FEMA overhauls IT systems as hurricane season fast approaches
NetworkWorld.com, 05/26/06
June 1 marks the first day of hurricane season 2006. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) hopes it’s well prepared.
Since the close of hurricane season ‘05 FEMA has made a handful of changes with the hope better supporting victims in the event of a disaster.
FEMA’s CIO Barry West and deputy CIO Jeanne Etzell talked about these changes with Network World.
From upgrading its networks to keeping first responders better informed to creating more ways for victims to file claims, FEMA has been busy these past eight months or so.
The most significant upgrade is probably the agency’s enhancements to its NEMIS, National Emergency Management Information System. FEMA upgraded its servers and hopes to support about 200,000 applications for a system per day.
The original system was designed to support up to 25,000 applications per day.
West and Etzell also point to security upgrades and how it’s using GPS to better track precious assets for victims such as food and water. By next year the agency hope to use RFID technology to enhance its asset tracking system further.
-Denise Pappalardo (denisep@nww.com)
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