Brown, Former FEMA Head to Address AHMP Meeting
Michael D. Brown, the former director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) who led the federal government's initial response to the Hurricane Katrina disaster in 2005, will address the Alliance of Hazardous Materials ProfessionalsTM (AHMP) National Conference in September in San Diego.
Brown, who will address attendees of the AHMP annual meeting Sept. 1, will present a talk focusing on Communicating in a Crisis, Making Things Work When All the Wires Are Cut, and Homeland Insecurity. He also will discuss the role of AHMP members in
- preparing for and responding to natural and manmade disasters, including acts of terrorism;
- recognizing and acting on political, natural, and terrorist vulnerabilities in the management of hazardous materials;
- working with federal, state, and local officials before a disaster strikes; and
- assuming a position of leadership in community emergency preparedness planning.
During his tenure, Brown led FEMA through more than 160 federally declared disasters, including the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001; the Columbia space shuttle disaster in 2003; the 2003 Bam, Iran earthquake; the 2004 tsunami in South Asia; California and Western U.S. wildfires; as well as Hurricane Katrina.
The AHMP 2009 National Conference—themed "EHS&S—Steering a Course for Sustainability"—will be held Aug. 30 through Sept. 2 at the Sheraton San Diego Hotel & Marina. Online registration is available at www.ahmpnet.org; early- bird registration ends July 30.