault serves as an intern at the Cleveland/Bradley County Emergency Management Agency where she works on plan revisions and special projects. Previously, Kimberly spent 15 years in commercial and business aviation. Her positions included station manager at the former Midwest Express Airlines, as well as corporate flight attendant, inflight manager, and charter flight coordinator. Kimberly currently holds a master's degree in emergency and disaster management from American Public University.

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