

Disaster Zone
The Readiness Lab
Disaster Zone is hosted by Eric Holdeman, an emergency manager with over 30 years of experience at the federal, state and local levels of government. Disaster Zone is a podcast that focuses on all facets of disasters; the before, during and after of events that are increasingly impacting communities around the world. Podcasts run between 35-45 minutes with a mix of guests covering a range of disasters and issues that flow from them.Story topics and suggestions for people to interview are welcomed. You can contact the host via email.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Jul 27, 2021 • 44min
21st Century Land Mobile Radio (LMR) Systems
Land Mobile Radio (LMR) systems remain the backbone of communications for first responders across the spectrum of agencies and disciplines. In this Disaster Zone Podcast Todd Perdieu, Vice President of Products and strategy with L3Harris provides information on how LMR systems function. He goes into more depth about the challenges of coordinating radio spectrum issues in the design of new systems. Lastly, he touches on the design and specifications for new handheld responder radios capable of functioning in an all-weather environment with both voice and data capabilities. One thing Eric Holdeman learned about was L3Harris’ experience with providing military communications equipment to the United States military services. This episode is sponsored by Bent Ear Solutions which offers comprehensive capabilities and deep industry knowledge necessary to help you solve the most complex issues of your organization. We advise public and private organizations on an all-inclusive approach to disaster preparedness that addresses governance, planning, operational procedures, technology implementation, training, and exercises in order to achieve a successful and sustainable program.Eric Holdeman is a professional emergency manager who is passionate about providing information that can help families, businesses & governments become better prepared for disasters of all types. Hear first hand expert insights from Eric on his Podcast, Blog & EricHoldeman.com. Please visit our sponsors!L3Harris Technologies' BeOn PPT App. Learn more about this amazing product here: www.l3harris.com Visit The Readiness Lab and learn about our Next Level Emergency Management training! https://www.thereadinesslab.com/Impulse: Bleeding Control Kits by professionals for professionals: www.dobermanemg.com/impulseDoberman Emergency Management Group provides subject matter experts in planning and training: www.dobermanemg.comCheck out how you can use digital twins in your training, exercising, and planning using RSET https://rset.com/ For sponsorship requests, check out our Sponsorship Portfolio here or email us at contact@thereadinesslab.com

Jul 20, 2021 • 37min
Building for Disaster Resilience
Building for disaster resilience requires a concerted effort to build disaster resilient buildings with new building materials and siting buildings in the right location to limit the impact of natural hazards. Evan Reis, Executive Director for the US Resiliency Council shares how they are working to improve building codes and construction methods and processes. He also touches on how equity and social justice can be applied to the construction of disaster resistant buildings. The book Resilience—The Ultimate Sustainability is mentioned as a reference for you. Lastly, if you like this podcast you can hear more from Evan via a Webinar you can find at this link The Pathway to Resilience and Carbon Neutrality. Dynamis, a leading provider of information management software and security solutions, is a sponsor of this podcast.Eric Holdeman is a professional emergency manager who is passionate about providing information that can help families, businesses & governments become better prepared for disasters of all types. Hear first hand expert insights from Eric on his Podcast, Blog & EricHoldeman.com. Please visit our sponsors!L3Harris Technologies' BeOn PPT App. Learn more about this amazing product here: www.l3harris.com Visit The Readiness Lab and learn about our Next Level Emergency Management training! https://www.thereadinesslab.com/Impulse: Bleeding Control Kits by professionals for professionals: www.dobermanemg.com/impulseDoberman Emergency Management Group provides subject matter experts in planning and training: www.dobermanemg.comCheck out how you can use digital twins in your training, exercising, and planning using RSET https://rset.com/ For sponsorship requests, check out our Sponsorship Portfolio here or email us at contact@thereadinesslab.com

Jul 13, 2021 • 39min
Media’s Use of Drones
One segment of our community that is using drones more and more includes the television media. This podcast is an interview with Greg Thies, News Operations Manager at King Television in Seattle, a NBC affiliate. In this podcast we learn about what the safety and operational protocols are in use to provide the safe operation of drones by the media. There is also information on how they approach working with first responders when they arrive on a disaster site. The working relationship between media and the broader emergency management community can always be improved by communicating about what each organization is looking to achieve. This episode is sponsored by The Blue Cell, a by design crisis and consequence management consulting firm with a primary focus on education and training for government at all levels, non governmental agencies and private sector entities engaged in incident and emergency management activities.Eric Holdeman is a professional emergency manager who is passionate about providing information that can help families, businesses & governments become better prepared for disasters of all types. Hear first hand expert insights from Eric on his Podcast, Blog & EricHoldeman.com. Please visit our sponsors!L3Harris Technologies' BeOn PPT App. Learn more about this amazing product here: www.l3harris.com Visit The Readiness Lab and learn about our Next Level Emergency Management training! https://www.thereadinesslab.com/Impulse: Bleeding Control Kits by professionals for professionals: www.dobermanemg.com/impulseDoberman Emergency Management Group provides subject matter experts in planning and training: www.dobermanemg.comCheck out how you can use digital twins in your training, exercising, and planning using RSET https://rset.com/ For sponsorship requests, check out our Sponsorship Portfolio here or email us at contact@thereadinesslab.com

Jul 6, 2021 • 44min
New Cellular Service Opportunities for First Responders
T-Mobile is now the second largest wireless carrier in the United States. Their recent merger with Sprint has given them some significant advantages in coverage and emergency and disaster capabilities. This interview is with Craig Martinez, a public safety advisor to T-Mobile with a long background in law enforcement. In the interview we discuss the many strong attributes that T-Mobile now has to support first responder agencies, police and fire—including being able to provide free cellular service in some instances, based on the wireless plan selected. This podcast is sponsored by T-Mobile for Government, providing innovative connectivity solutions that help government better serve citizens by enabling agencies to work more intelligently, efficiently, and securely. Their mobile device management solutions help safeguard sensitive data and their network is ideal for unlocking game-changing loT technology. T-Mobile provides 24x7x365 support, so they are ready to help you when communications are critical. It all starts with America’s largest, fastest, and now according to a third-party rating service umlaut, it is the most reliable 5G network, as well as the tools that help you take advantage of 5G. T-Mobile offers an amazing customer experience and outstanding value—with no tradeoffs. They have the most reliable 5G according to umlaut based on crowdsourced user experience data (Sept 2020 to Feb 2021). They also have the fastest 5G according to Opensignal Awards based on average speeds (USA: 5G User Experience Report April 2021). See 5G device, coverage, & access details at T-Mobile.com. Eric Holdeman is a professional emergency manager who is passionate about providing information that can help families, businesses & governments become better prepared for disasters of all types. Hear first hand expert insights from Eric on his Podcast, Blog & EricHoldeman.com. Please visit our sponsors!L3Harris Technologies' BeOn PPT App. Learn more about this amazing product here: www.l3harris.com Visit The Readiness Lab and learn about our Next Level Emergency Management training! https://www.thereadinesslab.com/Impulse: Bleeding Control Kits by professionals for professionals: www.dobermanemg.com/impulseDoberman Emergency Management Group provides subject matter experts in planning and training: www.dobermanemg.comCheck out how you can use digital twins in your training, exercising, and planning using RSET https://rset.com/ For sponsorship requests, check out our Sponsorship Portfolio here or email us at contact@thereadinesslab.com

Jun 29, 2021 • 51min
Emergency Management at the 3rd Busiest Airport in the World
Los Angeles World Airports, which includes LAX is the 3rd busiest airport in the world by passenger volume. In this podcast I interview Justin Pierce who is the Emergency Management Director there. We talk about the challenges and opportunities he faces with such a large enterprise system. Besides going into the details of his emergency management program we also discuss the future of the emergency management profession to include NextGen Emergency Managers. This episode is sponsored by Bent Ear Solutions which offers comprehensive capabilities and deep industry knowledge necessary to help you solve the most complex issues of your organization. We advise public and private organizations on an all-inclusive approach to disaster preparedness that addresses governance, planning, operational procedures, technology implementation, training, and exercises in order to achieve a successful and sustainable program.Eric Holdeman is a professional emergency manager who is passionate about providing information that can help families, businesses & governments become better prepared for disasters of all types. Hear first hand expert insights from Eric on his Podcast, Blog & EricHoldeman.com. Please visit our sponsors!L3Harris Technologies' BeOn PPT App. Learn more about this amazing product here: www.l3harris.com Visit The Readiness Lab and learn about our Next Level Emergency Management training! https://www.thereadinesslab.com/Impulse: Bleeding Control Kits by professionals for professionals: www.dobermanemg.com/impulseDoberman Emergency Management Group provides subject matter experts in planning and training: www.dobermanemg.comCheck out how you can use digital twins in your training, exercising, and planning using RSET https://rset.com/ For sponsorship requests, check out our Sponsorship Portfolio here or email us at contact@thereadinesslab.com

Jun 22, 2021 • 36min
Adapting to Climate Change
While climate change and disasters are mentioned frequently in the popular media, most of the information being shared is about climate mitigation that has to do with reducing the amount of carbon being emitted into the atmosphere. There is little discussion of climate adaptation. This podcast looks specifically at adaption as a strategy that can be implemented now and can provide immediate results to reduce climate related damages. George Haddow, Senior Advisor with Adaptation Leader is the guest.This podcast is sponsored by T-Mobile for Government, providing innovative connectivity solutions that help government better serve citizens by enabling agencies to work more intelligently, efficiently, and securely. Their mobile device management solutions help safeguard sensitive data and their network is ideal for unlocking game-changing loT technology. T-Mobile provides 24x7x365 support, so they are ready to help you when communications are critical. It all starts with America’s largest, fastest, and now according to a third-party rating service umlaut, it is the most reliable 5G network, as well as the tools that help you take advantage of 5G. T-Mobile offers an amazing customer experience and outstanding value—with no tradeoffs. They have the most reliable 5G according to umlaut based on crowdsourced user experience data (Sept 2020 to Feb 2021). They also have the fastest 5G according to Opensignal Awards based on average speeds (USA: 5G User Experience Report April 2021). See 5G device, coverage, & access details at T-Mobile.com.Eric Holdeman is a professional emergency manager who is passionate about providing information that can help families, businesses & governments become better prepared for disasters of all types. Hear first hand expert insights from Eric on his Podcast, Blog & EricHoldeman.com. Please visit our sponsors!L3Harris Technologies' BeOn PPT App. Learn more about this amazing product here: www.l3harris.com Visit The Readiness Lab and learn about our Next Level Emergency Management training! https://www.thereadinesslab.com/Impulse: Bleeding Control Kits by professionals for professionals: www.dobermanemg.com/impulseDoberman Emergency Management Group provides subject matter experts in planning and training: www.dobermanemg.comCheck out how you can use digital twins in your training, exercising, and planning using RSET https://rset.com/ For sponsorship requests, check out our Sponsorship Portfolio here or email us at contact@thereadinesslab.com

Jun 15, 2021 • 49min
Women in Emergency Management
There are more and more women entering the profession of emergency management or thinking about a career in this field. This podcast is an interview with Curry Mayer, Director, City of Seattle’s Office of Emergency Management. Curry has worked in both California and in Washington State as an emergency manager and also worked as a consultant. In this interview we talk about the opportunities and challenges that come with the profession and also how women can make a difference working in this field of endeavor. There are more and more opportunities for women to excel in the field of emergency management as shown by Deanne Criswell being the first Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Administrator. This episode is sponsored by The Blue Cell, a by design crisis and consequence management consulting firm with a primary focus on education and training for government at all levels, non governmental agencies and private sector entities engaged in incident and emergency management activities.Eric Holdeman is a professional emergency manager who is passionate about providing information that can help families, businesses & governments become better prepared for disasters of all types. Hear first hand expert insights from Eric on his Podcast, Blog & EricHoldeman.com. Please visit our sponsors!L3Harris Technologies' BeOn PPT App. Learn more about this amazing product here: www.l3harris.com Visit The Readiness Lab and learn about our Next Level Emergency Management training! https://www.thereadinesslab.com/Impulse: Bleeding Control Kits by professionals for professionals: www.dobermanemg.com/impulseDoberman Emergency Management Group provides subject matter experts in planning and training: www.dobermanemg.comCheck out how you can use digital twins in your training, exercising, and planning using RSET https://rset.com/ For sponsorship requests, check out our Sponsorship Portfolio here or email us at contact@thereadinesslab.com

Jun 8, 2021 • 44min
Earthquake Risks in Western Washington
There are earthquake risks in about every corner of the United States. This podcast looks at earthquakes in Western Washington State. Bill Steele, Director of Communications and Outreach at University of Washington, Pacific Northwest Seismic Network is interviewed. In addition to talking about plate tectonics and the three different types of earthquakes the region is subject to, there is a discussion about the most recent work to institute a ShakeAlert System here in Washington State.Dynamis, a leading provider of information management software and security solutions, is a sponsor of this podcast.Eric Holdeman is a professional emergency manager who is passionate about providing information that can help families, businesses & governments become better prepared for disasters of all types. Hear first hand expert insights from Eric on his Podcast, Blog & EricHoldeman.com. Please visit our sponsors!L3Harris Technologies' BeOn PPT App. Learn more about this amazing product here: www.l3harris.com Visit The Readiness Lab and learn about our Next Level Emergency Management training! https://www.thereadinesslab.com/Impulse: Bleeding Control Kits by professionals for professionals: www.dobermanemg.com/impulseDoberman Emergency Management Group provides subject matter experts in planning and training: www.dobermanemg.comCheck out how you can use digital twins in your training, exercising, and planning using RSET https://rset.com/ For sponsorship requests, check out our Sponsorship Portfolio here or email us at contact@thereadinesslab.com

Jun 1, 2021 • 39min
A Policy Level Look at Emergency Management
Everyone has a boss. Emergency managers are no exception. Sometimes the position of emergency manager reports to a senior appointed official like the public works director or the fire chief. Others report directly to an elected official, mayor, fire chief or county commissioners. I was fortunate to work for a senior appointed official—a Deputy County Executive. This podcast is an interview with Paul Tanaka, my former boss. In this episode I probe Paul, who is retired now, for information about how he viewed emergency management as a function and what the relationship should be between an emergency manager and his direct supervisor. I also asked Mr. Tanaka about people who think that being an emergency management director brought with it certain political risks for their employment that they are concerned about. This episode is sponsored by Bent Ear Solutions which offers comprehensive capabilities and deep industry knowledge necessary to help you solve the most complex issues of your organization. We advise public and private organizations on an all-inclusive approach to disaster preparedness that addresses governance, planning, operational procedures, technology implementation, training, and exercises in order to achieve a successful and sustainable program.Eric Holdeman is a professional emergency manager who is passionate about providing information that can help families, businesses & governments become better prepared for disasters of all types. Hear first hand expert insights from Eric on his Podcast, Blog & EricHoldeman.com. Please visit our sponsors!L3Harris Technologies' BeOn PPT App. Learn more about this amazing product here: www.l3harris.com Visit The Readiness Lab and learn about our Next Level Emergency Management training! https://www.thereadinesslab.com/Impulse: Bleeding Control Kits by professionals for professionals: www.dobermanemg.com/impulseDoberman Emergency Management Group provides subject matter experts in planning and training: www.dobermanemg.comCheck out how you can use digital twins in your training, exercising, and planning using RSET https://rset.com/ For sponsorship requests, check out our Sponsorship Portfolio here or email us at contact@thereadinesslab.com

May 25, 2021 • 37min
Feeding America
Food insecurity is a huge issue in the United States, and it got worst during the coronavirus pandemic. One organization at the center of coordinating and providing food to people who need it is Feeding America. This podcast is an interview with Vince Davis, Director of Disasters Services for Feeding America. In our conversation we discuss their role in providing support to day-to-day food bank operations throughout the United States. Then, we also go into the role the organization plays in disasters. The coordination that is needed by governments with state and local food banks is something that Vince emphasizes. The goal is to have these relationships in place before there is a disaster.This episode is sponsored by The Blue Cell, a by design crisis and consequence management consulting firm with a primary focus on education and training for government at all levels, non governmental agencies and private sector entities engaged in incident and emergency management activities.Eric Holdeman is a professional emergency manager who is passionate about providing information that can help families, businesses & governments become better prepared for disasters of all types. Hear first hand expert insights from Eric on his Podcast, Blog & EricHoldeman.com. Please visit our sponsors!L3Harris Technologies' BeOn PPT App. Learn more about this amazing product here: www.l3harris.com Visit The Readiness Lab and learn about our Next Level Emergency Management training! https://www.thereadinesslab.com/Impulse: Bleeding Control Kits by professionals for professionals: www.dobermanemg.com/impulseDoberman Emergency Management Group provides subject matter experts in planning and training: www.dobermanemg.comCheck out how you can use digital twins in your training, exercising, and planning using RSET https://rset.com/ For sponsorship requests, check out our Sponsorship Portfolio here or email us at contact@thereadinesslab.com


