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Fukushima lesson: be ready for unanticipated nuclear accidents
A year after the Fukushima disaster all but two of Japan’s fifty-four nuclear reactors remain shut down, in a country where nuclear power once supplied nearly 30 percent of the electricity; the Japanese government is awarding an initial $13 billion in contracts to begin decontamination and rehabilitation of the more than 8,000-square-mile region most exposed to radioactive fallout
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Missouri first responders learn from last year’s tornado season
Drawing on the valuable lessons learned from last year’s record tornado season, emergency officials in the St. Louis area were ready to spring into action immediately after tornadoes swept through the state once again last week
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The future of nuclear energy
While the lessons of the 11 March 2011 Fukushima disaster are being absorbed, the United States is moving forward with nuclear power; for the first time since 1978, the U.S. National Regulatory Commission has approved two new plants; the $14 billion facilities will be built just outside Augusta, Georgia
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Better policies needed to reduce radiation exposure in nuclear accidents
A new study says that offsite policies and plans should be put in place to reduce the exposure of the public to radiation in the event of a nuclear power plant accident
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Infrastructure security, disaster planning “Super map” developed
A U.S. Marine stationed at the Quantico base in Virginia has developed sophisticated mapping software that can give users full situational awareness of their surroundings in real-time; the software is a “super map” taking in a torrent of data streams from emergency dispatch reports to weather forecasts, traffic reports, and security system alerts
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If Japan-like disaster happened in U.S., results would be far worse
An estimated 20,000 people died or are still missing after a massive earthquake-induced tsunami struck Japan on 11 March 2011, yet some 200,000 people were in the inundation zone at the time; experts say that if the same magnitude earthquake and tsunami hits the Pacific Northwest, the death toll will be much higher because of the lack of comparable preparation; that 90 percent rate could be the number of victims, not survivors
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National Weather Service budget cuts threaten poor IT infrastructure
The Obama administration has proposed cutting more than $39 million from the National Weather Service’s (NWS) budget, particularly from its IT department, and critics worry that the cuts could cause the agency’s already crippling infrastructure problems to grow worse
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Infant survivor of Indiana tornadoes dies, death toll rises to 39
The fifteen-month old infant survivor of the twisters that struck Kentucky and Indiana, who had come to represent a symbol of hope, has died; the death toll is now thirty-nine
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Japan questions earthquake forecasts
Following the massive 11 March earthquake and tsunami that rocked Japan, residents and experts there have grown increasingly skeptical of quake forecasts
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New app helps Queensland coordinate volunteers
Researchers from the University of Queensland have developed a new smartphone app to help mobilize and coordinate volunteer efforts during major disasters
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Next-gen weather satellites to improve tornado warnings in South
More than a quarter of the 1,688 twisters confirmed across the United States in 2011 occurred in the four-state region of Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, and Tennessee – and most of the 73 tornadoes hitting the United States in January 2012 occurred in those four states; southern tornadoes are especially insidious and challenging to track, and NASA’s weather satellites are now paying special attention to them
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DARPA holds $40,000 competition to test social media in disasters
To better understand how emergency responders can leverage social media tools, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is holding the$40,000 CLIQR Quest Challenge
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New report paints dire picture of Japanese Fukushima response
A new report reveals that last year’s nuclear crisis at Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi atomic energy plant was dangerously close to spiraling out of control as senior officials bickered internally, lacked critical information on the extent of the damage, and covertly considered the possibility of evacuating Tokyo
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Nebraska debates disaster housing fund
Legislators in Nebraska are currently debating a law that would create a $2.5 million temporary housing fund for families who lose their homes in natural disasters
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Study finds majority of Americans unprepared for disasters
According to the latest survey by the Persuadable Research Corporation, half of the poll’s respondents believe they are unprepared for a disaster
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The long view
Trump Aims to Shut Down State Climate Policies
President Donald Trump has launched an all-out legal attack on states’ authority to set climate change policy. Climate-focused state leaders say his administration has no legal basis to unravel their efforts.