The "Forum on Catastrophe Preparedness: Partnering to Protect Workplaces," will take place April 7 in South San Francisco. It will be presented by the California Commission on Health and Safety and Workers' Compensation and the Division of Safety and Health, along with the Santa Monica-based RAND Corp., a nonprofit research and analysis organization.
Timed to coincide with the centennial anniversary of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, the forum will provide current, relevant information on disaster and catastrophe preparedness to educate employers, workers and safety personnel.
The forum will offer an opportunity for stakeholders to:
- Identify and review the roles of federal, state and local government agencies and organizations in the case of natural disasters and terrorist attacks.
- Discuss and share ideas for safety in responding to natural disasters and terrorist attacks.
- Present the latest research on the safety and health of emergency responders in natural disasters and terrorist attacks.
- Examine how employers and workers can be better prepared in case of natural disasters and terrorist attacks.
- Consider areas where improvements need to be made.
One hundred years after the catastrophic earthquake of 1906, earthquake risk and the risk of other catastrophes including terrorism continue to loom large for Californians and the nation. As demonstrated in the Sept. 11 attacks, the risk of a catastrophe while people are at work and the risks to the workers who respond require the urgent attention of employers, workers and policymakers.
Online registration is available at http://www.rand.org/events/catastrophe_prep.html. For more information about the forum, its invited speakers and the forum partners, visit http://www.dir.ca.gov/chswc.
