Updated Hurricane Web Training Video

The Information Institute has updated a short instructional video about its Hurricane Preparedness and Response for Florida Public Libraries web portal that demonstrates its most useful features, including a quick how to session on accessing a broad range of hurricane-related information. The updated video discusses the new service role, “Get to Know Your Local EOC,” as well as the other key features of the hurricane web portal. These training videos will help users exploit all the various resources, information, and services that are available from the website.

The video is available at our web portal or from YouTube.

• Video from the hurricane web portal.
• YouTube hurricane video.

- Information Institute

Information Institute Research Coordinator Presents on Public Library – Emergency Management Agency Partnerships at OCLC’s WebJunction, August 3, 2010

The Information Use Management & Policy Institute’s (Information Institute) Research Coordinator, Lauren H. Mandel, presented an online webinar to 60 attendees on August 3, 2010 through OCLC’s WebJunction. The webinar provided a brief introduction to theHurricane Preparedness & Response for Florida Public Libraries web portal, an overview of the eight service roles identified on the portal, an introduction to the new Get To Know Your EOC service role, and a discussion on the importance of partnering with emergency management.

Webinar attendees interacted with the presenter through real-time chats, with discussion focusing on success stories from participants’ libraries on working with local emergency managers and ways to improve these cooperative relationships.

Lauren Mandel noted that with the oncoming hurricane season it is essential for public librarians to be as prepared as possible to assist local communities and partner with their local emergency management offices. Furthermore, the new instructional module on working with your local EOC is an excellent strategy to coordinate services and assist your community. Details on how this can be done are on the Hurricane Preparedness & Response for Florida Public Libraries web portal.

View the archived webinar, slides, chats and related links.

- Information Institute

New Hurricane Flyer Now Available!

Now that hurricane season is here again, allow us to reintroduce a few of the products and services that have been developed for public libraries by the Information Use Management & Policy Institute (Information Institute) at Florida State University. These services were developed from a project designed to help public libraries to better assist their communities during hurricane disasters.

WEB PORTAL: The Information Institute’s web portal captures many best practices to help you better prepare for hurricane season. This web portal also includes access to a comprehensive collection of hurricane information resources. Please visit the homepage of the web portal located at:

http://hurricanes.ii.fsu.edu

HURRICANE FLYER: A new color flyer has been provided to all Florida public libraries for display and is available from the homepage of the web portal or click on the image below for a downloadable version of the flyer.

NEW SERVICE ROLE WITH INFORMATIONAL VIDEOS: We have also created a series of information videos about a new service role – Get to Know Your Local EOC that explains how a public library can develop a working relationship with the local emergency operations center, and why this relationship is beneficial to the library and the EOC. The new service role and those videos are available at our web portal or from YouTube at:

• From web portal: Get to Know Your Local EOC
• From YouTube: Information Institute Channel

Public Libraries, Get to Know Your Emergency Operations Center (EOC)

Getting to know your local Emergency Operations Center (EOC) can result in the public library and EOC working together to best provide for the community needs.

Best practices may include:

• Videos: Make the case to your local Emergency Operations Center (EOC)
• Mitigation strategies and preparedness funding
• Ensure facilities and equipment will meet disaster recovery demands
• Write a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)

- Information Institute

Gulf Oil Spill Dangers Increase with Start of Hurricane Season 2010

With the start of what is predicted to be an active hurricane season, the dangers of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill move farther inland. According to a New York Times article, researchers are concerned about the potential for hurricane force winds compounding the existing environmental disaster in the Gulf.

• New York Times article: Hurricane Season Raises New Fears

If a hurricane’s path collides with the spill, the winds and storm surges could push the oil on the Gulf’s surface over a wider area of the Gulf, and even farther inland. This “unprecedented environmental catastrophe” possibly could even intensify the storm’s effects by heating the water. There are hopes that the oil could weaken the storm but this has yet to be proven.

For further information on the Gulf Coast oil spill, please see The White House’s web page dedicated to the Deepwater BP Oil Spill.

Keep checking the Hurricane Preparedness & Response for Florida Public Libraries web portal for more information regarding the 2010 Hurricane season.

- Information Institute

Hurricane Season 2010 Begins - And NOAA Predicts It Will Be a Busy Season

Today, June 1, is the start of the 2010 hurricane season and according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), it's going to be an "active to extremely active" season.

• NOAA Expects Busy Atlantic Hurricane Season

With the prediction of 14 to 23 named storms this seasons, it is important for libraries to be prepared. Visit the Hurricane Preparedness & Response for Florida Public Libraries web portal for helpful information.

- Information Institute

Webinar: Hurricane Preparedness and Response

Join guest presenter, Lauren Mandel, research coordinator for a new project that identifies and collects key service roles, best practices, tools and resource to make better use of the public libraries for hurricane and disaster preparation and recovery.

The Florida-based project helps libraries reprioritize disaster and recovery efforts to address the needs of the broader community through partnerships with fellow responders and to become a safe haven, a recovery center, information hub and evacuee resource. Come learn how this project can inform your library's disaster preparedness plan and how your library can play an important role in community preparedness and recovery.

• Webinar: Hurricane Preparedness and Response

McClure Makes Presentation at Texas Library Association

Charles R. McClure, Francis Eppes Professor and Director of the Information Institute, spoke at the Texas Library Association April 17, 2010 in San Antonio. The presentation offered a tutorial on how to best use the website at

http://hurricanes.ii.fsu.edu/

The presentation also discussed the applicability of the website's content for hurricane preparedness and response in the state of Texas and other gulf coast states. There was considerable interest in expanding the coverage of the website to have content specific to other gulf coast states.

A number of the participants had been in recent hurricanes that have struck Texas and the fulf coast and offered suggestions and ideas for additional content and resources for the website.

- Information Institute

2010 Hurricane Season Predicted to be Busy With as Many as 15 Storms

USA Today states, "The Atlantic basin is facing a busier-than-usual" hurricane season, in part because of record warm water in the ocean, according to the latest hurricane forecast."

Read the USA Today story here.

Director Charles R. McClure notes, "Individual Florida public libraries have played important roles in helping their communities to better prepare and recover from hurricanes. The Hurricane Preparedness & Response for Florida Public Libraries project will increase the capacity of all Florida public libraries to better help their communities respond to hurricanes."

- Information Use Management & Policy Institute