November 13, 2013 - Mayor Rawlings-Blake announced today that C.P. Hsia, director of planning for the Mayor’s Office of Emergency Management, will be deploying with a team of emergency management professionals to one of the most severely impacted areas of the Philippines to provide incident management support for medical teams operating there.  The initial team members will spend seven days on the ground, creating a sustainable organizational structure to streamline delivery of medical care and supplies to the region.
 
“It is always sad when tragedy strikes, but it is beautiful to witness people pull together to get through the tragic situation,” said Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake. “I stand behind Mr. Hsia and wish him well, as he travels to the Philippines to share some Baltimore love with the thousands of Filipinos impacted by Typhoon Haiyan.”

The incident support team will work with medical responders and use the Incident Command System to organize and support medical relief operations for those affected by Typhoon Haiyan.  The structure will incorporate newly arriving resources and personnel with existing operations.
 
Mr. Hsia is a trained paramedic and has experience in managing complex events and organizing emergency response, which he gained through training while working for the City of Baltimore and real-world incidents.  Since Baltimore is compliant with the National Incident Management System (NIMS), Hsia has been trained to manage emergencies all around the country and beyond. 
 
“CP has received the right training and is a proven leader,” said Robert Maloney, Deputy Chief of Emergency Management and Public Safety.  “He will be able to bring order to the chaos and help those in need.”
 
Typhoon Haiyan made landfall in the Philippines early morning local time last Friday, November 8. It was the strongest storm on record, sustaining winds of 195 mph. The official death toll is estimated at 2,275, and recovery efforts are still underway. An estimated 580,000 people are currently displaced. Many affected areas have yet to receive aid, as access to these areas has not yet been restored.