{"id":1315,"date":"2015-05-18T17:57:42","date_gmt":"2015-05-18T21:57:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/mema\/?p=1315"},"modified":"2015-05-18T17:58:52","modified_gmt":"2015-05-18T21:58:52","slug":"maryland-emergency-management-agency-partners-prepare-for-upcoming-atlantic-hurricane-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/mdem\/2015\/05\/18\/maryland-emergency-management-agency-partners-prepare-for-upcoming-atlantic-hurricane-season\/","title":{"rendered":"Maryland Emergency Management Agency, Partners Prepare for Upcoming Atlantic Hurricane Season"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"MEMA<\/a>

MEMA Executive Director Clay Stamp delivers opening remarks for the Maryland Hurricane Symposium held on Monday May 18, 2015.<\/p><\/div>\n

MEMA Officials Available for Interviews with Press<\/strong><\/p>\n

REISTERSTOWN, Md. <\/strong>(May 18, 2015) \u2013 <\/strong>The Maryland Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) and many local and state partners prepared for the upcoming hurricane season at a day-long seminar today. The event included sessions on economic recovery, hurricane preparedness efforts by businesses, and management of donations and volunteers following a devastating storm.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile the last two hurricane seasons have been relatively quiet, we all remember the devastation from Hurricane Sandy in 2012, especially in the New York City area and on Maryland\u2019s lower eastern shore,\u201d said MEMA Executive Director Clay Stamp. \u201cIt\u2019s important for us to always be prepared because even in a quiet hurricane season, just one hurricane making landfall in our area can be devastating.\u201d<\/p>\n

Attendees also heard a presentation from Chris Strong of the National Weather Service Baltimore\/Washington Field Office, which included an update on awareness products, such as alert systems and briefing packages. MEMA staff followed this by discussing new geographic information systems (GIS) tools for hurricane damage assessment following a storm.<\/p>\n

\u201cMEMA and partner agencies work together on a regular basis to ensure the State has an efficient response to all hazards that could impact Maryland,\u201d said Brendan McCluskey, MEMA\u2019s Director of Preparedness. \u201cResidents can practice preparedness by building an emergency kit and visiting our website to check if they reside in a flood prone area.\u201d<\/p>\n

The seminar was attended by MEMA staff, federal, local, non-profit, and private-sector emergency managers, and representatives from State agencies that staff the State Emergency Operations Center during emergencies. Hurricane season officially begins on June 1, although the first named tropical system \u2013 Ana \u2013 developed off the Carolinas and brought heavy rains on shore earlier this month.<\/p>\n

Hurricane preparedness information can be found on the MEMA website at mema.maryland.gov and by downloading the MARYLAND Prepares free, mobile app on either iOS or Android operating systems.<\/p>\n

NOTE<\/strong>: MEMA executives are available for live or taped interviews to discuss hurricane safety and preparedness actions for the 2015 Atlantic hurricane season.<\/p>\n

CONTACT<\/strong>:<\/p>\n

Chas Eby
\nchas.eby@maryland.gov<\/a>
\n410-274-6690<\/a><\/p>\n

Ed McDonough
\ned.mcdonough@maryland.gov<\/a>
\n410-446-3333<\/a><\/p>\n

Emily Allen
\nemily.allen@maryland.gov<\/a>
\n410-504-4437<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

MEMA Officials Available for Interviews with Press REISTERSTOWN, Md. (May 18, 2015) \u2013 The Maryland Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) and many local and state partners prepared for the upcoming hurricane season at a day-long seminar today. The event included sessions on economic recovery, hurricane preparedness efforts by businesses, and management of donations and volunteers following  Read the Rest…<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":64,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1315","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-events-2","category-news-releases"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t