Frequently Asked Questions
How do I make a family disaster plan? When should I do this?
What should I do as an owner of a small business if a disaster strikes?
How do I become a member of CERT -- community emergency response teams?
How do I become a member of SERT -- The State Emergency Response Team?
How is a Joint Field Office (JFO) coordinated?
How do you become a staff member of a JFO?
How can one get on Florida Division of Emergency Management’s vendors list?
How do I become part of the Reservist program?
Who do I speak with about Volunteering?
Who can help me with Mobile Home Tie downs?
How do I apply for employment with the Florida Division of Emergency Management?
Who do I contact regarding tier II reporting?
Who do I contact for information on mailing SERC payments?
Who do I contact about training information?
Where do I go to find shelters for special needs in my area?
Who do I contact about price gouging?
How do I found out about Hurricane evacuation zones in my area?
How do I found out about flood zones in my area?
What is the contact number for FEMA?
Who do I contact regarding building code questions, or Housing and Community Development (HCD)?
Who do I contact regarding the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP)?
What happens if I lose/forget my password to access my Disaster Plan?
Will the Florida Division of Emergency Management trade links with businesses or individuals?
How do I make a family disaster plan? When should I do this?
Go to www.floridadisaster.org. This will help you prepare you and your family for future disasters. If you have not made your family plan, now is the time to make one. The sooner you have your plan in place, the better position you and your family will be in to ride out a disaster.
What is the policy for the use of the Division's photography, audio/visual recordings, and/or written material?
Please review the conditions for use of all DEM material.
What should I do as an owner of a small business if a disaster strikes?
You should create a Business Disaster Plan by going to www.floridadisaster.org. This will help you coordinate and provide a business plan for a disaster. If you do not have one, now is the time to make a plan.
How do I become a member of CERT -- community emergency response teams?
Floridians who are interested in becoming a member of a CERT team can find information on teams and Citizen Corps councils in their local area and sign up to serve. Visit the Citizen Corps webpage to learn more about becoming a member.
How do I become a member of SERT -- The State Emergency Response Team?
To become a member of the State Emergency Response Team, you need to become an employee with the State of Florida. You can look for positions with the Florida Division of Emergency Management through People First.
How is a Joint Field Office (JFO) coordinated?
The Joint Field Office provides a central location for coordination of federal, state, local, tribal, non-governmental and private sector organizations with primary responsibility for activities associated with threat response and incident support. Although planning may occur earlier, the Joint Field Office is not established until a Presidential Declaration is signed. The establishment of the Joint Field Office is primarily a Federal Emergency Management Agency responsibility but is accomplished in coordination with the state. Preparation for opening a Joint Field Office begins when it appears that an emergency event will reach disaster proportions and the Governor requests a Presidential Emergency or Disaster Declaration.
How do you become a staff member of a JFO?
Given the activities and responsibilities assigned to the JFO, the appropriate personnel must be assigned to support the structure. All personnel reporting to the JFO, including those in leadership positions must:
- Be capable of successfully completing a minimal security background check.
- Understand and execute NIMS and NRP principles. Certification of this requirement is through the mandatory completion of the following Independent Study courses offered on the FEMA Emergency Management Institute web page (IS-100, IS-200, IS- 700 and IS-800 (or agency equivalent training on the NIMS and NRP)). Members are also encouraged to complete IS-300, IS-400, and any additional ICS position-specific training.
- Departments or agencies supplying representatives to the JFO must certify to DHS that their personnel have complied with the requisite NIMS and NRP training.
- JFO personnel must be familiar with Annex F of the JFO SOP (Security Procedures) as well as information related to information security.
- Individuals assigned to JFO leadership or staff positions may be required to work long hours under stressful, unfavorable, strenuous and non-sedentary conditions. These conditions may include adverse weather conditions, exposure to the elements, limited food, water supplies and shelter options. DHS/FEMA will establish a certification process that will allow agencies to pre-certify individuals to the extent possible, with an additional procedure to allow certifications to be provided during an incident if needed. For agencies that provide agency-specific training on the NRP and NIMS, DHS/FEMA Joint Field Office Field Operations Guide UNCLASSIFIED 2-3
When should I put up hurricane shutters? What do I do when my homeowners association restricts us from having them put up at certain times?
When you hear a hurricane is headed in your direction, it is time to put up the hurricane shutters. When dealing with home owners restrictions, you can prepare by having a plan for someone to come and put up your hurricane shutters and secure your home in the event of a hurricane storm. Get in touch with your homeowner association to learn more about securing your home for storms. The best plan is to be prepared, make your arrangements before a storm happens. For more information about hurricane shutters, visit http://www.aoml.noaa.gov/hrd/shutters/index1.html
How can one get on Florida Division of Emergency Management’s vendors list?
You can register at http://dms.myflorida.com/egovernment_tools/myflorida_marketplace.Once registered you may participate in the State Competitive Bid System by linking to this web page. If you have any problems or questions during the registration process, please contact the My Florida MarketPlace Customer Service Desk at 866-352-3776 or via email at VendorHelp@myfloridamarketplace.com.
How do I become part of the Reservist program?
Go to FloridaDisaster.org, do a search for Disaster Reservist, fill out application. If you have any questions during/after application process, please contact joseph.borras@em.myflorida.com
Who do I speak with about Volunteering?
Alex Amparo at alex@volunteerflorida.org.
Who can help me with Mobile Home Tie downs?
Each year the Division of Emergency Management transfer $2.8 million from the Hurricane Loss Mitigation Program to Tallahassee Community College for the mobile home tie-down program. This program ensures that entire manufactured home communities and mobile home parks may be improved wherever practicable. The contact person for this program is Amy Bojackzy at 850 201-8525.
How do I apply for employment with the Florida Division of Emergency Management?
Go to https://peoplefirst.myflorida.com/logon.htm. Fill out a State of Florida application online. You can sort by the agency you are interested in working with, and then submit your application. We accept online applications only.
Who do I contact regarding tier II reporting?
850-413-9970 or 800-635-7179.
Who do I contact for information on mailing SERC payments?
Call 800-635-7179 for deadline information, then you can mail your payment to SERC, 2555 Shumard Oak Blvd., Tallahassee, Florida 32399 (Make sure you address the envelope to SERC).
Who do I contact about training information?
Chad Smith at chad.smith@em.myflorida.com.
Where do I go to find shelters for special needs in my area?
Go to: www.floridadisaster.org/disability/sheltering.html and click on General Population Shelters at the start of the second paragraph. Then click on the county of interest.
Who do I contact about price gouging?
1-866-NO-SCAM
How do I found out about Hurricane evacuation zones in my area?
Hurricane evacuation zones are based on regional evacuation studies. These studies are currently being updated with an expected completion date of 12/2009. Some time after that, we would expect to provide hurricane evacuation zone maps through our website. In the meantime, for the latest hurricane evacuation zone information for your county, please visit your county Emergency Management.
How do I found out about flood zones in my area?
Flood zones are geographic areas that FEMA has defined accordign to varying levels of flood risk. These zones are depicted on a community's Flood Insurance Rate Map. You may use your street addess to Find Your Flood Risk or visit FEMA's Map Service Center and enter your address to view your Flood Insurance Rate Map.
Who do I contact if a tree is close to my home, and could be a potential safety issue to my neighbors or myself?
With regards to any state or federal program that could offer assistance, unfortunately there are none at the Florida Division of Emergency Management. Since the trees could have a safety issue, please contact the local city and/or county public works departments to see if they may have such a program that could assist you. Many times, municipalities have “Nuisance & Abatement” ordinances that will give local governments authority to enter into private property to take the necessary measures to correct a safety or health problem.
What is the contact number for FEMA?
To file a claim, call 1-800-621-3362. For all other questions, please visit the website at www.fema.gov, or visit http://www.fema.gov/about/contact/regions.shtm for FEMA Regional contact numbers.
Who do I contact regarding building code questions, or Housing and Community Development (HCD)?
Contact the Department of Community Affairs at 850-922-9492..
Who do I contact regarding the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP)?
Contact Paige Johnson at paige.johnson@em.myflorida.com or Joy Duperault at joy.duperault@em.myflorida.com with the Bureau of Mitigation.
What is the policy for the use of DEM’s photography, maps, audio/visual recordings, and written material?
Please review the conditions for use of all DEM material.
What happens if I lose/forget my password to access my Disaster Plan?
If you forget your password to access your Disaster Plan, you can click on “Password Help”, and your password will be emailed to you. If you have changed your email address, and have forgotten your password, you can email florida.disaster@em.myflorida.com, include your previous email address, and we can reset your login and password.
Will the Florida Division of Emergency Management trade links with businesses or individuals?
No, we do not trade links, but you are free to link ours.
If you have any questions or suggestions to add, please contact us.
Updated:
September 8, 2009 10:45
