# Presentation: 193734

## Slide 1

**Notes:**
U. S. Flag

## HAZ

**HAZ**

***Collect***

**speeding emergency messages to the public**

**National Weather Service**

- 30 September 2005                          Updated 20 September 2006

**Notes:**
Introduction:
HAZCollect is a system being developed by the National Weather Service (NWS) in partnership with the Department of Homeland.  HAZCollect, through voluntary participation, allows emergency management agencies and others to generate messages for automated distribution through all NWS communication channels including the readily available and ubiquitous NOAA Weather Radio All Hazards.  This presentation is an introductory overview of HAZCollect.

## HAZ

***Collect***

**All-Hazards Emergency Message Collection System**

**Purpose:  collect non-weather emergency messages (e.g. CEM, HMW, CAE) and enable wider distribution.**

**Notes:**
Purpose:
The purpose of the All-Hazards Emergency Message Collection System – or HAZCollect for short – is the collection of emergency messages generated by local incident information sources for relay to the public through communications channels used by the NWS daily. HAZCollect enables emergency service agencies (all levels local, state, Federal) access to the communication resources of the NWS.  In simple terms, a local emergency manager creates a Non-Weather Emergency Message (NWEM) on a computer and that message travels directly from the local source into and throughout the communication network of the NWS for immediate issuance and broadcast to the public.

## NWEM today:

** ****Non-standard**
** ****Slow & limited**
** ****Prone to errors**

**NWEM today:**

**Notes:**
Emergency Messages Today
HAZCollect differs from what is done today.  Many jurisdictions have procedures in place to create and distribute critical emergency messages, but these can be characterized as:
	manual, often involving voice to text transcription
	different from place to place
	slow with many distribution channels not used
	subject to errors of all kinds, and
	often not as secure as desired.

## NWEM with HAZCollect:

**Standard process**
**Speedy**
**Errors eliminated**
**Greater distribution of critical information**

**NWEM with HAZ*****Collect*****:**

**Notes:**
Emergency Messages Using HAZCollect
Under HAZCollect, the process is streamlined for participating jurisdictions through the use of existing software and hardware and speedy computer communications.  Errors are virtually non-existent by eliminating manual steps currently employed.  Message sources are authenticated for secure transmission.  Messages from a local jurisdiction benefit by gaining full access to all of the communication channels in daily use by the NWS including NOAA Weather Radio, NOAA Weather Wire Service, Family of Services, and EMWIN and ultimately through private and commercial vendors.

## HAZ

***Collect***

**Message Posted via DMIS**

**Message in  HAZ*****Collect***

**Message thru NWS**

**Broadcast over ALL NWS comms**

**Message Prepared**

**Notes:**
HAZCollect operational flow diagram.
HAZCollect begins when a local emergency occurs.  Local emergencies occur everyday, but if an emergency is of sufficient magnitude, an emergency manager may need to notify the media and the public.  These messages include specific actions necessary to reduce the impact of the emergency such as evacuation orders or instructions for sheltering in place.
The local EMA (emergency management agency) prepares a message using their own words and their specific knowledge of the local area and the incident, typically on a personal computer (PC). The information is posted (sent) to the DMIS server where it is authenticated and sent to the HAZCollect server for authorization of geographic area.  At the HAZCollect server, the message is also reformatted for distribution through the NWS dissemination systems.
Once the message moves through these communication channels, it is disseminated via such well known and well used methods as NOAA Weather Radio, NOAA Weather Wire Service, EMWIN, Internet web pages, cell phones, pagers, facsimiles, etc.  NWS messages also travel through the communication networks of private and commercial vendors enabling the widest distribution of the emergency message possible.

## HAZ

***Collect***

**EM Requirements:**
**	****DMIS Registration**
**	****Software (DMIS/COTS/GOTS)**
**	****Hardware (PC)**
**	****Internet Access**
**	****HAZ*****Collect***** Registration**

**Notes:**
HAZCollect Requirements for the EM
To use HAZCollect NWEM (Non-Weather Emergency Message) entry tool in DMIS, local EMAs are required to register for participation in DMIS.  Once an EMA is approved for DMIS, software is available that includes a toolkit for preparing and posting non-weather emergency messages.  All of this is done without additional cost to the emergency manager.
DMIS participation does not require exclusive use of the DMIS toolkit.  An EMA office using other commercial or government off-the-shelf (COTS/GOTS) incident management software will still be able to use that software as long as it is CAP-enabled and interfaced with the Disaster Management Open Platform for Emergency Networks, DM-OPEN.  More on that in a moment.
DMIS and HAZCollect rely on computers software for message preparation, so an EMA office must have a personal computer or, for some applications a compatible handheld.  Almost any PC with a Pentium processor and 260MB free disk space acquired within the last several years is adequate to run DMIS.  A PC dedicated to this function is not required, so the software can run on any available PC in an EMA office.
To post a message, an EMA office must have Internet access through a connection whether that be dial-up or high speed broadband such as DSL or cable modem.

## HAZ

***Collect***

**Commercial**
**Software at EOC**

**DMIS Toolkit At EOC**

**Central Services**
**---   ****DMIS   ****---**
**OPEN**

**HAZ*****Collect***

**EM Options:**

**Notes:**
EM Options:
An emergency manager will have options available to utilize HAZCollect.  
Option 1:  An EOC is not presently using a commercially available software package.  Such an EOC can make use of DMIS and the toolkits available in it.  This is available from DHS.  This option will be available upon release of a new version of the desktop client software in the fall and winter of 2006-2007.
Option 2:  An EMA office is currently using a commercially available emergency management software such as Blue 292, EMnet, E Team, WebEOC, or others.  Such software can be used as long as the software vendor takes the necessary steps to insure full interoperability with DM-OPEN and HAZCollect.  This option is not expected to be available until early 2007.

Most if not all of the commercially available software will feature future upgrades that will include the necessary programming for communicating with DM-OPEN and ultimately HAZCollect.  This means that EMA offices will be able to use their existing software and not deploy additional systems, except as redundant backup capability;  they will not have to learn new software;  and they will not be required to type critical emergency messages twice in order to benefit from HAZCollect.

## HAZ

***Collect***

**Software requirements:**
**	****CAP-enabled**
**	****Include CAP optional fields**
**	****Interface with DM-OPEN**

**Notes:**
Software requirements:
Commercially available software will need to meet specific requirements in order to work with the HAZCollect system.  Most commercial vendors are working to include these features in their software.  Specifically, it is important that what ever software is used, it must include the following:
	CAP-enabled – this means that the software must conform to the Common Alerting Protocol – CAP – that allows full exchange of information using an accepted industry standard.
	Include CAP optional fields – this means that some fields considered optional in CAP must be included in order to work fully within HAZCollect.
	Interface with DM-OPEN – commercial software must be able to interface with Disaster Management’s Open Platform for Emergency Networks, or DM-OPEN.  This is where authentication occurs and permits an EM office to enter a message into the system - something of a gatekeeper.

## HAZ

***Collect***

**Why use DMIS and DM-OPEN?**
**	****Existing platform**
**	****Authentication**
**	****Standard protocol**

**Notes:**
DMIS- Why?
DMIS and DM-OPEN are existing platforms through which access to  HAZCollect is achieved.  There is no need to re-invent the wheel.  System security and user authentication is addressed through DMIS registration and other security processes.  If false messages were to be distributed, confidence would be undermined resulting in inadequate response in life-threatening situations.
DMIS also uses a widely accepted industry standard protocol (CAP) to exchange the message with other systems and enable the HAZCollect server to properly format messages for insertion and transmission across NWS communication channels.

## HAZ

***Collect***

**NWS-wide Distribution:**
**	****NOAA Weather Radio**
**	****Weather Wire/EMWIN**
**	****EAS Availability**

**An emergency message takes 7 minutes to process today.  With HAZ*****Collect***** that time is reduced to 2 minutes.**

**Notes:**
HAZCollect Results
The end result of this process is the rapid distribution of local emergency messages throughout the NWS and over all of the various distribution channels to the people who need and ultimately act on the information.  Once the message enters the system, it travels electronically, unimpeded, directly to end users in the local community.  This includes all NWS communication distribution methods such as NOAA Weather Radio All Hazards as well as private and commercial vendors that distribute messages received from the NWS.  Use of SAME (Specific Area Message Coding) protocol on NWR will make the NWEMs available for broadcast according to local EAS plans.   Emergency messages are speeding to the people most impacted.
It is estimated that using today’s manual procedures, processing emergency messages averages about 7 minutes.  Using HAZCollect, we estimate this process can be reduced to 2 minutes.  Imagine the impact those 5 minutes can have on lives in your community in a major catastrophe.

## HAZ

**	****DT&E I –  June 2005**
**	****DT&E II –  August 05 - March 2006**
**	****OAT –  June - July  2006**
**	****Follow-on OAT –  Oct - Nov 2006**
**	****Operational – Winter 2006-2007**
**	**

**HAZ**

***Collect***

**Notes:**
 HAZCollect Timetable
 HAZCollect is in final testing and expected to be available operationally in Winter 2006-2007.  DMIS registration can be done now or any time before registering for HAZCollect.  The DMIS software version that includes the HAZCollect toolkit is being released by DHS in the Fall of 2006, but the HAZCollect tool will be disabled until the functionality is available and your individual COG is registered for HazCollect. 

Other important milestones include:
Demonstration Test and Evaluation, Phase I, successfully completed in June 2005.
Demonstration Test and Evaluation, Phase II, Part 1, was completed in March 2006.
Operational Acceptance Test in June and July uncovered a few problems for which software fixes will be tested in a follow-on OAT in October and November. 
HAZCollect registration is expected to begin before the end of 2006 before national availability of HazCollect in Winter 2006-2007.

If you are interested in participating in HAZCollect, you may, and probably should, register now for DMIS.  By becoming a DMIS user now, you may begin using DMIS for other purposes or at least be familiar with the use of it when the time comes to register for HAZCollect.

## NWEM Guidelines	

- NWEMS are NWR-SAME & EAS alert messages
- Corrections issued using original message event code
- Followups and cancellations issued as ADR event code
- No abbreviations or acronyms
- KISS – Keep it Short and Simple
- Short sentences;  Usually no more than 15 lines of text
- Aim for 60 seconds or less, but no more than 2 Minutes
- News Style Writing – Inverted Pyramid
- LEAD sentence to summarize main thought of message
- The MAIN FACTS support the lead
- OTHER IMPORTANT FACTS – may not be needed
- EXPLANATION AND DETAILS – In warnings, this is the “how to protect?”,  appropriate protective actions,       and “who and how to contact?”

**Notes:**

NWEMs meet NWR-SAME and EAS requirements
Corrections issued using original alert message event code
Followups and cancellations issued as ADR event code
KISS – Keep it Short and Simple
Short sentences;  average of 20 words; no longer than 30 words.
Usually no more than 15 lines of text.
Aim for a message 60 seconds or less, but no more than 2 Minutes maximum allowed by EAS.
News Style Writing – Inverted Pyramid
The LEAD sentence is a complete sentence to summarize main thought of message. 
	It answers:  WHAT?  WHERE?  And WHEN?
		(Not necessarily in that order.)
	The LEAD is an attention-getter, not a headline.
The MAIN FACTS support the lead.
	The basis of the warning must be clear.
OTHER IMPORTANT FACTS used to expand the main facts.
	May not be needed in a warning.
EXPLANATION AND DETAILS – Why? Or How? 
	In warnings, this is the “How to protect?”  Appropriate protective actions or Call-To-Action statements, and “who and how to contact?” for more information.

## Q & A

**Time**

**HAZ**

***Collect***

**References:**

**NWS****	**_[weather.gov/os/hazcollect](http://www.nws.noaa.gov/hazcollect)_
**DMIS****	**_[www.dmi-services.org](http://www.dmi-services.org/)_** **
**DHS****	**_[www.dhs.gov](http://www.dhs.gov/)_

**Notes:**
References:
Here are some URLs that provide additional resources for information on HAZCollect and areas related to HAZCollect.  Many of these web resources include additional links to other resources.

Q & A
This has been a brief overview of the essential parts and operation of HAZCollect.  This is an exciting program that will play an important role in adding to the safety and well-being of every American citizen.  

## Slide 15

**Notes:**
U. S. Flag