For Immediate Release
#65-21

NYC EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT'S LATEST 'PREP TALK' PODCAST HIGHLIGHTS THE IMPORTANCE OF EXERCISING EMERGENCY PLANS

{Click here to listen to episode 74}

November 15, 2021 — One of the best ways to be prepared for an emergency is having a plan, but it is imperative to practice your plan to ensure you are prepared for anything that comes your way. On the latest episode of "Prep Talk," Paula Carlson, director of exercises at NYC Emergency Management, discusses the importance of exercising emergency plans and how she and her team conduct drills and exercises to evaluate the City's emergency plans. Carlson also shares how exercises have helped change the City's perspective on how to prepare for and respond to different emergencies. For example, during exercises with agency partners through initiatives such as the regional quarterly exercise working group, emergency managers have the opportunity to share best practices and prepare for different hazards. Carlson also gives insight into how she and her team exercise citywide event scenarios involving large crowds, such as marathons and parades, and how to address various challenges that can occur during planned, large-scale events. She also shares her number one concert preparedness tip.

"A good exercise is when something goes wrong because we learn from that and can fix it for the real-world response," Carlson said. "Families, neighbors, everyone can and should exercise their emergency plans and it doesn't have to be a complex process."

You can listen to the latest episode on SoundCloud, iTunes, and Spreaker. 

Profile

Paula Carlson joined NYC Emergency Management in 2003 as an intern in Watch Command and is currently the director of exercises. Paula and her team design, conduct, and evaluate the City’s exercises that help to inform our citywide preparedness efforts. Examples of exercises include command post drills with NYC Emergency Management, FDNY, and NYPD to evaluate incident command during coordinated attack scenarios, interagency exercises for the City’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC), drills for NYC Emergency Management staff to review and practice their on-call roles and responsibilities, and exercises with volunteer partners to exercise coordination and communication for response and recovery. Outside of work, Carlson is an avid charity runner, concert-goer, and volunteers with God's Love We Deliver and New York Cares.

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