PPW Newsletter

The Partnership for Public Warning (PPW) addresses issues associated with providing warning and information to the public during emergencies. It is a partnership between the private sector and government entities at the local, state, and federal levels. The goal of the PPW is to streamline the coordination efforts of the warning and notification process.

Getting the public to look for abducted children is now a hot topic with the public, emergency managers, and legislators. The National AMBER Alert Network Act of 2002 (S2896) sponsored by Senators Hutchison and Feinstein was just passed by unanimous consent in the Senate. A House Bill is in the works. The President has promised the nation that he will sign the bill when it reaches his desk.

From public warning and alerting perspectives, the issue of enlisting the public to help find abducted children is not as clear cut as it may be to legislators and the public. Emergency managers and the rest of the warning stakeholder community have valid concerns. They want to make sure that the EAS public warning system is preserved for large-scale life safety events.

The concept of an Amber alert began when Amber Hagerman, a nine year old from Arlington, Texas, was taken from in front of her home while riding her bicycle. Amber was found dead four days after she was abducted. Broadcasters and local public safety officials devised a program to ask local residents to look for the abductor based on the Emergency Alert System (EAS). The program worked. It meant to Amber’s family and friends that Amber had not died in vain. Since Amber’s abduction and death, two Amber EAS activations in the Dallas-Forth Worth region have resulted in one successful recovery of a child, and one false alarm. Other Amber success stories have been documented nationwide.


	The Partnership for Public Warning (PPW) addresses issues associated with providing warning and information to the public during emergencies. It is a partnership between the private sector and government entities at the local, state, and federal levels. The goal of the PPW is to streamline the coordination efforts of the warning and notification process. Amber is Not all Black and White Richard Rudman Getting the public to look for abducted children is now a hot topic with the public, emergency managers, and legislators. The National AMBER Alert Network Act of 2002 (S2896) sponsored by Senators Hutchison and Feinstein was just passed by unanimous consent in the Senate. A House Bill is in the works. The President has promised the nation that he will sign the bill when it reaches his desk. From public warning and alerting perspectives, the issue of enlisting the public to help find abducted children is not as clear cut as it may be to legislators and the public. Emergency managers and the rest of the warning stakeholder community have valid concerns. They want to make sure that the EAS public warning system is preserved for large-scale life safety events. The concept of an Amber alert began when Amber Hagerman, a nine year old from Arlington, Texas, was taken from in front of her home while riding her bicycle. Amber was found dead four days after she was abducted. Broadcasters and local public safety officials devised a program to ask local residents to look for the abductor based on the Emergency Alert System (EAS). The program worked. It meant to Amber’s family and friends that Amber had not died in vain. Since Amber’s abduction and death, two Amber EAS activations in the Dallas-Forth Worth region have resulted in one successful recovery of a child, and one false alarm. Other Amber success stories have been documented nationwide. continued »	Janes WMD 2002: Protecting the Community November 4-5, 2002, Washington, D.C. More information Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Response Association International (DERA) , Annual Meeting and Workshop. Denver, CO, November 13-15, 2002. (This meeting is re-scheduled from August 22-23, 2002) More Information 2002 Fall Education Conference of the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), Atlanta, GA, November 16-20, 2002. More Information The NEMA 2003 Mid-Year Conference will take place in Washington, D.C., February 22-26, 2003. More Information Disaster Management Workshop (University of Wisconsin) Focus is “Managing Mass Population Displacement Emergencies.” March 12 - 21, 2003 Registration Information First Annual Meeting of the Partnership for Public Warning, McLean, VA, May 20-21, 2003

Updated 10/10/2002	next »	Top of Page