NWS & CDC – Working Together to Communicate Weather-Related Health Hazards NWS: Michelle Hawkins, Fiona Horsfall, Duane Carpenter, Cindy Woods CDC: Vivi Siegel, Lisa Briseño, Niki Grimsley, Joanne Cox August 4, 2014
Health in NOAA NOAA One-Health Working Group o About 40 members across the agency o Developing NOAA-wide health strategy NWS Health Team NOAA-CDC MOU Provides a formal cooperative framework to further collaborative efforts o Strengthen science and services to reduce environmental and public health threats o Promote the efficient use of shared technologies and infrastructure o Enhance the accuracy, timeliness, and integrated application of data and information to address public health issues 2
NWS & CDC Joint Messaging NOAA and CDC strategy meetings resulted in a focused collaborative effort: Joint messaging on weather, water and climate related health events 3 This effort will: Provide information on weather and climate related health hazards Broaden the audience for CDC information Support current NWS efforts to provide impact-based decision support services
CDC Request During Sandy NWS contacted by CDC Joint Information Center o JIC is a 24/7 emergency preparedness unit that is activated during public health emergencies o Develops, clears, and disseminates health messages to the public and at-risk audiences Requested that NWS disseminate life-saving health information o Provide targeted information to areas impacted by power outages and flooding 4 Photo by Rosa Norman: CDC's Joint Information Center (JIC) during response to Japan earthquake, tsunami, and radiation release
During Sandy, NWS and CDC collaborated on joint messaging o JIC provided life saving information on the use of generators, dangerous fumes, downed power lines, and harmful mold o NWS formatted the information for consistency and incorporation with NWS products o NWS facilitated engagement with field offices to transmit messages via normal channels and NOAA Weather Radio 5 NWS & CDC in Action
Developed Special Statements 6 THE FOLLOWING MESSAGE IS TRANSMITTED AT THE REQUEST OF THE CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION (CDC): IN THE WAKE OF SUPERSTORM SANDY IT IS IMPORTANT FOR CITIZENS TO REMEMBER THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION TO PROTECT YOUR LIFE AND HEALTH AND THAT OF YOUR FAMILY: * DRINK CLEAN, SAFE WATER AND EAT SAFE, UNCONTAMINATED FOOD. * KEEP GENERATORS OUTSIDE AT LEAST 25 FEET FROM DOORS WINDOWS AND VENTS. * DO NOT GRILL INSIDE YOUR HOME THE FUMES CAN KILL. * NEVER TOUCH A DOWNED POWER LINE OR ANYTHING TOUCHING ONE. * USE 1 CUP OF BLEACH FOR EACH GALLON OF WATER TO REMOVE MOLD. * NEVER MIX BLEACH AND AMMONIA THE FUMES CAN KILL. * WASHING YOUR HANDS PREVENTS ILLNESS. * SEEK HELP IF HAVING TROUBLE COPING. FOR MORE LIFE SAVING HEALTH RELATED INFORMATION CALL THE CENTER FOR DISEASE CONTROL AT , TTY
Message Dissemination Messages were disseminated by Weather Forecast Offices New York Mt. Holly Binghamton Boston Philadelphia Charleston Picked up by national and local media Distributed on NWS social media sites 7
Testing a Process 8
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