:: NYDIS Annual Meeting Features Honors for ARC and Amardeep Singh

NYDIS will host its Annual Meeting at 6pm on Thursday, November 15 at NYU’s Kimmel Center in the Rosenthal Pavilion. This annual event celebrates and showcases NYDIS’ accomplishments in the past year, and pays tribute to those members and partners for their 2007 best practices in the work of disaster readiness, response and recovery. Following the business meeting, NYDIS will honor the American Red Cross September 11 Recovery Program with “The Partnership Award” for 2007; and, Amardeep Singh, Executive Director of the Sikh Coalition, will be honored with the “Best Practices Award” for 2007, cited for his passionate advocacy and backlash mitigation efforts. Other honors and recognitions will go to grantees, donors, program partners and volunteers. The 200 guests will be addressed by Keynote Speaker Scott A. Graham, Chief Response Office, American Red Cross in Greater NY. The ceremonies will be followed by a cocktail reception.

Download the NYDIS 2007 Annual Report: click here

To view the Annual Meeting Invitation: click here

:: NYDIS Executive Director Interviewed by GAO on Mass Care Capacity

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) is currently conducting a study of the roles and capabilities of voluntary organizations that respond to disasters and catastrophic events. Interviewed for this report were Peter Gudaitis, Executive Director of NYDIS, and NYDIS Board Member, Hayyim Obadyah, Director of Disaster Preparedness at the Human Services Council of New York City. Both were interviewed as President and Vice-President of NYC VOAD (Voluntary Agencies Active in Disaster) and as senior staff from NYDIS and HSC. They discussed the roles VOAD organizations play in providing services in response to disasters, the steps VOAD agencies, NYDIS and HSC have taken since Katrina to improve coordination and service delivery, and their capabilities to respond to catastrophic events in New York City, a high-risk area for terrorism. Both executives emphasized the importance of cooperating and interacting with government emergency management agencies. When asked about the gaps in the disaster services that an organization such as NYDIS can provide, Gudaitis underscored the importance of providing the community and faith-based agencies with disaster preparedness education and tools necessary to meet government demands and needs for coordination and greater sustainable service capacity. The GAO’s report will be made public in Spring 2008.

www.gao.gov

:: NYDIS Executive Director Participates in FEMA Tabletop Exercise

On November 7, Executive Director Peter Gudaitis participated in a Tabletop Exercise entitled, “Getting Disaster Information Out to the Public In the NY/NJ Metro Area.” The 50 leaders from key federal, state and local government representatives and non-profits tested and evaluated a unified intergovernmental effort to get disaster information out to the public. The goal of this interactive event was to clarify governmental disaster operations for response and recovery, improve the understanding of each other’s roles, and strategize on a unified message. The tabletop was co-sponsored by FEMA Region II and the NYU Center for Enterprise Preparedness.

www.fema.gov
www.nyu.edu/intercep/

:: NYDIS Executive Director Featured in MCNY Newsletter

The November edition of the Metropolitan College of New York (MCNY) "Presser" Newsletter features an article on the guest lecture Executive Director, Peter Gudaitis offered last month to graduate students in MCNY’s Emergency and Disaster Management program, "Relief & Recovery Ethics." “… The seminar afforded the students the opportunity to learn and interact on the challenges of emergency managers in faith based disaster mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery programs.”

View the "Presser" newsletter:
www.mcny.edu/news/newsletters.php

:: NYDIS to Launch 9/11 Recovery Worker Coordinated Assistance Network

In November, 2007, NYDIS will coordinate the launch of 9/11 Recovery Worker Coordinated Assistance Network (9/11 RWCAN). Based on the national Coordinated Assistance Network technology, 9/11 RWCAN is a specially formatted web-based database designed to promote information sharing and coordination of services for 9/11 World Trade Center rescue, recovery, and cleanup workers.  Using 9/11 RWCAN, case managers across agencies will be able to coordinate their efforts for the purposes of increasing inter-agency collaboration, mitigating against the duplication of services, and streamlining the referral of services through the creation of a central resource database.  The creation of 9/11 RWCAN has been highly anticipated throughout the 9/11 human services community and is expected to greatly enhance the efficiency, quality, and ease with which case management is provided for WTC rescue, recovery, and cleanup workers. 9/11 RWCAN has been funded by a grant from the American Red Cross Liberty Fund.

For more information on 9/11 RWCAN contact:
Scottie Hill, Director of Recovery and Advocacy:
shill@nydis.org. 

:: NYC 9/11 Unmet Needs Roundtable Updates

• Online 9/11 Client Inquiry Form
  To access the form, go to:
  www.nydis.org/unmetneeds/7.php

• NYC 9/11 In-Service Training for Case Workers
  In-Service Training is required for case workers who have never presented a case at the Roundtable, and is recommended as a refresher for experienced case workers who have previously presented cases. All training sessions take place at NYDIS (map).

• NYC 9/11 Unmet Needs Roundtable Schedule
  The NYC 9/11 Unmet Needs Roundtable brings together donors with agencies providing case management to 9/11 victims. Case Workers who would like to present a case must sign-up by Friday prior to the meeting of the Roundtable. Due to the influx of cases which need presenting, the 9/11 Unmet Needs Roundtable will be adding an additional Wednesday date each month. There will now be three meetings a month, instead of two.

  • Thursday, November 15 - 9:30-12:00 pm (Open: 1 Regular slot)
  • Thursday, November 29 - 9:30-12:00 pm (Open: 2 Emergency and 1 Regular slots)
  • Wednesday, December 12 - 9:30-12:00 pm (Open: 2 Emergency and 2 Regular slots)
  • Thursday, December 20 - 9:30-12:00 pm (Open: 2 Emergency and 2 Regular slots)

  
  Contact Lida Mora, Moderator, NYC 9/11 Unmet Needs Roundtable
  212.669.6139
  lmora@nydis.org

• NYC 9/11 Case Management Coordination Meetings
  NYDIS hosts monthly Case Management Coordination meetings for service providers that are assisting 9/11 recovery workers and the general 9/11-affected community. These meetings are open to representatives from any service providers that wish to coordinate and share information about their services and the community's needs.
  
  

  • Wednesday, November 14 – 9:30-11:00 am

  
  To RSVP, contact Lida Mora:
  lmora@nydis.org

:: NYC 9/11 Recovery Resources

:: NYC Katrina Evacuee Recovery Resources
    www.nydis.org/katrina

:: NYS & NJ 2007 Nor’easter Recovery Resources:
    www.nydis.org/recovery/13.php

:: 8/8/2007 Severe Flooding/Tornado Recovery Resources

:: 9/11 Workers' Compensation Registration Deadline Extended One Year-Aug. 14, 2008

NYDIS urges 9/11 chaplains, recovery workers and volunteers to register now to protect their right to workers' compensation benefits. NYDIS and New York Committee for Occupational Safety and Health (NYCOSH) in collaboration with other agencies are mounting a media campaign to inform workers throughout the country about the necessity of registering by the deadline.

Download the brochure (pdf): English | Español

Call for registration guidelines: 866.WTC.2556

:: WTC Health Registry's Resource Guide

The New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) has created a WTC Health Registry Resource Guide for people affected by 9/11. The guide includes information about occupational, respiratory, environmental, and mental health facilities as well as other services and resources.

Download the Resource Guide: click here

:: NY Legislators Approve 9/11 Health Coverage Expansion

Senators Hillary Clinton, Charles Schumer, Frank Lautenberg, and Robert Menendez, along with Representatives Jerrold Nadler, Carolyn Maloney, and Vito Fossella announced November 2 that the Joint House and Senate Conference Committee has approved an additional $52.5 million in federal funding to address the mounting health needs of those individuals who were exposed to the environmental hazards released as a result of 9/11. The funding, which comes in addition to the $50 million that was provided in the recent Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Bill, was included in the FY 2008 Labor, Health and Human Services (HHS) Appropriations Bill. The bill must now be approved by both chambers of Congress.

Read the November 2 Press Release:
http://maloney.house.gov/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=1486&Itemid=61

:: Health Effects in NYS Personnel Who Responded to the WTC Site

A new report published in the November issue of the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine shows state employees who worked at the WTC site after 9/11 are suffering from the same respiratory problems as workers who were there during the actual attacks – just to a lower degree. The study looked at more than 1,400 state police, National Guard members, and state Department of Transportation workers, including 110 who were in the dust cloud when the WTC fell, and found nearly 47% of workers not caught in the dust cloud reported lower respiratory problems, compared with a little more than 57% of those caught in it.

Read the Report’s Abstract: click here

:: Maloney/Nadler/Fossella Urge Standards for Adding 9/11 Names

Following Mayor Bloomberg’s meeting last week with the family of the late NYPD Detective James Zadroga, Reps. Carolyn Maloney, Jerrold Nadler, and Vito Fossella wrote to the Mayor and urged him to empower a panel of independent public health experts to help the city put in place clear standards and procedures to determine whether deaths should be linked to 9/11. “An independent body of medical and scientific experts could help implement a transparent process to determine whether or not a death was 9/11 related,” said Rep. Nadler.

Read Rep. Nadler’s November 7 Press Release and the full text of the Representatives’ letter:
www.house.gov/apps/list/press/ny08_nadler/Independent_Standards_For_Adding_911_Victims_Names_110707.html

:: Con Ed Fined $18M for Queens 2006 Blackouts

Consolidated Edison was fined $18 million November 7 for the blackouts last year that affected nearly 175,000 people in Queens, among others. The Public Service Commission, the state agency that regulates the utility and fined it, will deduct the penalty from Con Ed's next rate increase, which would amount to 1.5% of the increase it is currently seeking. But the commission did not consider the Queens blackout a "major outage," prompting Queens Assemblymember Michael Gianaris to "shudder to think what would be considered major." The money adds up to about $6 for each of Con Ed's 3 million customers.

Read the November 8 NY Post article by Bill Sanderson:
www.nypost.com/seven/11082007/news/regionalnews/psc_slaps_con_ed_for_18m_598330.htm

:: NY State Launches Alert Website

NY-ALERT, the New York State All-Hazards Alert and Notification web-based system, went online June 1.  The website offers one-stop shopping through which State and local governments can provide emergency information to a defined audience (local, county, regional or statewide). It is part of New York State's ongoing commitment to provide New Yorkers with information so that they will understand risks and threats they may face on a daily basis and know how to respond accordingly.

www.nyalert.gov

:: Results of 2007 State Emergency Director Survey

Every year, the National Emergency Management Association (NEMA) conducts the State Emergency Management Director survey, asking about organizational structures, budgets, staffing, salaries and more. Of note, the number of emergency management directors serving as the primary coordinator for homeland security has decreased this year. The biggest shift has taken place where states are creating new models for this function. The report documents some disturbing disparity in funds spent within New York State on Emergency Management in comparison to other stats of similar size or hazard vulnerabilities.

Download the 2007 Survey:
www.nemaweb.org/?1814