On October 1, 2018, a shooter from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay hotel opened fire upon a concert crowd fenced in a 15-acre open air lot. 1,100+ rounds were fired in a span of 10 minutes. 58 people died, excluding the shooter, 851 were injured of which 422 were gunshot wounds. 14 of…
58 people died and over 500 were injured during a music festival in Las Vegas on October 1st, 2017. A lone actor shot at festival goers from the Mandalay Bay Hotel room, a scenario even the most seasoned security experts couldn’t have predicted. In this episode we talk to a security advisor James DeMeo who…
Forty percent of businesses do not reopen after a disaster and another 25 percent fail within one year according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Having a more resilient community requires preparedness and that means work! In this interview with Michael Morlan of Two Rivers Emergency Management, we discussed some of the major concerns…
As painful as it is to replay in our minds the recent terror bombing in Manchester, crisis planners are obligated to study it. Two lessons jump out: Lesson 1: Outside perimeters, by definition, are not secure Without having to pass through any sort of security screening, terrorists view outside perimeters of buildings, auditoriums, stadiums, crowded…
Preparing your crisis management team is essential. Many personnel that make up a typical crisis team come from various functions of the company and have never been exposed to or had to manage crises during their careers. This podcasts uncovers some of the minimum requirements that a crisis team must have in place for them…
When you establish your crisis management capability, conduct crisis management exercises, or actually go through crises, what are the most common issues or gaps that are uncovered? Within this article, I define a few of the more common issues that we see when conducting simulation exercises within the corporate space as well as reviewing reports…
Communities are not just made up of homes and apartments. Many communities have businesses that provide jobs and other services to those communities. Major cities have businesses that are heavily integrated into their communities and so do some smaller cities and even towns. It’s imperative that businesses understand their communities and it is equally important…
As the fall out is being assessed from this year’s major wildland fires on the U.S. west coast and in the Canadian context, the most costly disaster in Canadian history “the Fort McMurray Fire” risk assessors and public policy analysts are re-considering our planning and preparedness models. Wildfire incidents in North America are increasing in…
Being able to prepare for, manage and recover from a crisis, is becoming a necessity for every organizations. As an incident starts to unfold, crisis team members need to act quickly to ensure they are in a position to manage the event in a cohesive manner. The pace and intensity of a crisis can be…
Being able to communicate during a crisis is essential for any organization. Understanding what to say and how to say it should be part of the crisis preparedness planning process. All stakeholders need to be addressed and your spokespersons should know what to say when the media request an interview. Have you ever considered being…