The Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS) NREP Conference 2018 Pamela Holstein-Wallace Project Manager, IPAWS ipaws@fema.dhs.gov 1
How do you alert and warn the public about an emergency? Methods: Considerations: Social Media who s following you? how often do you post? how many likes/re-tweets/comments do your posts get? Telephone how current is your data base? what % of calls are answered by a person? Text Messages how current is your phone list? Agency Website what s your webpage hit rate? are hits from local people? Local Media Coverage how responsive is media before an emergency? available after hours? Door-to-Door personnel intensive Sirens, mobile loud speakers do people know what siren means? Wireless Emergency Alerts SMS broadcast to all cell phones Radio/TV Emergency Alert System legacy but can be helpful 2
What is IPAWS? IPAWS is a National System for Local Alerting Used by local, state, territorial, tribal, and federal agencies to send geotargeted emergency alert and warning messages to the public by: radio and television as Emergency Alert System (EAS) broadcasts cellular phones as Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA) NOAA All Hazards Weather Radio Internet applications and websites FEMA is responsible for*: Development, operations and maintenance, training for the IPAWS Partnering with the private sector communications industries Providing technical assistance to State and local governments to insure that timely and effective disaster warning is provided *in accordance with Public Law 114-143 - The IPAWS Modernization Act of 2015; Executive Order 13407 - Public Alert and Warning System; and the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, Sec. 202. Disaster Warnings 3
What does IPAWS look like to you? Sampling of 40+ vendors that support interoperability with IPAWS E Team On-The-Go Alerting Swift911 VESTA Alert 4
What does IPAWS Look Like to the Public? Emergency Messages Alerts on Radio / TV and cell phones! 5
Emergency Alert System (EAS) FCC regulations require all radio, TV, cable stations to monitor the IPAWS EAS feed and, in accordance with your state EAS plan, other radio/tv stations sources Emergency messages sent via IPAWS to EAS can support : Full message text for screen crawl/display audio attachments (mp3) Additional languages Check with your local stations to see if they will play alternate language messages 6
Emergency Alert System (EAS) Requires Local Coordination & Partnership Local Stations are not required to air your emergency message! Please go meet with them before you have an emergency EAS activation only plays/displays your emergency message one time Message audio/text is repeated twice during activation TV display format varies station to station 7
Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA)
Wireless Emergency Alerts Cell Broadcast technology Not affected by cell site network congestion Sent to all phones in the area Significantly different from SMS/email sign-up based alerting services Not subscription based true location based alerting - sends alerts to all phones in a cell coverage area - not to a database of phone numbers No sign-up or registration No app No tracking or delivery info or status feed back Phones are delivered opted-in - but can be turned off in settings. 90 character text only message Can include a URL/web link! 9 9
Wireless Emergency Alerts Alerts can be geo-targeted to area small than a county! Targeting is based on cell tower locations Some alert creation tools do not support WEA geo-targeting WEA TEXT: MANDATORY EVACUATION for Zones A and B in Flagler due to Hurricane Matthew; check media. EAS TEXT: A CIVIL AUTHORITY HAS ISSUED AN IMMEDIATE EVACUATION FOR THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES: Flagler AT 10:49 PM ON OCT 05, 2016 EFFECTIVE UNTIL 10:49 PM ON OCT 06, 2016. MESSAGE FROM Florida Emergency Management. MANDATORY EVACUATION for Zones A and B in Flagler due to Hurricane Matthew; check media. 10 10
WEA Changes on the way: URLs and phone numbers In message text enabled now 360 character message length 360 for 4G/LTE networks, 90 for legacy networks New alert category, Public Safety For less than Imminent Threat type messages Spanish language support Alert originator must include Spanish text Phone will display English or Spanish based on phone settings WEA test code Will be disabled by default Geo-Fencing to alert target area 11
What about testing/exercising? 12
IPAWS Lab IPAWS Test Lab supports alert and warning system evaluation, demonstration, exercises, testing, and practice Offline version of IPAWS with closed network alert broadcast systems Alert viewer website practice sending alerts and see system results 13
Lab provides offline version of IPAWS Practice sending alerts Production Certificate Live IPAWS OPEN Live networks = people s TVs, radios & cell phones! Emergency Test Certificate Test Environment IPAWS LAB devices at the IPAWS Lab only Emergency 14 14
DC Cook Evaluated Exercise EAS / IPAWS Demonstration May 23, 2017
Discussion Points Primary and Secondary EAS Exercise Criterion evaluated REP Program Planning Guidance Plans and Procedures Extent of Play FEMA JITC Lab Demonstration
Primary and Secondary EAS Over-the-air tone-alert radio LP-5 simultaneous broadcast over 7 stations Station monitoring assignments Daisy chain re-broadcast system Comlabs / EMnet EAS alerting software 2009 Internet and satellite redundancy Primary and alternate activation Use of Quick Alerts IPAWS MOA 2012 5 LP stations + 2 JICs Primary & Demo COG
Exercise Criterion Evaluated Evaluation Area 5 Criterion 5.a.1 Activities associated with primary alerting and notification of the public are completed in a timely manner following the initial decision by authorized offsite emergency officials to notify the public of an emergency situation. The initial instructional message to the public must include as a minimum the elements required by current REP guidance.
REP Program Planning Guidance Planning Standards E.5 establish a system for disseminating to the public appropriate information... e.g., the Emergency Alert System (EAS) E.6 establish administrative and physical means, and the time required for notifying and providing prompt instruction to the public E.7 provide written messages intended for the public, consistent with the licensee s classification scheme. In particular, draft messages to the public giving instructions with regard to specific protective actions to be taken J.10.c Means for notifying all segments of the transient and resident population
Berrien County EOP Basic Plan Warning and Communications Annex Organization Section Public Warning Organization. Public warning utilizes resources from the Berrien County Public Safety Communications Center (BCPSCC), law enforcement and fire service agencies, and the public information system and is activated by the warning entry point. Initial warning information is conveyed to the public through the Emergency Alert System (EAS) broadcasts on radio and television. The Berrien County EAS combines the use of the Emergency Management Network (EMnet), a FEMA approved satellite/internet based Integrated Public Alerting and Warning System (IPAWS) Alert Originator Software Provider (AOSP); over-the-air tone alert radio; telephone; and facsimile communications. These various modes provide for a redundant notification system to convey emergency information to the public through the EAS stations.
Berrien County EOP Basic Plan Warning and Communications Annex Organization Section EMnet is the primary local public notification system for a nuclear power plant incident. This system is used to generate Common Alerting Protocol (CAP) messages that are delivered to the IPAWS- OPEN for dissemination to the public through EAS, wireless emergency alerts, NOAA weather radio, and other unique systems. EMnet has the ability to send alert messages simultaneously to all five Southwestern EAS Area 6 Local Primary stations as a single activation. See the Berrien County EAS Operational Plan. EMnet and/or the use of route alerting are the backup alerting systems to be utilized in the event of a siren or multiple siren failures for a nuclear power plant incident. This includes the use of public address and siren systems on emergency response vehicles to alert the public in the affected areas(s).
Berrien County EOP Basic Plan Warning and Communications Annex Task & Execution Section Berrien County Emergency Alert System. Berrien County utilizes a dual delivery system for the dissemination of emergency alert messages to the public. The primary system, EMnet, is an IPAWS-CAP compliant software program that can send alerts with a single alert message through the IPAWS OPEN Alert Aggregator that can be received by all five of the Local Primary EAS stations that are part of the Southwestern Michigan, Region 6, EAS Area, NOAA All Hazard Weather Radios through the National Weather Service, cell phones and other mobile devices, internet services, and future CAP compliant technologies. The secondary system, over-the-air tone-alert radio, consists of sending an alert tone followed by an analog message over a radio frequency to a receiver located at our local primary radio station. This message is then broadcast to the public. Other stations in our EAS area monitor this station for EAS messages. These monitoring stations record and then re-broadcast the alert message. The Local Primary stations participate in the Berrien County EAS Plan which describes the local activation of EAS.
Berrien County EAS Plan Plan participants 5 Local Primary (LP) stations in Michigan EAS Area 6 Local media outlet in Indiana (South Bend EAS Area) National Weather Service (NWS) out of North Webster Indiana Plan developed and updated in cooperation with Regional Emergency Communications Committee (RECC) and South Bend Indiana LP station Plan approved by RECC, NWS in Indiana, and LP station operating out of Indiana County Plan consistent with the Regional and State EAS Plans County Plan is an attachment to the State EAS Plan
Warning and Notification Procedures Plan developed in cooperation with the Berrien County Public Safety Communications Center (BCPSCC) Details Radiological Emergency Preparedness (REP) EAS messaging process Describes the Rapidly Escalating incident EAS process
Berrien County s ANS
Midwest Family Broadcasting Emergency Alert System SOP Developed in cooperation between Midwest Family Broadcasting, BCSO/EMHSD, BCPSCC Describes station procedures for primary and secondary EAS activation
Preparation Practice Practice Practice Practice Practice Use of the JITC lab Webinar Message Viewer
Extent of Play Berrien County The Berrien County Pubic Safety Communication Center is the primary activation point for the Alert Notification System. Berrien County activates the Emergency Alert System using IPAWS. An interview with WCXT personnel may be conducted by DHS/FEMA following transmittal of EAS messages where appropriate. Actual sounding of the ANS system to the public will not be performed. The process will be explained through interview with Communications staff. Actual airing of EAS messages will not be performed. A Required Weekly Test (RWT) code will be used for demonstration. The vendor origination software, EMnet, has message status tracking features (Sent, Acknowledged, Aired, etc.). Such system logs and messages will be provided to FEMA.
Extent of Play
Documentation Provided to FEMA Berrien County IPAWS MOA IS-247a Certificates Demo Message NUW messages 1 & 2 Live RWT Message 1 & 2 Message Viewer Alert Information NUW messages 1 & 2 Alert Status Response NUW messages 1 & 2 Berrien EAS Device Log NUW & RWT messages 1 & 2
Demo Emergency Message Subject: EAS Nuclear Power Plant Warning From: MI.032 To: 026021 Attachments: MI_032_ID562_TM59244B56_en-US.mp3, M562.xml Message ID: 562 Originated: 10:49AM Tue 05/23/2017 Description: This is a message from the Chair of the Berrien County Board of Commissioners. At 1031 am today, a General Emergency has been declared at the Donald C. Cook Nuclear Plant. The Governor has declared a State of Disaster and has ordered an evacuation for areas 1, 3 and 6. Proceed to the following reception center at Coloma High School Please report to a reception center whether or not you need to go to a temporary shelter. Persons evacuating the area should bring personal care items, prescription drugs, and clothing for three days. Pets may accompany their owners, but will not be allowed inside the centers. Do not use the telephone except for emergencies. Persons leaving the area should follow the steps outlined in the Emergency Information Calendar that was mailed to you by American Electric Power. The evacuated area will be secured by the State and local police and access will be limited. Repeating, the Governor has declared a State of Disaster and ordered an evacuation of areas 1, 3 and 6 due to an emergency at the D.C. Cook Nuclear Plant. Stay tuned to your local radio or TV station for further information. Recommended Action: Evacuate areas 1, 3 and 6
Live Emergency Message Subject: EAS Required Weekly Test From: MI.032 To: 026021 Attachments: MI_032_ID1448_TM59244C6C_TM548F3C4A_en-US.mp3, M1448.xml Message ID: 1448 Originated: 10:51AM Tue 05/23/2017 Description: This is a required weekly test of the Southwestern Michigan Emergency Alert System originating from the Berrien County Emergency Operations Center. If this had been an actual emergency, such as a tornado, a toxic material release, nuclear plant incident, wide spread phone or power outages or other State or local emergency that affects your safety, official messages would have followed the alert tone. This concludes this test of the Emergency Alert System. Additional Info: http://berriencounty.org
Message Viewer Alert Information
Message Viewer Lab Response
IPAWS Lab EAS Device Log
Demonstration of FEMA IPAWS Lab Topic: NREP Panel Presentation Date and Time: Wednesday, April 18, 2018 8:00 am, Pacific Daylight Time (San Francisco, GMT-07:00) Event address for attendees: https://femaipawslab.webex.com/femaipawslab/onstage/g.php?mtid= e1d6e0f998e57bb973735c7508e5a0ba9 ------------------------------------------------------- Audio conference information ------------------------------------------------------- Call-in toll number (US/Canada): 1-650-479-3207 Access code: 665 803 248
NREP Conference Brief Joshua Barnes April 18, 2018
Integrated Alert and Warning System (IPAWS) REP Communities may elect to use IPAWS as a primary, backup, supplemental, or redundant means of Alert and Notification in their Radiological Emergency Preparedness Plan Using IPAWS requires the same documentation, planning and demonstration criteria as any other ANS and Procedures. 38
Coming Soon FEMA REPP is currently developing Guidance for the Regional RAC review and sign-off for ANS Plans and the Evaluation Reports (RPM Section V). Checklist for Reviewing IPAWS by the Regional RAC 39
Questions? ipaws@fema.dhs.gov