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NASA

The unprecedented attacks on September 11, 2001 resulted in the loss of thousands of lives, including 343 fire fighters. Fire fighters, police officers, clean-up workers, and others were exposed to airborne toxins, as well as physical and mental hazards.

NIOSH leads the federal government’s efforts to track health effects information, conduct supporting research, and manage the health program created to provide care to first responders and others who helped after that disaster.

This page provides links to the NIOSH publications related to the World Trade Center fire fighter response efforts and the World Trade Center Health Program.

World Trade Center Health Program

The World Trade Center Health Program was established by the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act of 2010. The Program provides services for responders, workers, and volunteers who assisted with rescue, recovery, and cleanup at the World Trade Center and related sites. It also provides services for survivors who lived, worked, or were in school in the area.

Publications

The impact of the World Trade Center attack on FDNY firefighter retirement, disabilities, and pension benefits (2011)

Performance characteristics of the PTSD Checklist in retired firefighters exposed to the World Trade Center disaster (2011)

Validation of the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale in screening for major depressive disorder among retired firefighters exposed to the World Trade Center disaster (2010)

Injuries and illnesses treated at the World Trade Center, 14 September – 20 November 2001 (2005)

Biomonitoring of chemical exposure among New York City firefighters responding to the World Trade Center fire and collapse (2003)

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/04/19/west-texas-fertilizer-blast/2095817/

‘Total destruction’ in deadly fertilizer blast

Rick Jervis and William M. Welch, USA TODAY

4:16 a.m. EDT April 19, 2013

“………….State investigators would not confirm the number of deaths from Wednesday night’s explosion, and the toll late Thursday was still uncertain………West Mayor Tommy Muska said about 15 people, including many first responders, had died. As many as 160 others were injured in this small town………..

Federal and state investigators were awaiting clearance to enter the blast area to search for clues to the cause of both the initial fire and explosions. “It’s still too hot to get in there,” Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives spokeswoman Franceska Perot said. There was no indication of foul play…………”

NY Times

April 15, 2013

War Zone at Mile 26: ‘So Many People Without Legs’

By TIM ROHAN

BOSTON — “About 100 feet from the end of the 26.2-mile Boston Marathon, explosions shook the street and sent runners frantically racing for cover. The marathon finish line……..was suddenly like a war zone.

“These runners just finished and they don’t have legs now,” said Roupen Bastajian, 35, a Rhode Island state trooper and former Marine. “So many of them. There are so many people without legs. It’s all blood. There’s blood everywhere. You got bones, fragments. It’s disgusting.”………….”

http://www.fema.gov/community-emergency-response-team-national-newsletter

Community Emergency Response Team National Newsletter

The CERT National Program Office is pleased to present the CERT National Newsletter. This publication will offer updates on the CERT Program, highlight successes of local programs and provide valuable information for current and prospective CERT programs.

CERT Newsletter Issues

CERT Newsletter – Volume 4 – Issue 4, March 2013 (7-page PDF, 830 KB)

This issue of the National CERT Newsletter includes stories that represent the efforts of CERT programs in four states (California, Delaware, Missouri, and Oklahoma). They are all supporting emergency preparedness, disaster response and hometown resiliency in their own and in some cases, neighboring communities.

CERT Newsletter – Volume 4 – Issue 3, August 2012

This issue of the National CERT Newsletter includes stories from CERT programs in the central U.S. The central states, in FEMA Regions V-VII, experience or are at risk for a wide range of disasters – floods, winter storms, tornados, earthquakes and more. The CERT stories in this issue represent the efforts of the 610 registered CERT programs in the central U.S. They are all supporting disaster response and hometown resiliency in their communities.

CERT Newsletter – Volume 4 – Issue 2, April 2012

This issue highlights activities of CERT programs across the eastern United States. CERT programs in this part of the country experience a wide range of disaster- floods, winter storms, tornadoes, hurricanes and more. The eastern states have over 636 registered CERT programs and this issue features stories from Georgia, New Jersey, New Hampshire, New York, North Carolina and Alabama.

CERT Newsletter – Volume 4 – Issue 1, December 2011

This exciting issue of the CERT National Newsletter features Giving CERT A Spanish Flavor, about CERT training for Spanish-speaking communities in Arizona, California and Texas. The CERT response to tornadoes in Gloucester County, VA, Walker County, AL and Joplin, MO shows how CERT members assisted communities who suffered devastating damage. Additioanlly there is a story on CERT members running the medical tent at a bike race provides a good example of CERT assisting with non-disaster public safety efforts. These articles and more showcase CERT members making an impact in their communities and providing help whenever and wherever needed.

CERT Newsletter – Volume 3 – Issue 4, June 2011

In this issue of the CERT National Newsletter, Volume 3, Issue 4, you will read about the creative and diverse ways CERT members serve their communities when they aren’t activated for emergency situations. Also featured in this issue is an article on the Pasadena Community College CERT’s full-scale ShakeOut exercise and the Denver CERT program’s success in building community partnerships. Last but not least, find out more about Georgetown University’s collaboration with other Washington, D.C. universities and colleges to provide CERT training.

CERT Newsletter – Volume 3 – Issue 3, January 2011

This is an exciting edition and features an informative story on Haiti CERT’s response to the devastating earthquake there a year ago. Also, be sure to read the stories on the rodeo in Guam that refreshes disaster readiness skills and how a “disability” is a special skill in disguise. Also learn how to promote CERT in your community and see what other programs are doing across the country.

CERT Newsletter – Volume 3 – Issue 2, October 2010

In this issue of the CERT National Newsletter, Volume 3, Issue 2, you will read about how a CERT in Haiti mobilized after the earthquake. Also, in this issue is a story of how the Charlottesville-UVA Albemarle County CERT responded to a snowstorm. You will also read about how the Hawaii CERT is preparing for a tsunami that could devastate the island state and how the Passaic Valley, NJ CERT responded to flooding.

CERT Newsletter – Volume 3 – Issue 1, April 2010

When a West Virginia teen uses his CERT training to save a life, people pay attention. That’s just one of the many stories featured in Volume 3, Issue 1 of the quarterly “CERT National Newsletter.” Read about CERT members who staffed local H1N1 clinics by assisting with crowd and traffic management, patient registration and other duties as needed at the clinics. Discover how local CERT programs across the country have grown significantly from 2005 to 2009 in our interviews with CERT Program Coordinators in five states. Read details of how CERT members activated due to a fire at an oil refinery in Puerto Rico. These features and many more are ready for you to read.

CERT Newsletter – Volume 2 – Issue 3, November 2009

In this issue of the CERT National Newsletter, Volume 2, Issue 3, you will read about how CERTs around the country are engaging in drills and exercises to maintain individual and team skills. From regional CERT Olympics in Texas, Oregon and Washington, to the AMGEN Tour of California bicycle race, to search and rescue exercises in Ohio and Virginia and more. CERTs around the country are finding innovative and interesting ways to train. The issue also features a request for CERTs to submit their own drills and exercises for inclusion in upcoming publications from the National CERT Program.

CERT Newsletter – Volume 2 – Issue 2, August 2009

In this issue of the CERT newsletter, Volume 2, Issue 2, you will read about the Hamden, CT CERT training on public safety officer rehabilitation and on-scene victim care. Another story “CERT Programs: Rural and Urban” describes the similarities CERT members receive in both locations and also the challenges both communities are faced with. The article on Teen CERT is a compilation of five individuals from across the country who conduct Teen CERT in their local communities.

CERT Newsletter – Volume 2 – Issue 1, April 2009

This issue of the quarterly “CERT National Newsletter” from the CERT National Program Office features an article on two CERT Coordinators – one with a well-established program and the other with a relatively new program – illustrating the differences and similarities in running their CERT programs, an article on Guam CERT conducting training to high school students and university students on the island and stories where CERT members have used their training to respond to disasters in their communities.

CERT Newsletter – Volume 1 – Issue 2, January 2009

The CERT National Program Office is pleased to issue Volume 1, Issue 2 of the quarterly “CERT National Newsletter.” This edition features articles on CERT Basic Training conducted in Mandarin, Campus CERT and other local CERT exercises, local CERTs’ work during Hurricanes Gustav and Ike in Lousiana and CERTs in action during the U. S. Olympic track and field trials, as well as stories on CERT training initiatives taking place across the country.

CERT Newsletter – Volume 1 – Issue 1, September, 2008

This issue includes greetings from FEMA Administrator Paulison, articles on the CERT partnership with Meals On Wheels and on CERT exercises and training around the country and news on updates to the CERT training materials, as well as information on how to submit stories for publication in the newsletter.

Last Updated:

03/27/2013 – 16:32

The Citizen Corps website and CERT web page have relocated to new homes. FEMA has consolidated all of its online content, including content currently on the Citizen Corps website, into two websites: FEMA.gov and Ready.gov. In addition to reducing costs, this website migration provides an opportunity to increase the visibility of our programs to an entirely new audience and to recruit new volunteers. The new website locations also give you easy access to more resources than ever and an updated look and feel for online content.

Now when you try visiting the original Citizen Corps website, you should be automatically redirected to the new page at www.ready.gov/citizen-corps. Likewise, if you try visiting the original CERT website, you should be automatically redirected to its new page at www.fema.gov/community-emergency-response-teams.

The new web pages should have all of the functions of the original Citizen Corps and CERT websites, including program registration and profile updates. We also intend to build out State-specific pages to drive more traffic to the State websites. If anything is missing or does not work properly, please do not hesitate to reach out to us at citizencorps@fema.dhs.gov.

Be sure to check out the new Citizen Corps and CERT web pages today for the latest program news and updates!

NY Times

December 24, 2012

4 Firefighters Shot, 2 Fatally, in New York; Gunman Dead

By LIZ ROBBINS and N. R. KLEINFIELD

WEBSTER, N.Y. — “It was a simple call to put out a car fire……. The fire truck hurtled to the assignment early Monday in this drowsy town on the shores of Lake Ontario…….

But it apparently was a trap…….. There were a house and a car burning. There was also a waiting killer, who had stationed himself like a sniper on a berm above the firefighters.

Before they could begin to extinguish the fire, the firefighters were met by a burst of gunfire. Four were hit……., and two died. An off-duty police officer……. who was on his way to work, was wounded when he and his car were hit by shrapnel…….”

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2012/11/26/thousands-bangladeshis-protest-after-factory-fire-that-killed-112/

Thousands of Bangladeshis protest after factory fire that killed 112

Published November 26, 2012

Associated Press

DHAKA, Bangladesh – “Thousands of Bangladeshi workers blocked the streets of a Dhaka suburb Monday, throwing stones at factories and smashing vehicles, as they demanded justice for 112 people killed in a garment-factory fire that highlighted how industry and government have failed to protect workers from unsafe conditions……..it was not the fire itself but the lack of safety measures in the eight-story building that made it so deadly……….

NY Times

November 25, 2012

Fatal Fire in Bangladesh Highlights the Dangers Facing Garment Workers

By VIKAS BAJAJ

MUMBAI, India — “More than 100 people died Saturday and Sunday in a fire at a garment factory outside Dhaka, Bangladesh, in one of the worst industrial tragedies in that country.

It took firefighters all night to put out the blaze at the factory……. and scores of workers were taken to hospitals for treatment of burns and smoke inhalation…………..

Bangladesh’s garment industry………has a notoriously poor fire safety record. Since 2006, more than 500 Bangladeshi workers have died in factory fires, according to Clean Clothes Campaign, an anti-sweatshop advocacy group in Amsterdam. Experts say many of the fires could have easily been avoided if the factories had taken the right precautions. Many factories are in cramped neighborhoods and have too few fire escapes, and they widely flout safety measures…………”

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