popular logistics

Searching the Responder Knowledge Base, and even logging in as a guest (some of the restricted material won’t show up), for every piece of equipment - or category of equipment - the RKB will list the relevant grants. Or - find a grant program - and you can generate a list of allowable equipment purchases under that grant. Here’s an example:

This page, “Responder Knowledge Base - Grants and Assistance Programs Detaila - FY07 Urban Areas Security Initiative (UASI) program,” provides that states are the eligible grant-seekers - although not the only ultimate recipients of funds:

The program assists Urban Areas in building and sustaining capabilities to prevent, protect against, respond to, and recover from threats or acts of terrorism.

The FY 2007 UASI program provides the opportunity to enhance regional preparedness efforts. Urban Areas must employ regional approaches to overall preparedness and are encouraged to adopt regional response structures whenever appropriate to meet the goals identified in the Urban Area Homeland Security Strategy and common, measurable objectives. Security and preparedness officials at all levels should seek opportunities to leverage funding from multiple sources whenever possible and not restrict their activities to Federal funding alone. UASI funding will be provided to identified Urban Area authorities through the SAAs. In some instances Urban Area boundaries cross State borders. States must ensure that the identified Urban Areas take an inclusive regional approach to the development and implementation of the FY 2007 UASI program and involve the contiguous jurisdictions, mutual aid partners, port authorities, rail and transit authorities, State agencies, Citizen Corps Council(s), and MMRS(s) in their program activities.

In a memo dated August 2, 2007. Corey Gruber, Acting Deputy Administrator, National Preparedness Directorate of FEMA, wrote

This Information Bulletin (IB) is to clarify that Homeland Security Grant Program (HSGP) funds are allowable to support and deliver the following training:

• Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) basic training for volunteers in eighborhoods, schools, campuses, workplaces, and all other venues determined by the agency that sponsors the local CERT Program
• Supplemental training for CERT members who have completed the basic training
• CERT Train-the-Trainer course
• Campus CERT Train-the-Trainer course
• Teen CERT Train-the-Trainer course

According to the Citizen Corp website, accessed today, there are 2,716. Link to that statistic here. There’s no telling from this website how many people are in each time, what if any advanced training

We’ve been thinking about this a bit: perhaps part of the standard inventory for CERT teams should be a few cargo bicycles or carts that can be pulled by bicycles - or by people. (It’s hard to find donkeys and burros in our part of Brooklyn).

Here’s a design from the Netherlands:

Here’s a link to the U.S. importer. They’ve got a number of other models, too.

Here’s cart - other models of this product are in use by the U.S. military - they’ve got one that supports a stretcher - check out how compactly it stores:

And here it is folded up:

 Link to the Charlie’s Horse Deployment System.

We’re going to see if we can find them in use locally and see how they hold up.

I’ve been looking for a while for a high-visibility vest - ideally ANSI Class III (visible at - I think it’s 1,250 feet - in poor lighting conditions, like snow or rain, visible from all sides) - that also  had pockets. And had great difficulty finding a garment that was serious about storage and visibility. Lots of great special ops-type vests - in any color you want as long as it’s black.

I’ve been looking every time I find a new EMS or SAR or similar supplied. I  stumbled on  these guys through a Google search (I think for “ANSI” +”vest” +”pocket”).

Here’s a link to the vest. 

And, of course, it comes in any color you want, as long as it’s high-visibility yellow. Trimmed with Scotchlite at virtually every opportunity. The person I spoke with, Mark Robinett, told me that while they don’t make this in-house, it was designed by Dan White of AllMed. So I’ve ordered one - and I’ve got high expectations. (My nefarious scheme is to try to get them to add some Reflexite to each surface, some velcro or dual-lock on the back and/or front for names, assignments, etc).

New Yorkers involved in CERT stuff know that people are often selling “CERT” gear that doesn’t remotely approach the ANSI specs, and is very overpriced.

I’ll try to add photos of the AllMed vest - and the not-so-useful “CERT” vests to this post later.

I did some quick comparisons of AllMed’s gear and prices and my impression is that they’re very  competitive about price - and, while they have a pretty wide range of merchandise - one gets the impression they’re fussy about the brands they stock.

Here’s a link to AllMed.

Note: not that we’re not thoroughly corrupt (we are, after all, New Yorkers, and have a reputation to live up to) - but because we’re going to review this item, we paid for it, as is our current policy.