Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Private Sector Disaster Preparedness

The University of Pittsburgh is hosting a lecture today on disaster preparedness for businesses, nonprofits and other institutions.

Los Angeles Emergency Preparedness Foundation President Brent Woodworth is an organizer for several disaster responses such as the Oklahoma City Bombing of 1995, the September 11 World Trade Center attack, and Hurricane Katrina.

Woodworth says he hopes to share several ideas to improve Pittsburgh’s disaster resiliency, which includes increasing communication and cooperation between city government and private sector entities.

He says for example, although Starbucks usually charges for its wireless Internet service in Southern California, the company allows free access in times of emergency.

Technology is always improving, says Woodworth, and keeping up-to-date with communication systems is also very important for a disaster response.

The talk, titled “Metropolitan Regions at Risk: The Role and Responsibility of the Private Sector in Disaster Risk Reduction,” is scheduled for 3:00 p.m. at Pitt’s Posvar Hall.

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