Region X

Serving AK, ID, OR, WA

Active Disasters

Evaluating Losses Avoided Through Hazard Mitigation - City of Centralia

(PDF 1MB, TXT 21KB)

Summer Wildfire Safety

Photo of Susan Reinertson If you live on a wooded lot, or in an urban-wildland interface area and have not visited the Firewise Homepage at www.firewise.org, or the U.S. Fire Administration website at: www.usfa.dhs.gov - I urge you to do so - now. If balancing conventional landscaping techniques with sound wildfire mitigation practices sometimes seems counterintuitive - these websites help bring the two concepts together.

Take proactive steps now to safeguard your loved ones, property and cherished possessions by creating a Safety Zone or Defensible Perimeter:

Cut back flammable weeds and brush, and remove branches within 15 feet of the ground.
Clear flammable debris well away from structures and phone or power poles.
Remove vines from the walls of your home and prune tree branches and shrubs within 15 feet of stovepipes and chimneys.
Stack firewood away from your home and store combustible materials only in approved containers.
Mow regularly and rake leaves, limbs and twigs.
Keep roofs, chimneys and gutters clean.
Install smoke detectors on every floor, and near sleeping areas.
Keep fire tools (shovel, rake, water bucket and ladders) handy.

Check with your insurance agent and make sure that coverage is still adequate and up to date for the hazards you face. Since wildfires can also dramatically increase the chance of flooding, flood insurance through the National Flood Insurance Program should be considered when building your all-hazards insurance arsenal.

If the worst comes to worst, and wildfire forces you into the role of first responder, you want that first response to be your best response, and if you act now, it can be.

Nome Residents Pay Less For Flood Insurance

Mayor of Nome, Alaska, Denise Michels (L) receives recognition for her city’s CRS achievements from FEMA Regional Administrator Susan Reinertson. FEMA News Photo, Robert Forgit.

Residents of Nome, Alaska are enjoying reduced flood insurance premiums, thanks to the city’s active participation in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) Community Rating System. FEMA Regional Administrator Susan Reinertson visited Nome on 14 July 2008 to personally acknowledge the achievement. (Read More)

FEMA Representatives Share Information At The Grays Harbor Trade Show

Mitigation specialist Jose Ruvira talks with visitors to the FEMA Mitigation booth at the Grays Harbor Trade Fair FEMA was well represented at the popular Grays Harbor Trade Show, in Aberdeen, Washington in early February. Mitigation specialists talked with hundreds of interested residents about how to prepare for the next possible disaster by re-building safer, smarter and stronger.

More than 650 mitigation publications were distributed to those who visited the Mitigation booth. In terms that people could understand, FEMA specialists talked about best practices, what's available on the market, and what's the best siding, roofing, insulation, etc. for extreme weather.

Community Relations representatives also had a booth, which was visited by 112 people. They answered general questions about disaster assistance and were able to refer people to the SBA, the Mitigation booth or the nearby DRC. The CR specialists discussed FEMA programs with attendees and provided informational handouts in English and Spanish.

Several radio stations broadcast live from the Trade Show all day long. During the day, representatives from Mitigation, CR and PIO were interviewed and presented information about mitigation practices and FEMA disaster assistance programs.

The annual Trade Show, sponsored by the Grays Harbor Chamber of Commerce, attracted an estimated 10,000-15,000 people, who visited over 80 booths. It was held February 2nd at the South Shore Mall in Aberdeen.

Center for Homeland Defense and Security Marks Fifth Anniversary

L to R FEMA R10 Regional Administrator Susan Reinertson and Chuck Eaneff, DHS Fellow, Naval Postgraduate School, Center for Homeland Defense and Security. Photo credit: NPS (Naval Post Graduate School) News Photo Javier Chagoya. Administrator Paulison traveled to Monterey, Calif., to participate in events marking the fifth anniversary of the Naval Postgraduate School's Center for Homeland Defense and Security (CHDS). The Center's homeland security master's degree and other education programs are supported by FEMA's National Preparedness Directorate.

Speaking at the anniversary reception January 29, Paulison described the Center as "a national resource for hundreds of other academic and government organizations around the nation." He said the alumni's research, interagency and intergovernmental networking and ongoing leadership are "helping to shape the evolution of homeland security."

Susan Reinertson, FEMA's Region X Administrator and a CHDS graduate, served as a moderator for the panel discussion Homeland Security: The Past Five Years and Looking Forward Five Years. Representatives of other DHS components, the FBI, NORTHCOM and the Department of Defense also participated in the panel.

For more information on CHDS and its homeland security master's and other programs, which are free to DHS employees, see the website at www.chds.us.

Portland Hosts Regional Interagency Steering Committee

FEMA Logistics Management Directorate Assistant Administrator Eric Smith fields questions on resourcing catastrophic events. FEMA news photo/Mike Howard Over 80 state homeland security advisors, emergency managers and federal partners met in Portland, Oregon on 30 January 2007 to report out on operational capabilities and the new National Response Framework. The new FEMA Region X RISC structure consolidates the Alaska RISC and the Northwest RISC into one robust Regional RISC for Alaska, Idaho, Oregon and Washington State.

Region X Stands Up Regional Advisory Council

The Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) Region 10 announces the creation of a Regional Advisory Council for the Pacific Northwest, to advise the Regional Administrator on all aspects of emergency management in an effort to ensure close coordination with all involved.

The council is made up of elected officials, emergency managers, and emergency response providers from state, local and tribal governments from the four-state region which includes Alaska, Idaho, Oregon and Washington. According to FEMA Regional Administrator Susan Reinertson, a primary goal of the council will be to improve communication and understanding among the various organizations involved in emergency management and response.

"Our goal was to attract the most knowledgeable and dedicated people with practical experience in management and on the ground to make sure we can all work together more effectively when disaster strikes," said Reinertson. "We can't wait until a disaster strikes to start creating common understanding and shared sense of purpose."

RX Administrator Susan Reinertson chaired the first meeting of the RX Regional Advisory Council (RAC) in Bellevue, WA on November 28, 2007.

Dillingham, AK Fire Department Receives $313,500 Grant

Dennis Varner, Dillingham Mayor Alice Ruby, along with Robert Powers, FEMA's Deputy Assistant Administrator for Disaster Operations, Dillingham Fire Chief Norman Heyano and FEMA's Alaska area manager Robert Forgit at the check presentation. FEMA Photograph by Mike Howard FEMA awards a $313,500 AFG to the City of Dillingham Volunteer Fire Department and Rescue Squad. FEMA's Deputy Assistant Administrator for Disaster Operations Robert Powers presented this grant to Dillingham's Fire Department Chief Norman Heyano. The Dillingham AFG grant will be used to purchase a new pumper/tanker fire truck.

Region 10 Federal Agency Media Guide

R10 Cover (PDF 6.4MB, TXT 200KB)

What We Do

From its offices in Bothell, FEMA's Region X works in partnership with the emergency management agencies of Alaska, Idaho, Oregon and Washington to prepare for, respond to and recover from disasters. Region X's most common challenges are severe storms and winter storms that can cause flooding, flash-flooding and landslides throughout the region, and earthquakes and tornados.

Constructed on the site of a decommissioned Nike missile site, the Bothell Federal Regional Center (FRC) is one of six similar operations centers built during the late 1960s. Total cost of design, construction, etc. was $1,860,000 (estimated cost of constructing a similar building in 1983 was over $25 million, and the cost today would easily exceed $40 million). The building itself is a subterranean office structure designed to be reasonably survivable in the event of foreseeable natural or man-made disasters.

Who We Are

The Region employs 85 full-time employees, and can draw on a cadre of over 425 Disaster Assistance Employees (DAEs) or "reservists" during a Presidential Disaster Declaration.

Regional organization includes six directorates, or divisions:

Regional Administrator's Office