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Monday, 05 October 09 - 08:33 AM (GMT)
By Laura Shapland in Europa
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INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF EMERGENCY MANAGERS
IAEM-Europa asbl/vzw
Newsletter Belgium
3rd Quarter - 2009 - Vol. 1 - No. 1
Ed. L. ROMBOUT,
Nat. Rep. Belgium
Member of the Board of IAEM-Europa
Dear Belgian member of IAEM
You have just received our first Newsletter!
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A Turbulent Year
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The year has not finished yet, but we can - without any doubt - look back at a very positive and successful evolution for IAEM in Europe and in Belgium.
The pool of European members became legally independent earlier this year with the creation of an independent not-for-profit structure for IAEM-Europa. An asbl/vzw was created and IAEM selected Belgium as its place of residence, primarily because of the proximity of international institutions.
Membership in Belgium grew from 1 to a lot more and a similar trend is noticeable in various other countries. In addition members from new countries joined, some of them becoming national representative, thus enlarging the number of countries where we have activities. The latest to join in was Romania. As you probably now, the area of responsibility of IAEM-Europa is much larger than the European Union. We cover all countries from the Atlantic ocean up to the Russian border and the Middle East.
2009 was also the year of the kick off of a number research and education related activities. For example the establishment of student councils at several universities and MoUs which were signed with academic institutions.
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IAEM in Belgium
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Belgium will no doubt be for 2009 the country with the biggest growth figures in number of members throughout the Europa-zone.
Members come from all walks of life! We have members from the public sector at national and local level, high reliability organisation, industry, consultancy and academia.
The objective for 2010 will be to promote IAEM, hence to try to increase the number of members, but what is equally important to try to establish a programme of national activities and networking, to truly exploit the benefits IAEM can provide to its members.
S O M E O F T H E I N S T R U M E N T S F O R Y O U
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IAEM-list Digest
IAEM, and the various councils (of which Europa is one) have a web based forum and discussion list, with a daily digest.
If you have questions, comments or new initiatives you would like to share with your fellow-members throughout Europa or throughout the world, then the fora are the ideal instrument to find what you are looking for, to establish contact with international experts or to share your knowledge.
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The monthly IAEM-Bulletin
The IAEM bulletin is a monthly publication, available for members via download or via mail lists, which gives you the latest information on IAEM itself and valuable content from an array of international authors.
You too can send in articles. Just check www.iaem.com
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The IAEM website
IAEM has a global website, which still is for the majority of information the home page.
As a member you can register with login and password and have access to documents, contact data, symposia information, etcetera etcetera.
There is also the www.iaem-europa.eu website, which is our own Europa website. Here the contents to some extent depend on your contribution. Our webmaster is very keen on receiving your articles, invitations, exercise or event reports, and similar input.
Feel free to send in what you think is worthwhile for your fellow member. The Europa website has country specific tabs and is hence also suitable to share information with your countrymen.
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W E W A N T Y O U
We would of course like to have IAEM Belgium develop as a community of emergency planning/experts who know each other, and who can develop national or international initiatives.
Co-operation between academic members from universities to establish Student Councils, national or international workshops of seminars and real networking are but some examples.
So, we would call upon you to use IAEM as the forum to speak out yourself.
We hope you will send contributions for our quarterly newsletter or for the website.
What could that be:
Info about interesting seminars, symposia,
Invitations to exercises
Reports on exercises
New developments
Info you received about new legislation, standards development, best practices,
Everything can be sent to info@iaem.be
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News from Belgium
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Moniteur belge / Belgische Staatsblad
The further specify how to apply the Royal Decree of 16-feb-2006 the Ministry of the Interior has written a number of Omzendbrieven or Circulaires of which No. 2, 3 and 4 have recently been published in the official Belgian state bulletin. To find the full text: go to www.staatsblad.be and enter 'NPU'™ as search term in the search engine.
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Calendar
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IMPORTANT
The AGM (annual general meeting) planned for 21-22 October is postponed !
The AGM is postponed mainly due to a planning problem - see also the message from our chairman.
The proposed date is the same as the conference dates of IDER in Sweden, one of the events of the year for emergency management experts. A considerable number of our members will be at IDER and could therefore not participate in our AGM, thus we postpone until 2010.
We replace the AGM with something else:
since we would like to organize our first member-meeting for Belgium before the end of the year, we plan on having a meeting with a more limited scope in November, joint with the European Commissions Civil Protection forum.
Due to the recent decision to cancel the AGM, we are still planning for the November event and we will invite you with programme details via a separate e-mail.
The most likely date for this event will be 24 November in the afternoon.
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You can find IAEM-EUROPA at:
10 October 2009
RaCoLi Symposium [www.racoli.be]
asselt, Belgium
20-21 October 2009
International Disaster and Emergency R4 (IDER)
Karlstad, Sweden
21-25 October 2009
SARTISS Conference
Oradea, Romania
31-Oct > 06-November 2009
EMEX
Orlando, United States of America
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Also check
http://www.iaem.com/events/calendar/events.htm
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Membership issues
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A final word on the issue of membership renewal.
Some of you may be a bit confused on how to pay what and when for the 2010 membership.
Members who joined under the promotion action (second half of 2009), whereby you payed a reduced fee for a one-and-a half year membership should NOT renew their membership now, and are automatically member for 2010 also.
In case you have payed for 2010, there are two options: you ask for a refund, or we reserve the amount payed already for the 2011 membership. Be aware that if you ask for a refund, it might be that your bank withholds a significant portion of currency exchange costs if you have payed in USD.
Members who became member for 2009 only, should renew their membership.
And there is a bit of confusion, due to the recent creation of an independent Europa Council.
You may have received an e-mail from IAEM Global (Sharon Kelly) asking you to pay 80 USD into the US account.
Just ignore this e-mail. It is sent to all members worldwide, but is not longer valid for Europa members.
You will also have received an e-mail from our president Arthur Rabjohn, asking you to pay 56 EUR into the European account.
This is what you should do.
If you have problems with the membership renewal for 2010, please contact directly our Secretary of the Board, Mrs. Laura Shapland < l.shapland@gmx.co.uk>.
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If you do no longer wish to receive this newsletter, then please send an e-mail with the word NO-NEWSLETTER in the subject field to info@iaem.be
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Tuesday, 17 February 09 - 08:20 AM (GMT)
By Laura Shapland in IAEM
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BRUSSELS – A three-nation research effort into methods to detect and predict the spread of lethal bio-agents will turn in its results in mid-2009.
http://www.seceur.info/
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Tuesday, 17 February 09 - 08:17 AM (GMT)
By Laura Shapland in EU
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BRUSSELS – March will see the European Commission’s Civil Protection Unit release its first wave of calls-for-proposals in 2009, with no funding ceiling for individual projects in certain areas, according to officials.
http://www.seceur.info/
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Friday, 22 August 08 - 04:16 PM (GMT)
By Arthur Rabjohn in EU
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The European Union is providing on-the-ground support for some 100,000 civilians in the conflict-stricken zone in South Ossetia, an autonomous republic of Georgia, the European Commission said on Thursday.
Following a green light given by the European Union (EU)'s French presidency, EU assistance, through its Civil Protection Mechanism, is being sent via EU member states and coordinated by the European Commission's Monitoring and Information Center (MIC).
The civil protection assistance was in addition to the commission's humanitarian aid provided right after the start of the conflict in early August.
On Aug. 10, the commission released a 1-million-euro (1.47-million-U.S.-dollar) emergency humanitarian aid to meet the most vulnerable needs in the conflict zone. An additional humanitarian aid is foreseen, said the commission, the EU's executive arm.
Against the backdrop of the agreed Russian-Georgian cease-fire, the EU has provided assistance to Georgia to help its thousands of civilians in need of shelter, food and medicine, said the commission.
Georgia launched attacks in its breakaway region of South Ossetia on Aug. 8 in an attempt to regain control of the region that borders Russia.
Tbilisi's move triggered prompt reaction from Moscow, whose troops drove Georgian forces out of the region and took parts of Georgian territory.
The West, amid deteriorating ties with Moscow, has accused Russia of being slow in its troop withdrawal which is stipulated in a cease-fire agreement. Russia has said the pullout is to be completed by Friday.
Georgia requested civil protection assistance through the MIC, which is the central operating hub of the EU Civil Protection Mechanism linking the civil protection authorities of 30 participating European countries. The request has resulted in the substantial mobilization of technical assistance.
Most of the assistance mobilized through the Mechanism has already been delivered. The ongoing assistance includes shelter material, various relief items including dry food, medicine and emergency health supplies including 35,000 bandages and lung respirators and mobile fire-fighting equipment, according to the European Commission.
France has also pooled transport capacities with Austria and Slovakia and mobilized a joint European flight, it added.
Since Aug. 17, the MIC has set up an office in Tbilisi with a team of three experts from Denmark, France and Britain, as well as a liaison officer. The EU team is monitoring and facilitating the arrival and use of this European civil protection assistance
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Saturday, 16 August 08 - 10:22 AM (GMT)
By Arthur Rabjohn in EU
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Heavy flooding that hit Romania, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine prompted an immediate and efficient response from the part of the European Commission and member states, that provided – through the Community Civil Protection Mechanism - boats, pumps, electrical generators, water treatment units and emergency intervention equipment, reads a release from the community executive body.Although rain has stopped in Romania and the situation along the Tisza and Siret is improving, the flood situation along the Prut is worsening, shows the release issued on August 4.
In Romania, the death toll is five, about 100 houses are destroyed, more than 1,000 km of roads are damaged and 45 km of dams are destroyed.
Romania launched a call for electrical generators, levees and geotextile fabric. Austria, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Lithuania and Slovakia already set at its disposition 47 generators and Poland sent 15,000 sqm of geotextile fabric. The dispatch of other electrical generators from Switzerland was facilitated through the EU Monitoring and Information Center (MIC).
MIC expert teams were sent to Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova to assist with the coordination of flood-relief operations and asses damage, bus also coordinate and monitor the way EU aid is being used.
The Commission is prepared to take action if an international call for humanitarian aid is launched and is ready to proceed to a detailed appraisal of potential financial assistance for reconstruction, if the affected states request that.
Ukraine was the most severely affected by the flooding in the last weeks. According to estimates, high waters made some 15,000 victims along the Dniester and Prut and at least 30 were killed.
Apart from coordination and assessment missions, the EU also sent Ukraine boats, tents and sleeping bags made available by the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Estonia and Spain.
The Republic of Moldova was also seriously afflicted by swollen waters that tore 99 homes down and submerged another 882. Over 7,000 persons in 12 regions of the country were evacuated; several dams along the Dniester were completely destroyed. Just like in Ukraine’s case, the EU proved solidarity by sending pumps and electrical generators.
The Community Civil Protection Mechanism facilitates and supports the mobilization of the emergency services to meet the immediate needs of countries hit by disaster or at risk from one.
The Monitoring and Information Centre represents the operational heart of the EU civil protection mechanism, available 24/7, and providing countries in need access to the community civil protection platform. Any member state or from outside the Union can apply with MIC for assistance in the eventuality of natural calamities.
The Centre coordinates demand and offer of assistance in case of natural calamities and provides information about the preparedness stage of civil protection missions.
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Wednesday, 13 August 08 - 01:29 PM (GMT)
By Arthur Rabjohn in Georgia
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The European Community Civil protection mechanism has been activated at the request of the Georgian authorities for humanitarian assistance as a conflict triggered in South Ossetia. The UNHCR estimates between 10,000 and 20,000 people have been displaced within Georgia, including South Ossetia.
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Wednesday, 13 August 08 - 12:43 PM (GMT)
By Arthur Rabjohn in Ireland
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Hundred of homes were flooded in the Dublin area last night. The Dublin Fire Brigade said the worst affected areas were Finglas, Clontarf and Blanchardstown. Houses in the Griffith Avenue Area, Ballygall Cresent, Finglas, the Seapark area of Clontarf and Blanchardstown hospital were flooded.
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Wednesday, 13 August 08 - 12:39 PM (GMT)
By Arthur Rabjohn in Hungary
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The National Weather Service issued a second-degree heat alert on Tuesday, warning that the weather in the coming days would be exceptionally hot. The expert said that temperatures exceeding 25 degrees Celsius were expected for the next three days, which meant that 40 degrees or more could be measured in the sun. The heat-wave was likely to be over by the weekend, when thunderstorms, hailstorms and strong winds were expected. The highest, third-degree alert is issued when the average temperature is expected to be over 27 degrees Celsius for three days.
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Wednesday, 13 August 08 - 12:38 PM (GMT)
By Arthur Rabjohn in UK
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Much of Scotland was on flood alert last night as torrential downpours swept across the UK. The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) warned Scots to be prepared for the possibility of flooding today after forecasts of heavy rainfall. SEPA, which issued 10 flood watch alerts, advised that rainfall totals of up to 30mm were expected in some areas. The Borders, Fife, Edinburgh and the Lothians and west-central Scotland were expected to receive the highest rainfall.
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Tuesday, 12 August 08 - 01:07 PM (GMT)
By Arthur Rabjohn in Georgia
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The United Nations refugee agency or UNHCR said on Monday it was mounting an emergency airlift of relief supplies for those displaced in the South Ossetia conflict. The first airlift flight, carrying 20,000 blankets and other aid items, is scheduled to fly from UNHCR's central emergency stockpile in Dubai to Georgia overnight Monday, the Geneva-based agency said in a statement. A second flight is planned for Wednesday from Copenhagen -- another of the agency's central logistical hubs. Altogether, the two flights will carry humanitarian supplies for up to 30,000 people.
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