Pictured Above: The Better Impact logo and a sign welcoming

guests to an emergency shelter.

Effective this summer, Multnomah County will move away from using SignUp Genius to manage shelter volunteer registration, to its new platform, Better Impact. 

Better Impact will be the sole platform for County staff and community volunteers to sign up for emergency shelter support shifts during severe weather events. Whether you are a current volunteer or are interested in volunteering for the first time, you must have a Better Impact account to sign-up as a shelter volunteer or any role supporting emergency activations. You will not be able to volunteer during an emergency activation without a Better Impact account. Click here to register for an account with Better Impact.

This account creation process should take approximately ten minutes. Please check your email for next steps upon registering. As opportunities to support emergency response arise, you will be notified by Better Impact via email to sign up for shifts. 

Already have a Better Impact account? You can sign up for volunteer shifts using your existing log in by merging profiles.

Reference Better Impact how-to videos for extra help signing up, including this video that walks users through the landing page after creating an account.

Questions? Please email eoc.adminsection@multco.us. 

A version of this article was printed in the March 25th edition of Multnomah County's Wednesday Wire.

Pictured Left: New stormwater tree wells in Gresham, Oregon.

The City of Gresham held a gathering on March 31st to celebrate the construction of 32 stormwater tree wells and planted trees in the public right-of-way in the Rockwood Triangle, at the boundaries of E Burnside Street, SE Stark Street, and SE 181st Avenue. The project was supported by Federal Hazard Mitigation Grant Program post-disaster funding offered from the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The tree wells are designed to capture and filter rain runoff and reduce local flooding impacts. But the project was also selected to increase the tree canopy in a notable urban heat island location, where summer temperature peaks get much hotter than other parts of the County. This project benefit directly supported the public health focus of the COVID post-disaster grant opportunity.

The tree wells are also engineered to provide the best chance for the trees to survive and thrive along a major traffic corridor, by creating structural soils under the surrounding sidewalk. The project expands work the City of Gresham and Multnomah County’s Office of Sustainability have been doing for some time to increase tree planting on private lots in underserved neighborhoods with a lack of tree canopy.

An article on the event was published in the April 1 edition of The Outlook.

Pictured Right: MCEM Employees utilize the DIVVY water pump.

On Tuesday, February 10th, MCEM collaborated with Sauvie Island Fire Department to conduct a test of the DIVVY portable emergency water supply system. These tests occur regularly with partners across the region. These systems were purchased through a UASI grant in 2018 and distributed to the Department of Criminal Justice, PSU and Port of Portland. The system consists of three tanks and they can provide 750 gallons of potable (safe to drink) water in about three hours.

After setting up the system and pumping water, the team used a combination of chlorine and a charcoal filter to purify the water. Testing strips were used after the chlorination period was complete and at the end point after passing through the charcoal filter. Following this process, all attendees drank the water and confirmed that it was safe to drink.

For information or interest in the next exercise, please contact Yvette Osborne at yvette.osborne@multco.us.

Upcoming Events

You can view upcoming training opportunities through the following events calendars: Multnomah County, the Regional Disaster Preparedness Organization (subscribe option), the State of Oregon (subscribe option), and the State of Washington.

Training Offerings

April 15: Responding to and Investigating Bomb Threats and Swatting Hoaxes

• Host: FBI Boston and Massachusetts State Police
• Time: 8:00-9:30 PST (Option 1) and 11:00-12:30 PST (Option 2)
• Location: Virtual (A Microsoft Teams link will be emailed the morning of the training to registrants)
• Cost: Free
• Prerequisites: None
• Registration: Register Here
• An overview of bomb threat and swatting trends, law enforcement best practices, and evacuation decision-making.

April 21: Disaster Resource Center Info Session

• Host: Multnomah County Department of County Human Services
• Time: 1:00pm-1:45pm PST
• Location: Virtual (Google Meet Link)
• Cost: Free
• Prerequisites: None
• Registration: None
• Learn More

April 21: Disaster Resource Center Staff Roles

• Host: Multnomah County Department of County Human Services
• Time: 2:00pm-4:00pm PST
• Location: Virtual
• Cost: Free
• Prerequisites: None
• Registration: Register Here
• Learn More

April 30: G0191 - ICS / EOC Interface

• Host: Marion County Emergency Management
• Time: 8:00am-5:00pm PST
• Location: 5155 Silverton Road NE, Salem 97305
• Cost: Free
• Prerequisites: IS-100 and IS-200
• Registration: Register Here
• Learn More

May 11-12: L1302 - Continuity of Operations Program Management Course

• Host: Oregon Department of Emergency Management
• Time: 8:00am-5:00pm PST
• Location: 3930 Fairview Industrial Dr SE Salem OR 97302
• Cost: Free
• Prerequisites: IS-1300.a and ELK1301 Continuity Planning
• Registration: Register Here
• Learn More

May 13: Disaster Resource Center Info Session

• Host: Multnomah County Department of County Human Services
• Time: 1:00pm-1:45pm PST
• Location: Virtual (Google Meet Link)
• Cost: Free
• Prerequisites: None
• Registration: None
• Learn More

May 13: Disaster Resource Center Staff Roles

• Host: Multnomah County Department of County Human Services
• Time: 2:00pm-4:00pm PST
• Location: Virtual
• Cost: Free
• Prerequisites: None
• Registration: Register Here
• Learn More

May 20: Be 2 Weeks Ready Program Coordinator Training

• Host: Oregon Department of Emergency Management
• Time: 8:00am-1:00pm PST
• Location: 3930 Fairview Industrial Dr SE Salem OR 97302
• Cost: Free
• Prerequisites: IS-1300.a and ELK1301 Continuity Planning
• Registration: Register Here
• Learn More

May 27-28: AWR-326 - Tornado Awareness

• Host: National Disaster Preparedness Training Center
• Time: 10:00am-2:00pm PST
• Location: Virtual
• Cost: Free
• Prerequisites: None
• Registration: Register Here
• Learn More

June 1-5: L0110 - National Emergency Management Basic Academy Train the Trainer

• Host: Oregon Department of Emergency Management
• Time: 8:00am-5:00pm PST
• Location: 3930 Fairview Industrial Dr SE Salem OR 97302
• Cost: Free
• Prerequisites: IS-100, IS-200, IS-700, and IS-800
• Registration: Register Here
• Learn More