It is now the year 2011.  Ten years ago, on September 11, the U.S. encountered terrorism of historical proportions as al Qa’ida attacked several prominent sites in the United States, affecting everyone in our Nation in some way.  But these attacks did not shatter the American will and spirit.

"In effect, our nation was entirely unprepared for an inevitable disaster," said William K. Reilly, co-chair of the National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling.

Two massive, five-alarm fires in Baltimore City shut down traffic, displaced workers and kept fire fighters busy for one long, cold night this week. The first fire started on “The Block” at 3:30 p.m. on Dec.

The tragedy of the BP oil spill has prompted lawmakers and leaders in emergency management to renew the call for private sector preparedness that emerged after the 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina catastrophes.

Earlier today, BP officials expressed cautious optimism regarding their latest attempt to stem the flow of oil from a blown out well a mile below the surface of the Gulf of Mexico. Of course, even if the so-called “top hat” procedure is deemed a success, an untold amount of oil will continue to gush into the ocean, possibly until two relief wells are completed in about two months.

FEMA’s Regional Catastrophic Preparedness Grant Program (RCPG), not surprisingly, provides grant funding to selected urban areas across the country to improve catastrophic preparedness capabilities.

The Middle Atlantic Regional Center of Excellence for Biodefense and Emerging Infectious Diseases Research (MARCE) represents a consortium of 45 scientists from 15 research institutions located in the Northeast United States who collaborate to research and develop new or improved therapeutic, vaccine, or diagnostic products that can be used by the public h